2024 DIVERSITY DATABASE UNDERWRITER Clifford Chance US LLP

With 2,500 lawyers across more than 30 offices around the globe, Clifford Chance is a legal behemoth. The firm boasts a growing practice in the U.S. and a global reputation that shines.

Brits and Yanks

The modern Clifford Chance was created in 1987 when giant U.K. firms Coward Chance and Clifford Turner merged, creating an entity The Times of London called “the country’s first mega law firm.” Indeed, Clifford Chance was twice as large as the firm that had previously been the U.K.’s largest: Linklaters & Paines. Over the years, Clifford Chance has opened offices and built client lists around the world, adopting a cross-border focus well before such an outlook became commonplace. At the same time, the firm grew from hundreds of attorneys to thousands, which enabled it to take on several major deals and cases and to work on them simultaneously. 

Starting in the 1990s, Clifford Chance trailblazed the way forward for international firms practicing U.S. law. Now over two decades removed from its merger with New York litigation powerhouse Rogers & Wells, Clifford Chance is a thriving, full-service U.S. firm with over 300 lawyers and offices in Houston, New York, and Washington, DC. According to the firm, its U.S. practice is currently the firm’s No. 1 priority.

Delivering the Best

Today, Clifford Chance has 33 offices spanning key markets across the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, with a particularly strong reputation in the financial sector. The firm offers substantive experience in a wide array of practice areas and industry sectors, including banking and finance, capital markets, corporate, litigation and dispute resolution, real estate, tax pensions, and employment. The firm also offers numerous cross-practice areas, such as Latin America (which includes energy and infrastructure, M&A, and capital markets), regulatory, and technology (which includes fintech). 

First years in the firm’s transactional practice enter the Clifford Chance Transactional Pool for two-and-a-half years and can receive assignments in banking and finance, capital markets, corporate, and real estate. A dedicated assignment team oversees the pool and aims to provide associates with assignments that align with their long-term goals.

Lawyers at the firm can also make their practice more efficient by calling on the firm’s Best Delivery team. According to the firm, “These specialists focus on continuous improvement, project management, and legal technology to help make the practice of law more efficient and allow our associates to better focus on the legal aspects of each matter.”

Commitment by Committee

Looking to improve diversity? Clifford Chance has a committee for that. The firm’s Diversity Committee is comprised of six subcommittees: the Asian and Pacific Islanders Subcommittee; the Black and Latino Subcommittee; the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT+) Subcommittee (known as Arcus); Veterans and Affiliates (known as CliffVets); the Women’s Subcommittee; and the Working Parents Subcommittee. The firm is vocal about its commitment to creating a diverse workplace and has put its money where its mouth is by achieving Mansfield Certification.

• Clifford Chance advised on the launch of "HyDeal North America,” a consultation platform established by the Green Hydrogen Coalition with the aim to build scaled supply chains that deliver green hydrogen at $1.50/kg by 2030.
• Clifford Chance advised the international aircraft leasing company Avolon with respect to its ground-breaking aircraft order with Vertical Aerospace Ltd., an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOL) manufacturer. This was the world's largest-ever eVTOL aircraft order.
• Clifford Chance advised Goldman Sachs & Co., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC as Joint Bookrunners and Scotia Capital (USA) Inc. as Global Coordinator and Green Structuring Agent in the issuance by ISA Interchile S.A. of $1.2 billion aggregate principal amount of 4.500% Senior Secured Notes due 2056. This was the largest green project bond in Latin America to date.
• Clifford Chance is advising publicly owned, non-traded REIT Corporate Property Associates 18 Incorporated (CPA:18 – Global) on its proposed $2.7 billion merger with W. P. Carey Inc, one of the largest net lease REITs.

• Top 25 firm in Associate Satisfaction, Career Development, Retention, and Pro Bono, 2022—Chambers Associate Satisfaction Survey.
• Top 10 firm in Quality of Life and DE&I, 2022—Chambers Associate Satisfaction Survey 
• Mansfield Rule 4.0 Certified, 2021—Diversity Lab
• Global Law Firm of the Year 2021—Environmental Finance Bond Awards
• Americas Derivatives Team of the Year: Regulatory 2021—GlobalCapital Americas Derivatives Awards