Fox Rothschild LLP - The Inside View

Fox Rothschild isn’t the sort of firm that likes to sit still. In the past seven years, the firm has accumulated 650 new attorneys and ten new offices. In early 2022, the firm found new homes in Boston and Oklahoma: “We’re planning to grow all of our offices (new and old) to try and make a core nucleus in each of the markets we serve on both coasts,” revealed firm chair Mark Morris. Geographical growth is not the only thing on Fox’s mind. Practice group growth correlates with the expansion of new offices. The firm’s biggest practice groups (litigation, real estate, corporate, and employment) have seen an influx of attorneys, in addition to the more niche cannabis and gaming groups. 

“Big-firm resources, big clients and lots of offices, but with a smaller number of junior associates."

Fox’s primary appeal to associates was the fact it has “big-firm resources, big clients and lots of offices, but with a smaller number of junior associates, so you get one-to-one interactions and greater responsibilities.” Our sister publication, Chambers USA, recognizes the firm for multiple areas of work; Fox is ranked highly for corporate and immigration in the Western States, whilst bankruptcy, real estate, tax and labor & employment are just some of the practices that have earned recognition on the East Coast. On a nationwide level, the firm is considered the crème de la crème for cannabis law, healthcare and gaming and licensing. At the time of research, associates were spread across 22 offices; Philadelphia was the most popular destination, followed by Minneapolis and Princeton. Litigation took on the most newbies, whilst corporate took the second-highest number of juniors. 

Strategy & Future  

Fox’s high number of mergers with boutique firms across the US (the most recent being Greene Radovsky Maloney Share & Hennigh in California in January 2021) seems to confirm associates' comments on Fox's growth. “The firm has been buying up a lot of boutique firms and I can see that continuing to happen,” commented one interviewee. With more bodies and offices, other associates believe the firm’s strategy now is to strengthen the practice groups. Morris let us in on what this growth now means for the firm’s position in the market: “Fox is taking a departmental practice group focus where we are trying to approach marketing and business development from a firm-wide collaborative approach instead of trying to be a small firm in each location.”

The Work  

Work distribution at the firm isn’t a centralized affair; associates are expected to navigate a free-market system the majority of the time (although a local work administrator is on hand to help if needed). This means newbies typically source their work through relationships with partners, so cultivating those relationships early doors is incredibly important. “The downside to the system is that a lot of responsibility falls on you to reach out for work, even to other offices.” The litigation department was described as “one huge umbrella.” This allows litigators to work as generalists in their early years, with specialism coming further down the road. Each office has their own special subgroups: for example, DC mostly works on government contracts, construction and general litigation. And Fox doesn’t stick to just one client group either: “The firm works with local business on smaller matters and big international cooperations on larger matters.” Day-to-day life as a generalist at the firm could see newbies completing legal research when they’re still junior, to drafting a motion for summary judgment from start to finish once they’re more established. One insider even got to run a case solo. An area that our sources praised was the level of responsibility they received: “I’m definitely trusted to take on great responsibility over challenging work.”

Litigation clients: Zehr Family Limited Partnership, Philadelphia City Council member Kenyatta Johnson, Noorio Innovations Limited. Represented J M Smith during a case that questioned the liability of pharmaceutical distribution companies for opioid abuse.

Corporate is a department where newbies “get to try the little things.” Midmarket M&A forms the core of the practice. Associates got to see the full life cycle of matters: “You’re involved from the moment the client says they want to set up a company, right up to the point they become public companies.” Typical tasks in this area include “drafting operating agreements, commercial agreements and keeping track of schedules.” When it comes to client contact, “partners have to build up that trust with you,” but newbies can take part in those interactions within a few months of joining Fox. Our insiders told us that a good amount of regulatory work could be found in the department's cannabis subgroup. To put it simply, these matters center around a client wanting to buy a cannabis license in the state, which is a big transaction involving compliance with regulatory bodies and means “you have a lot of contact with the state and city officials for confirmation of details and support in the process.” 

Corporate clients: Endeavor Group Holdings, Parsons Medical Communications, The Paragon Alliance Group. Represented the latter as it sold all of its membership interests to U.S. Retirement Partners.

Culture, Hours & Compensation 

Billable hours: 1,900 for litigation, family law and environmental law; 1,850 for all other departments

“We are a financially conservative firm which is good because I don’t like risk,” revealed one relieved interviewee. A “down-to-earth” culture permeates the firm: “I don’t feel like there is a hierarchy; we’re just lawyers helping one another.” Another associate added: “There is a degree of representing yourself well, but you are encouraged to ask questions and put yourself out there.” Sources were also pleased to find the firmtreats everyone as“a whole person. They know we have to balance working hard with external responsibilities.” Coming out of the pandemic, the firm is encouraging people to come into the office more than ever. This wasn’t an issue for our sources, who revealed, “we all come in because we want to, even though it’s not mandatory.” 

The billable target wasn’t something our cohort of associates worried about. One insider noted that “despite the market being unpredictable right now, I have plenty of work, so I’m comfortable.” Associates reckoned they put in six to ten hours a day on average. Some work a couple of weekends a month: “I normally do ten hours over two days which reduces the work in the week for me.” Sources thought this weekend work was the result of working in a client service industry. “Partners don’t give me a hard time, but the clients want the job to get done.” The good news is that “partners work the weekends with me, which makes it easier.” 

Compensation isn’t exactly reflective of the market rate, but neither are the hours. Interviewees also pointed out that size matters: “I don’t expect top-of-the-market pay because this isn’t a super-large firm.” Sources also noted that “Fox’s bonus program is below market, particularly if you're going beyond your hour targets.”

