2022
Annual Review

What's inside

Highlights of our work, insights, achievements, programs and initiatives in a year that brought new challenges

A message from our Chair

Hugh Verrier

Hugh Verrier
Chair

In 2022 uncertainty took hold as inflation, volatile markets and a geopolitical conflict added to the challenges set in motion by the COVID-19 pandemic. In a world of shifting expectations and norms, we focused on creating a distinctive experience for our clients, consistent with the five-year strategy we launched in 2020. This North Star guided our global teams as they developed and executed innovative solutions on high-stakes deals, disputes and pro bono matters.

Our client work placed us at the center of global trends related to energy transition, environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, finance and globalization. We contributed to the dialogue on these issues with published insights including “Scaling up the energy transition,” a report based on a survey that explores how capital providers and companies are setting priorities, staying competitive and managing risk. Through our COP27 video series, we explored themes raised during the annual climate conference and their potential impact on business and industry.

In regions around the world, we increased our capacity to serve clients, promoting 59 new partners and welcoming 39 lateral partners. We developed new ways of working with clients, increasing efficiencies and ensuring consistency. These initiatives included our Debt Finance Solutions Team, which leverages legal technology and other resources to handle certain types of routine work, and our Client Experience Blueprints, a series of tools that codify our global best practices for working with clients before, during and after a matter.  

We continued to focus on building a more diverse and inclusive workplace, significantly expanding our diversity data collection efforts so we can quantify our progress. Our people benefited from new and expanded coaching programs, and we took concrete steps to empower our associates, focusing on work allocation, skills development and leadership opportunities. 

This review discusses these and other accomplishments and initiatives that made a difference to our people and our clients in 2022. Together we face the future positioned for success.


Hugh Verrier, Chair

Conversations

Guest speakers at Firm events share views on timely topics

The pandemic prompted a workplace shakeup, shining a spotlight on employee wellness

Amy Blankson offers tools that can boost happiness as we enter a new world of work

Glass elevators on the side of a London office building
blue sky in my pocket © Getty Images

When it comes to solving problems, human beings have a superpower

Kenneth Cukier talks about the process that can lead to breakthroughs and help us tackle novel challenges

01 conversations 3 kenneth-cukier 960x640
Haitong Yu © Getty Images

A vast pro bono network creates global impact

Antonio Zappulla talks about how TrustLaw tackles some of the world’s biggest challenges

conversations 1 antonio zappulla
Matthias Kulka © Getty Images

Investors and energy companies pull all levers in the race to net zero

The focus on achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 remained a priority for governments, investors and energy companies

energy
Richard Hamilton Smith © Getty Images

Stakeholders raise the bar on ESG

Addressing ESG factors became “the new normal” for investors and businesses

02 trends 2 esg 960x640
Andriy Onufriyenko © Getty Images

Markets cool as interest rates and inflation rise

Activity across debt and M&A markets slowed as rising interest rates and high inflation saw investors, borrowers and lenders recalibrate risk appetite

02 trends 3 finance 960x64
Christoph Hetzmannseder © Getty Images

Globalization: Balancing interdependencies and divisions

Around the world, legal and regulatory developments continued to reshape global interconnectedness

02 trends 4 globalization_960x640
Artur Debat © Getty Images

Impact

Highlights of our work in 2022

Our growth and accolades

Our achievements position us for success

Our annual revenue

 

US$2.83 billion in revenue


Our lawyers worldwide

2,616 total lawyers


1,315EMEA
1,021Americas
280Asia-Pacific

1,297US-qualified lawyers
582English-qualified lawyers

 

2022 new partners

Meet the outstanding generation of talented lawyers who strengthened our Firm in 2022

04 achievements 1 new partners 960x640
David Ramos © Getty Images

2022 awards & rankings

In markets around the world, White & Case earned many of the legal industry’s top accolades

04 achievements 2 awards 960x640.
Yu Kodama © Getty Images

Our responsible business practices

White & Case is committed to fair and ethical operations that respect human rights and recognize the importance of our natural environment. 

As a signatory to the UN Global Compact, we affirm our commitment to doing business responsibly by supporting the Compact’s ten principles on human rights, labor, the environment and anti-corruption. The steps we are taking to continue to embed these principles into our Firm are outlined in our most recent Communication on Progress.

Our latest Environmental Sustainability Report includes information on our environmental policies, footprint, key actions and goals.

 

More than five million kilowatt hours of renewable energy powered our offices
Nine of our offices procure renewable energy, accounting for approximately one-third of all electricity used globally
We track our greenhouse gas emissions annually and now include our supply chain emissions
Our London office maintains ISO 14001 certification

Diversity and inclusion

Committed to advancing diversity and inclusion across the Firm

Our diverse workplace

11 global affinity networks

Our 11 affinity networks foster a sense of community among the Firm’s Black, Asian, Latinx/Hispanic, Middle Eastern, minority ethnic and LGBTQ+ lawyers, business services professionals and their allies. Each network sets its own agenda, initiatives and goals, which are specific to the issues it considers most important. Affinity networks create and enhance awareness of these groups within the Firm and its larger culture, drive community and connection across our global offices, and support their members with career and professional development opportunities.

