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law firms

FILE - President Donald Trump speaks at an education event and executive order signing in the East Room of the White House in Washington, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
Mar 28, 2025

Major law firm reaches deal with Trump to avoid White House order even as two other firms sue

WASHINGTON (AP) — A prominent international law firm reached a deal with President Donald Trump on Friday to dedicate at least $100 million in free legal services and to review its hiring practices, averting a punishing executive order like the ones directed at nearly a half-dozen other major legal institutions in recent weeks. The deal with Skadden, […]

Feb 28, 2024

Professional Services: Making it legal

Continuing a trend of the past several years, mergers and growth continue to be in fashion among law firms. McGuireWoods, the largest firm headquartered in Virginia, has its eye out for new partners, firm Chairman Jon Harmon said in 2023. “I believe the legal industry is consolidating, and that, over time, there’s going to be […]

Jan 30, 2024

Top Five February 2024

The top five most-read daily news stories on VirginiaBusiness.com from Dec. 15, 2023, to Jan. 15 were led by the announcement that Fortune 500 IT company DXC Technology replaced its top executive. 1   |   DXC Technology replaces Mike Salvino The Ashburn-based company replaced Salvino, its chairman, president and CEO, with interim President and […]

Dec 27, 2023

Lynchburg and Danville law firms to merge

The law firms of Petty, Livingston, Dawson & Richards in Lynchburg and Southern Virginia Legal (SoVa Legal) in Danville will merge to become PLDR Law beginning Jan. 1, 2024, the two law firms announced Wednesday. Together, the two firms will jointly have 16 attorneys and have offices in Lynchburg and Danville, serving communities across Central […]

Nov 30, 2023

The 24th edition of the Virginia Business Legal Elite

Launched in cooperation with the Virginia Bar Association in 2000, Virginia Business’ Legal Elite polls lawyers licensed to practice in Virginia each year, asking them to identify which of their peers are the top attorneys across 21 categories of legal specialties. In compiling the Legal Elite, Virginia Business contacted more than 14,000 attorneys and more […]

Aug 30, 2023

Law firms

Woods Rogers Vandeventer Black Chairman Victor Cardwell oversaw the 2022 merger that resulted in Virginia’s fifth largest law firm. Photo by Don Petersen
Feb 27, 2023

Resetting the bar

Two venerable Virginia law firms — Roanoke’s Woods Rogers PLC and Norfolk’s Vandeventer Black LLP — combined forces in July 2022, creating the state’s fifth largest firm, Woods Rogers Vandeventer Black PLC, based in Roanoke. It’s a true statewide firm, with branch offices in Norfolk, Richmond, Lynchburg and Charlottesville, in addition to locations in Kitty […]

“The demand for talent is the highest I’ve seen in 26 years,” says Brooks Smith, managing partner of Troutman Pepper’s Richmond office. Photo by Rick DeBerry
Apr 28, 2022

Legal review

In law firms across Virginia, power is now definitely on the side of individual attorneys, who can command larger salaries and other perks so long as they’re willing to cope with heavier workloads. As demand for legal services has soared, the number of lawyers available to perform that work has slumped, leaving even the most […]

L to R: Woods Rogers and Vandeventer Black leaders Paul Julius, Daniel Summerlin, Victor Caldwell, Deborah Casey and Michael Sterling discuss the firms' impending merger. Photo by Will Hawkins
Apr 20, 2022

Woods Rogers, Vandeventer Black law firms to merge July 1

Woods Rogers PLC and Vandeventer Black LLP announced Wednesday that the two law firms have agreed to merge as Woods Rogers Vandeventer Black, creating the state’s fifth-largest firm, with more than 130 attorneys and a total workforce of 250 people. The merger will go into effect July 1. Daniel Summerlin, president of Roanoke-based Woods Rogers, […]

Apr 4, 2022

Hunton Andrews Kurth promotes execs

Virginia’s second-largest law firm, Richmond-based Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP, has named a new executive committee chair, the firm announced Monday. Randall S. Parks will succeed George C. Howell III as the chair of the firm’s executive committee. Parks joined the firm (then Hunton & Williams LLP) in 1988. Howell served as chair for five years, […]

Feb 27, 2022

The big crunch

Although the “Great Resignation” is hitting other industries harder, Virginia law firms are experiencing a tight labor market while also seeing increased demand for services. Alison McKee, a past president of the Virginia Bar Association and an attorney at Kaufman & Canoles PC in Virginia Beach, notes that “2021 was the busiest year in a […]

Nov 30, 2021

The 22nd edition of the Virginia Business Legal Elite

Launched in cooperation with the Virginia Bar Association in 2000, Virginia Business’ Legal Elite polls lawyers licensed to practice in Virginia each year, asking them to identify which of their peers are the top attorneys across 20 categories of legal specialties. In compiling this year’s Legal Elite, Virginia Business contacted more than 14,000 attorneys and […]

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