Pro Bono 

Attorneys can count 50 hours of pro bono work towards the billing target. If they exceed this amount, any further hours can be credited towards their bonus threshold with prior approval. The opportunities available depend on which practice group you're in: “It’s highly promoted in litigation because that’s a good way to see the courtroom.” Associates outside of litigation, however, hadn’t managed to get their hands on much pro bono work. “It's not really pushed hard because our billable work is high,” admitted one associate, whilst another stated: “They don’t often present opportunities to you, so you have to reach out to get involved.” For those who had got involved, the type of work on offer was local to their office area. “I have done work with my local police department and even the local aquarium!” enthused one pro bono goer.

Pro bono hours 

• For all attorneys: 9,748
• Average per attorney: 27

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion 

Representation of women, particularly at the junior end, was praised by our interviewees: “We joke that there are so many female associates its overwhelming!” However, when it came to racial diversity, sources felt that “there is work to be done, particularly with hiring more diverse people.” Ever since the introduction of Kim Gatling as its first ever chief diversity and inclusion officer in 2020, the firm’s DEI efforts have gained momentum. On the recruitment front, Fox Rothschild has a diversity fellowship program that offers recipients a paid summer associate position and a conditional award of $15,000.

The associates we spoke to were able to identify two initiatives the firm is pushing. The first is a program where people are encouraged to get involved in various diversity-led events.The firm allows those who take part to count 50 hours of this work as billable! “I love getting involved in the diverse summer initiative program and I am so glad when diverse candidates come back to us,” enthused one source. Another initiative motivating the firm is its commitment to the Mansfield Certification program: the firm received certification for the fifth iteration of the program and at the time of writing was taking part in the sixth.

Career Development 

Fox was identified as having two methods of career development: formal and informal. In terms of set-in-stone initiatives, the firm's mentorship program sees junior associates being linked with a partner and senior associate mentor. Their involvement in juniors' working lives can range from “beingthere to answer day-to-day questions and career guidance questions” to “getting candid advice over lunch or drinks, on the firm’s dime.” We heard of instances where mentors had supported mentees with topics that they were interested in writing about. A formal curriculum provides newbies with training in areas specific to their practice group. For example, in litigation, newbies have had sessions on trial skills.

“I would be lying if I said I haven’t been approached by other firms, but no other firm could offer me the clients I have here.” 

On the informal side, interviewees felt that the small cohort and one-to-one interaction with partners on a daily basis lent itself to professional development. In fact, we heard of a handful of associates being sent to networking opportunities outside of their home office. Regular informal talks with office managing partners added to the sense of transparency surrounding professional progression. This was reflected in the data we received about making partner at the firm: more than half the associates we surveyed intend to make partner at Fox Rothschild, whilst two thirds thought partnership was achievable. One source admitted: “I would be lying if I said I haven’t been approached by other firms, but no other firm could offer me the clients I have here.” 

Get Hired  

The first stage: recruitment on and off campus   

Fox has a firm-wide recruitment committee made up of both associates and partners – the firm typically pairs associates and partners together to conduct the interviews. During interviews, interviewers ask questions aimed at measuring “students’ analytical abilities, motivation/initiative, judgment and previous experience,” Natalie Quinn (Director of Associate Recruitment) tells us.   

Top tips for this stage:   

“My first round was focused on the kind of work I did, what I wanted to do and if my goals matched with what they were looking for. The second round I met with a whole bunch more people – a lot of those conversations were based on what I wanted to know from them." – a third-year junior associate. 

“It was nice – a very natural interview, not stressful, not confrontational, just very conversational.” – a third-year junior associate. 

Callbacks   

Applicants invited to second-stage interview: 274 

Whether virtual or in person, all interviews will begin with an overview of the summer program presented by a member of the professional recruitment team. Interviews will then be conducted in one of two formats, either as a panel-style interview or four consecutive one-on-one interviews. “At this stage, candidates should continue to expect to answer competency-based questions. Additionally, we are trying to determine a candidate’s interest in Fox in particular, versus wanting to work generally at a large law firm,” explains Natalie Quinn. Some offices will also host office-wide networking opportunities, whether virtually or in person, to provide students the chance to meet more lawyers and “get a feel for the culture.”   

Top tips for this stage:   

“It was a very different interview experience than the others. I met with multiple people throughout the interviews. Usually it’s just one person at a time at other firms, but here I met a very senior partner, three senior associates, then two associates and then the office managing partner.” – a second-year junior associate.   

“The whole way they did interviews was totally different, and I felt I was really able to get a feel for the people.” – a second-year junior associate. 

Summer program   

Fox's summer program lasts for ten weeks and starts with a firm-wide orientation. Throughout the program, summer associates will meet regularly as a class for training, professional development opportunities and social events. Social events include the trivia nights, scavenger hunts, and cooking classes.   

Fox does not have a rotation program, so summers are free to sample work from various practice areas. Assignments are obtained via an online portal and accompanied by weekly training that is delivered by video conference across the offices. In addition, summers can expect a one-on-one writing session and business development training (the latter is delivered by the firm's marketing department). All summer associates are assigned two mentors: one is an associate and the other is a supervising partner, who keeps an eye on summers' overall workload each week. Before the summer is over, summer associates rank their practice area preferences for when they return to the firm (the majority do return), although practice area assignment is largely determined by business need.    

Top tips for this stage:   

“Recently we’re offering fellowships to 1Ls. They have a rigorous application process and seven of them will be offered a job during their 1L summer. If they return for their 2L summer, they receive an additional stipend. If they join the firm as a full-time associate, they receive a second stipend. It’s an exciting new diversity initiative.” – a second-year junior associate.