2024 DIVERSITY DATABASE UNDERWRITER Proskauer Rose LLP

Proskauer Rose handles incredibly diversified work across top-notch corporate, litigation, tax, private client services, entertainment, and labor and employment practices.

From Small Business to Big Business

Firm forefather William R. Rose opened up shop in downtown Manhattan in 1875 at the sprightly age of 21. Rose’s first clients were local retailers, and his skill soon caught the attention of New York’s burgeoning business class, who hired Rose’s firm to represent them in corporate and personal estate matters. The firm’s reputation (and headcount) continued to grow, and by 1907, name partner Benjamin Paskus—a tax specialist—joined the firm. The outfit founded a successful tax practice following the Sixteenth Amendment’s passage in 1913. Joseph Proskauer joined the firm in 1930 and ushered in a new era for the firm. Proskauer’s passion for music forged connections with Carnegie Hall and some of America’s most prominent musicians, including Leonard Bernstein, whose estate is still handled by the firm.

Labor, Layups, and Lead Passes

Proskauer lawyers are leaders in labor and employment, and the firm consistently ranks in the top 10 of Vault’s Practice Area rankings. The firm covers employee benefits, executive compensation, employment counseling, employment litigation and class actions, labor-management relations, noncompete and trade secrets, strategic corporate planning, and whistleblowers. The firm gets its insights into the blogosphere through its Law and the Workplace blog and even has a podcast on employee benefits and executive compensation.

Proskauer is officially the king of media, entertainment, and sports. The firm holds the No. 1 spot in Vault’s Media, Entertainment & Sports rankings, and clients include MLB, the NFL, the NHL, and the NBA. The firm’s sports law practice began in 1963, thanks to partner George Gallantz, who represented a young organization called the National Basketball Association. Three years later, an attorney named David Stern joined the firm. Stern went on to serve as counsel to the NBA, Executive Vice President, and finally, Commissioner (he retired in February 2014). The firm also counts Gary Bettman, Commissioner of the NHL, among its notable alumni. The firm’s sports-related experience includes everything from M&A, financing, and stadium negotiations to collective bargaining, employment, litigation, intellectual property (IP), and licensing.

Beyond labor and sports, Proskauer boasts a nationally recognized private investment funds group, as well as litigators who handle cutting-edge IP matters and defend major white collar cases.

You May Have Heard of Them

Proskauer shines across its practice areas. It’s fitting that the firm’s client roster glitters too. The firm’s clients include Ardian, J.P. Morgan, Bank of America, Tiffany, Neuberger Berman, all the major sports leagues, Burberry, Barney’s, Coca-Cola, Creative Artists Agency, Church & Dwight, Diageo, Hermès, Hulu, Johnson & Johnson, Sony Pictures, the Broadway League, MoMA, Neiman Marcus, T-Mobile, MetLife, The New York Times, and the New York Stock Exchange.

• Proskauer advised leading global software investor Hg on a recent fundraising totaling $20 billion across three separate vehicles.
• Proskauer advised Ares Management Corporation on fundraising $15.3 billion in total equity commitments for its U.S. senior direct lending strategy, with the total capital base nearing $34 billion. At the time, the fund was the largest in Ares’ history and the largest dedicated pool of capital in the private credit market overall.
• Proskauer filed a Plan of Adjustment on behalf of Puerto Rico, the first territorial debt restructuring in U.S. history. This critical victory for Puerto Rico helps end its four-year bankruptcy, cut billions in debt, fix its pension system, and balance its budget.
• Proskauer secured a unanimous jury defense win on behalf of Major League Soccer in an antitrust suit brought by the North American Soccer League.

• 89 Practices and 182 lawyers ranked Firmwide, 2025—Chambers
• 8 Practices and 31 lawyers Recognized, 2024; 3 US Litigation Awards, 2025—Benchmark Litigation
• Transactions Law Firm of the Year and Secondaries Investor, 2025—Private Debt Investor and Secondaries Investor
• Best Law Firm for Women & Diversity for three years, 2024—Seramount
• Best Place to Work for LGBTQ+ Equality for five years, 2025—Human Rights Campaign