2025 Vault Rankings
At a Glance
“Interesting and challenging work, and we're growing.”
"We have a good culture and the lawyers care about each other.”
“Emphasis on allowing attorneys to have a sustainable lifestyle while still working BigLaw jobs.”
“Lack of opportunity for feedback before leadership makes significant changes that affect associate work streams.”
“Long and difficult partnership track.”
“Compensation could be higher for the higher associate years..”
About Faegre Drinker
Faegre Drinker is an international law firm providing litigation, regulatory, and business services to clients ranging from Fortune 100 companies to startups. The firm was formed in February 2020 through the combination of Faegre Baker Daniels and Drinker Biddle & Reath.
Two Become One
Both of the Faegre Drinker legacy firms have storied histories. Drinker Biddle & Reath was founded and headquartered in Philadelphia in 1849. In 1871, Drinker Biddle presided over the creation of Drexel, Morgan and Co., an investment bank that would later become JPMorgan. Drinker Biddle also assisted Georg von Trapp (depicted in the Sound of Music) in 1939 with visa issues at Ellis Island. Faegre Baker Daniels was formed through the 2012 combination of Baker & Daniels and Faegre & Benson. The former was founded in 1863 when Thomas Hendricks (Vice President to Grover Cleveland) and Oscar Hord (who became the Indiana Attorney General) formed Hendricks & Hord, which later became Baker Daniels. The firm’s counterpart was established in Minneapolis in 1886 under the name Cobb & Wheelwright, which was changed to Faegre & Benson in 1942 to reflect the preeminent roles of partners Bart Faegre and John Benson. After more than a century of continued growth, the firm became Faegre Baker Daniels in 2012.
Food, Health, and Beyond
Today, Faegre Drinker is a full-service international law firm with a wide array of corporate, litigation, and regulatory practices. The firm’s industry focus includes consumer products, retail, financial services, food, agribusiness, health, life sciences, and insurance. These industries are indicative of the strengths that each legacy firm has contributed. For example, Faegre Baker Daniels was a standout as a regulatory and business advisor to top companies in the food and agribusiness industries and represented these companies in high-stakes litigation, including class actions and multidistrict cases. Moreover, as Drinker Biddle & Reath, the firm established a deep knowledge of the healthcare industry. The firm counseled more than 700 healthcare clients on matters relating to antitrust, restructuring, compliance, HIPAA/privacy, policy and lobbying, litigation, and others.
Now, Faegre Drinker’s experience covers a myriad of practice areas. Restructuring is a bustling practice for the firm, which handles bankruptcy proceedings, commercial workouts, debt restructurings, and refinancings. The firm’s investment management group addresses complex challenges faced by clients, which include national and multinational funds, investment advisers, and broker-dealers. The firm’s insurance group, which has been in practice for nearly a century, has continued to evolve along with client needs. Today it celebrates its attorneys with experience in InsurTech, big data, and privacy and cybersecurity. In addition to its legal services, the firm’s consulting divisions—including the federal advocacy division Faegre Drinker Consulting, healthcare consultancy Innovative Health Strategies, and data science division Tritura—provide services to help clients advance their policy and business objectives.
Pro Bono Champion
Faegre Drinker boasts of its longstanding dedication to pro bono work and has the numbers to back its claim: The firm racked up more than 230,000 hours of pro bono work in a five-year period. The firm is also proud of its status as a charter signatory to the Pro Bono Institute’s Pro Bono Challenge, which sets aspirational pro bono standards for large law firms as created by law firm leaders and corporate general counsel. The firm has also received numerous awards for its pro bono work from organizations like the ABA, local bar associations, state and federal courts, and community partners. Pro bono clients who the firm has served include immigrants and asylum seekers, death row inmates, domestic violence survivors, small nonprofits, budding artists, veterans, tenants, and foster children.
News & Awards
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Client Service A-Team 2024: Survey of Law Firm Client Service Performance, 2024—BTI Consulting
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Top Performer, 2016-23 — Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD)
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Mansfield Rule Certification and Certification Plus, 2018-23 — Diversity Lab
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Best Places to Work for LGBT Equality, 100 Percent Corporate Equality Index score, 2009-22 — Human Rights Campaign (HRC)
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Working Mother Best Law Firms for Women, 2012-21 and 2023; Hall of Fame honoree for 10 or more years on the best law firms list, 2019-20 —Seramount
Why Work Here
Welcome to Faegre Drinker!
We are a firm committed to providing opportunities for our attorneys to grow and succeed in their legal careers. You will thrive here if you are sincere and authentic and want to perform high-quality work in an open and collaborative environment. That’s who we are and what we are looking for: excellent attorneys without arrogance.
222 Delaware Avenue
Suite 1410
Wilmington, DE 19801
Phone: (215) 988-2700
Chair: Gina Kastel
Hiring Partners: Nicolas Guzman and Lauren Barta
Total No. Attorneys (2024):
1K - 1.5K
No. of Partners Named 2023:
26
Billable-Hour Requirement:
1,900 creditable hours (partner-track associates)
1st year: $160,000 - $225,000
Summer Associate: 1Ls and 2Ls: $2,884 - $4,134 per week (depending on office)
Dyana Barninger
Senior Director of Lawyer & Consultant Recruiting
(202) 230-5291
dyana.barninger@faegredrinker.com
No. of U.S. Offices: 18
No. of International Offices: 2
Wilmington, DE
Boulder, CO
Chicago, IL
Dallas, TX
Denver, CO
Des Moines, IA
Florham Park, NJ
Fort Myers, FL
Fort Wayne, IN
Indianapolis, IN
Los Angeles, CA
Minneapolis, MN
New York, NY
Philadelphia, PA
Princeton, NJ
San Francisco, CA
Washington, DC
London
Shanghai
Benefits & Executive Compensation
Business Litigation
Construction and Real Estate Litigation
Corporate
Finance & Restructuring
Government & Regulatory Affairs
Health Care
Insurance
Intellectual Property
Investment Management
Labor & Employment
Private Client
Product Liability & Mass Torts
Real Estate
*See firm website for complete list of practice areas and industries.