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Susman Godfrey

At a Glance

Uppers

“Substantive work early on.”

“Cutting-edge work.”

“Compensation is above the market.”

Downers

“Doing my job well makes it hard to keep healthy work-life boundaries.”

“I wish there were more pro bono opportunities.”

“Learning on the go can be challenging until you get the hang of it.”

About Susman Godfrey

Since its founding in 1980, Susman Godfrey has established itself as a premiere litigation firm. Susman Godfrey has more than 150 partners and associates across four offices—its original Houston location, Los Angeles, New York, and Seattle. The firm handles huge cases across the country for both plaintiffs and defendants.

Susman Godfrey counsels blue-chip clients, such as Chevron, General Electric, KKR, NBC Universal, and Walmart, and has won historic plaintiffs’ verdicts in class actions and in individual cases. For example, it won the historic $787.5 million settlement awarded to Dominion Voting Systems in its defamation case against Fox News in 2023.

Contingency Pioneers

In 1980, Steve Susman formed a Houston firm following his success in the Corrugated Containers case, which produced the largest antitrust verdict in history at the time. Susman was joined by Lee Godfrey in 1982. These two attorneys shared a vision of charging fees for trying commercial cases on a contingency basis. The firm has reaped the benefits of the high-risk/high-return model by carefully selecting its cases and winning some of the largest jury verdicts in the United States. The firm’s contingency-fee model has since been expanded to include a broad spectrum of risk-sharing fee arrangements, from reverse contingent fees for defendants to flat fees and hybrid arrangements consisting of both a contingent component and either a fixed or hourly rate.

Lean Mean Litigation Machine

With leanly staffed teams, Susman handles complex disputes similar to those accepted by much larger firms. It deploys its resources efficiently—covering most depositions and hearings with a single attorney. Therefore, the firm seeks candidates with stellar grades from top schools. Most Susman Godfrey attorneys were members of their schools’ law reviews, and nearly all clerked for federal judges (including 10 for justices on the U.S. Supreme Court).

Stand-Up and Then Relax

Associates at most firms wonder what they can do to gain stand-up experience; at Susman Godfrey, stand-up opportunities start on day one and are part of associates’ day-to-day lives. Associates regularly handle trial examinations, hearings, depositions, and client meetings. The firm celebrates its victories with extravagant dinner celebrations. To maintain a close-knit atmosphere, the firm hosts an annual attorney retreat, as well as mini retreats to give its lawyers much-needed time to de-stress and bond over activities such as skiing, scuba diving, hiking, and rafting.

News & Awards

NOTABLE CASES
  • In 2023, Susman Godfrey client, Dominion Voting Systems, and Fox News reached a $787.5 million settlement to resolve Dominion’s massive defamation suit against Fox, just before jury trial was to commence in Delaware Superior Court.

     

  • In 2024, lawyers at Susman Godfrey achieved a groundbreaking $418 million joint settlement on behalf of a nationwide class of home sellers with the National Association of Realtors (NAR) that resolved claims in four antitrust class actions against NAR.

     

  • In 2022, a team of Susman Godfrey attorneys secured a favorable award for client, Flutter Entertainment PLC, when an arbitrator nearly doubled the exercise price of FOX Corporation’s option to acquire 18.6% of Flutter’s portfolio company, FanDuel Group.

     

  • In 2024, Susman Godfrey obtained an arbitration award, confirmed by a state court judgment, of nearly $160 million on behalf of mortgage servicing technology company Black Knight based on former customer PennyMac’s misuse of confidential information. The award followed nearly two months of arbitration in Jacksonville, Florida.

     

AWARDS & ACCOLADES
  • 2023 National Boutique/Specialty Litigation Firm of the Year—The American Lawyer

     

  • Class Action Practice Group of the Year and Media & Entertainment Practice Group of the Year—Law360

     

  • Elite Trial Law Firm – Technology Litigation & Insurance Litigation—National Law Journal

     

  • Lawdragon 500 X – The Next Generation, Twenty-three SG Lawyers Recognized (More Lawyers Honored Than Any Other Litigation Firm)—Lawdragon

     

  • Commercial Litigation Firm of the Year—Benchmark Litigation

Susman Godfrey

1000 Louisiana
Suite 5100
Houston, TX 77002
Phone: (713) 651-9366

Firm Stats

Managing Partners: Kalpana Srinivasan and Vineet Bhatia
Hiring Partner: Elisha Barron and Steve Siegel
Total No. Attorneys (2024):
150 - 250
No. of Partners Named 2024:
6

Base Salary

1st year: $225,000
2nd year: $235,000
3rd year: $260,000
4th year: $310,000
5th year: $365,000
6th year: $390,000
7th year: $420,000
8th year: $435,000
Summer Associate: $4,327/week

Employment Contact

Kimberly Young
Attorney Development Manager
(713) 653-7867
kyoung@susmangodfrey.com

No. of U.S. Offices: 4

No. of International Offices: 0

Major Office Locations

Houston, TX (HQ)
Los Angeles, CA
New York, NY
Seattle, WA

Major Departments

The firm does not have any formal departments. All of the Susman Godfrey’s attorneys are trial lawyers who can handle any commercial case for plaintiffs or defendants.
Antitrust
Arbitration
Bankruptcy
Business Disputes
Class Action Litigation
Defamation
Employment
Energy & Environmental
General Commercial Litigation
Intellectual Property & Technology
Insurance
Privacy
Product Liability, Property Damage, & Personal Injury
Qui Tam & False Claims Act
Shareholder & Securities
*See firm website for complete list of practice areas and industries.