McDermott Will & Emery

A Chicago institution since the 1930s, McDermott Will & Emery has, in recent decades, broadened its gaze to new markets in the United States and abroad. The strategy has paid off in spades, with McDermott firmly ensconced among the world’s largest and most elite law firms. 

A Windy Start

McDermott opened for business in 1934 as a tax firm run by Edward H. McDermott and William M. Emery. A mere seven years later, the third and final name partner was added in corporate specialist Howard A. Will. The firm’s name has remained the same ever since, a remarkable feat of continuity in the modern atmosphere of shortened firm names, legal mergers, and buyouts. McDermott added an Estate Planning division in 1941, and by 1944, the firm had burgeoned to 16 lawyers. Over the next half century and into the 21st century, the firm expanded both domestically and internationally. Today, McDermott is home to more than 1,100 lawyers across 20-plus offices around the world.

Flexing Their Practice Area Muscles

While the firm is still known for its strength in tax, McDermott’s reach has expanded over the decades. The firm counsels its clients on newer areas such as life sciences, renewable energy, and privacy law, which complement its more traditional practices like M&A, antitrust, health care, intellectual property, litigation, real estate, private equity, and insurance. 

McDermott is a leader in health care law, holding the No. 1 spot in Vault’s Health Care rankings. The firm uses multidisciplinary, cross-border teams to handle its clients’ sophisticated issues. Hospitals, health private equity funds, digital health companies, home health agencies, hospices, medical device manufacturers—and more—call on McDermott for advice. 

The firm also has a stand-out IP department, with experience in copyright, domain names, International Trade Commission matters, patents and patent litigation, trade secrets, trademarks, and unfair competition. The firm is a regular before the USPTO, including in post grant review proceedings. Among the industries the firm’s IP attorneys serve are energy, life sciences, media, and telecommunications.

Blogging About It

With nine blogs on its website—including an Antitrust Alert blog, Employee Benefits Blog, Energy Business Law Blog, FCA Update blog, Of Digital Interest blog, a Tax Controversy 360 blog, Inside SALT blog, and an Alcohol Law Advisor—McDermott shares the latest on a variety of legal topics with the blawgosphere. The firm also offers three regular podcasts: Governing Health, Of Digital Interest, and Collaborative Transformation: Driving the Deal.

• Ranked #1 in 15 categories for Vault Law’s 2022 rankings, including “Best Firm to Work For”
• #1 in the 2021 AmLaw Mid-Level Associate rankings
• Financial Times 2021 Most Innovative Law Firm Leader
• Financial Times 2021 Top 5 Most Innovative Law Firms in North America
• Law Firm of the Year finalist from The American Lawyer
• Among the Best Law Firms for Women from Working Mother
• 15 Consecutive Years as a Best Place to Work for LGBTQ from the Human Rights Campaign
• Top 10 Firm for Diversity and Inclusion, Pro Bono and Associate Satisfaction, Chambers Associate, 2021
• Top Workplace Chicago, Chicago Tribune, 2020, 2021
• Top Workplace Miami, Sun Sentinel, 2021
• Mansfield Rule 4.0 Certified, Diversity Lab, 2021