25 local women’s networks

Our 25 local women’s networks are active in 40 offices across the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific. These networks foster professional development and mentoring activities. They also provide a forum for our lawyers and business services professionals to share perspectives and create programs to support and retain our women while fostering and promoting gender equity.

 

Diversity: The numbers

Women make up:
40% of the Firm’s global management
25% of the Executive Committee
27% of our Office Executive Partners

50% of our 2022 global partner promotions
23% of global partnership
42% of our lawyers


In the US:

49%of our lawyers self-identify as of color 


28%of our partners self-identify as of color


In London:

43%of our lawyers self-identify as of color


27%of our partners self-identify as of color


Globally:

118nationalities


95languages spoken


Recognition

Leading publications and alliance organizations continue to recognize our commitment to diversity and inclusion

Number 1 Most Diverse Law Firm among top 10 US firms by revenue

The American Lawyer Diversity Scorecard 2022 (Number 2 among all firms scored)

100% rating on commitment to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender workplace equality (14th consecutive year)

Identifying the Firm as one of the best places to work for LGBT+ individuals

Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index

International Firm of the Year for Career Development, Diverse Women Lawyers, Work-Life Balance

Euromoney Legal Media Group Women in Business Awards 2022 EMEA

2022 Mansfield Certification Plus (fourth consecutive year)

Diversity Lab

Top 75 employer in the UK

Social Mobility Foundation Employer Index 2022

Measuring our progress on diversity and inclusion

Using data to create change

bird's eyeview of people
Gremlin © Getty Images

People engagement

Helping our colleagues to reach new heights

Investing in our people with global coaching programs

Committing to growth opportunities for colleagues in wide-ranging roles

skydiving
Moodboard © Getty Images

For associates: A more level playing field and greater opportunity

Recognizing the value of our lawyers as they start their careers

bridge
Shunli Zhao © Getty Images

Collaborating with clients around the world


 

world map
6 continents
44offices
30countries
In 2022 we advised clients from 
115
countries 
on matters in 
195
countries

 

Building a better client experience

Focusing on consistent application of best practices

Building a better client experience
Sebàstian Calanzone © Getty Images

An innovation startup within the US Debt Finance practice

Leveraging technology to streamline routine work and enhance client service

Innovation
Sky Sajjaphot / 500px © Getty Images

White & Case teams up with AbbVie on Second Look Project pro bono case

Collaborating to effect change and build strong connections

AbbVie
Paul Taylor @ Getty Images
Pro bono

Pro Bono

Article

2 min read

pro bono

Parole at last for pro bono clients imprisoned based on non-unanimous verdicts

John Rowell and Sean Smith have three things in common: Both were serving long sentences in Louisiana penitentiaries. Both remained behind bars even after the US Supreme Court ruled that the non-unanimous verdicts that convicted them were “no verdict at all.” And both are free today, thanks to the efforts of White & Case and The Promise of Justice Initiative’s non-unanimous jury project.

Unconstitutional verdicts

By the time the project brought the cases to White & Case’s attention, Rowell had been incarcerated for 25 years of a 50-year sentence for the attempted murder of a police officer, having always avowed that he had been falsely identified and was at home at the time of the shooting. Smith had served more than 13 years of a 30-year sentence for possession of methylene-dioxy-methamphetamine (MDMA) with intent to distribute—his extreme penalty was augmented because his single prior conviction (also nonviolent) greatly increased the mandatory sentence under Louisiana’s habitual offender law.

In April 2020 the Supreme Court ruled in Ramos v. Louisiana that the Constitution requires guilty verdicts in criminal trials to be unanimous, calling into question hundreds of convictions in Louisiana and Oregon, the only two states that did not already require unanimous verdicts.

Having been convicted by non-unanimous juries, Rowell and Smith might then have been freed but for a subsequent Supreme Court decision that the ruling does not apply retroactively under federal law for individuals who have exhausted their appeals, as both Rowell and Smith had.

Successful parole hearings

With relief under federal law foreclosed and justice under Louisiana law improbable, the White & Case team, which included New York associates Tola Oyeyemi, supervised by partner Andrew Hammond, and Hannah Rubashkin, supervised by partner John Reiss, focused on gaining parole for both men. Aided by a local lawyer, White & Case worked with Rowell and Smith—and with their family members who would speak on their behalf at the hearings—to explain the process and prepare them for the questions each would face. Oyeyemi, who played a key role in preparing Rowell, spoke in his support at the hearing.

Rowell’s case was the tougher of the two. While winning parole in Louisiana typically requires persuading just two members of a three-member panel, parole for those convicted of a crime in which a police officer was the victim requires a unanimous vote from a special five-member panel. With help from White & Case—and despite vigorous, in-person objections from the parish district attorney—Rowell won over all five members of the panel, securing his May 2022 release.

At Smith’s hearing, Rubashkin spoke on his behalf. Her endorsement of Smith’s character and potential, along with Smith’s well-prepared responses and the highly visible support of his family, brought Smith home in March 2022.

Top