Hogan Lovells/ˈlʌvəlz/ is an American-British law firm co-headquartered in London and Washington, DC. The firm was formed in 2010 by the merger of the American law firm Hogan & Hartson and the British law firm Lovells.[5] As of 2022, the firm employed about 2,500 lawyers, making it the sixth largest law firm in the world.[6]
In 2022, Hogan Lovells was ranked as the twelfth largest law firm in the world by revenue,[7] generating around US$2.6 billion. Revenue per lawyer exceeds US$1million.[7]
Hogan Lovells was listed in Forbes' America's Top Trusted Corporate Law Firms 2019.[9]
History
Hogan & Hartson
The logo of Hogan & Hartson prior to the Hogan Lovells merger
Hogan & Hartson was founded by Frank J. Hogan in 1904.[10][11] In 1925, Hogan was joined by Nelson T. Hartson, a former Internal Revenue Service attorney, and John William Buttson Guider. Hogan & Hartson then went into partnership in 1938 with Buttson as a silent partner.[12]
In 1970, Hogan & Hartson became the first major firm to establish a separate practice group devoted exclusively to providing pro bono legal services. The Community Services Department (CSD) dealt with civil rights, environmental, homeless and other public interest groups. In 1990, Hogan & Hartson opened an office in London, their first outside the U.S.[13]
At the time of the merger, Hogan & Hartson was the oldest major law firm headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States. It was a global firm with more than 1,100 lawyers in 27 offices worldwide, including offices in North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
Lovells
The logo of Lovells prior to the Hogan Lovells merger
Lovells traced its history in the UK back to 1899, when John Lovell set up on his own account at Snow Hill, between St Paul's and Smithfield. He was later joined by Reginald White, a clerk in his previous firm, to whom he gave articles. In 1924, they were joined by Charles King, forming Lovell, White & King. Soon after formation, the firm moved to Thavies Inn at Holborn Circus and later to Serjeant's Inn, Fleet Street, before moving to 21 Holborn Viaduct in October 1977.
Lovells was formed as a result of a number of earlier mergers. In 1966, Lovell, White & King merged with Haslewoods, a firm with a much longer history of private client work. Haslewoods diverse clients included the Treasury Solicitor. In 1988, Lovell, White & King, which by then had a large international commercial practice, merged with Durrant Piesse, known, in particular, for its specialism in commercial banking and financial services, forming Lovell White Durrant. It then changed to Lovells in 2000 when the firm merged with German law firm Boesebeck Droste. Other mergers then followed in other European countries during the early 2000s (decade).[16]
In the early 2000s Lovells invested strongly in China, expanding its office in Beijing and opening an office in Shanghai becoming the second largest foreign firm in China. Following five years of growth, culminating in the opening of the firm's Madrid office in 2004, Lovells had a presence in every major European jurisdiction. In 2007, Lovells opened an office in Dubai, offering legal services to corporations, financial institutions and individuals in the Middle East and at the beginning of 2009 opened an office in Hanoi. In September 2009, Lovells opened an associated office in Riyadh.
At the time of the merger, Lovells was a London-based international law firm with over 300 partners and around 3,150 employees operating from 26 offices in Europe, Asia and the United States.
Hogan Lovells
The London office of Lovells in 2008, shortly before the merger with Hogan & Hartson.
Hogan & Hartson and Lovells announced their agreement to merge on 15 December 2009.[17] Hogan Lovells was officially formed on May 1, 2010.[18][19]
In December 2011 it was reported that the firm would be moving to a single chairman model following the retirement of John Young.[20]
In December 2013, Hogan Lovells merged with South African firm Routledge Modise. The addition of about 120 lawyers in the Johannesburg office make up the first physical location for Hogan Lovells in Africa although the firm maintains a presence in Francophone Africa through its Paris office.[21]
Partners at Hogan Lovells have voted to confirm current Asia Pacific and Middle East regional chief executive Miguel Zaldivar as their new global CEO from 1 July 2020. Current head of the Litigation Arbitration and Employment practice, Michael Davison will be Deputy CEO from the same date. Both will serve initial four year terms.[22]
Notable cases
In 2013, Hogan Lovells advised Kodak Pensioner Plan on its $650 million acquisition of the personal film business from Kodak.[23] In the same year, the firm also counselled tech-giant Dell on its $24.4 billion deal to go private[24] and advised fashion label Nicole Farhi on its £5.5 million sale to businesswoman and heiress, Maxine Hargreaves-Adams.[25]
In 2014, Hogan Lovells advised Apple Inc. on its $17 billion (£10.9 billion) bond issue, described as the largest corporate bond offering in history.[26] The firm assisted with the negotiation of terms with Fairtrade regarding sourcing and use of sustainable cocoa in Maltesers for Mars Candy.[27] In 2014, Hogan Lovells advised the Republic of Ecuador in the negotiation of a multimillion-dollar facility agreement to be used by the state-owned television and radio network, RTV Ecuador.[28] In May 2014, Snapchat turned to Hogan Lovells to hire its first General Counsel, appointing a Washington DC-based partner.[29]
In 2015, the firm advised long-standing client SABMiller on its £7.8 billion acquisition of Australian brewer Foster's Group on aspects of structuring the bid and acquisition finance[30] and it also advised SABMiller on its €1 billion Eurobond issue.[31] In July 2015, power management semiconductor company Semitrex hired Hogan Lovells to lobby for energy efficiency issues.[32] On December 19, 2017 Massachusetts Senate Committee in Ethics hired Hogan Lovells to lead an inquiry into Senate President Stanley C. Rosenberg's conduct and whether he violated the rules of the Senate stemming from allegations from four men that Rosenberg's husband, Bryon Hefner, sexually assaulted or harassed them and bragged he had influence on Senate business.[33]
Lobbying in the United States
Hogan Lovells is among the largest lobbying firms in the United States. Before the merger, by revenue, Hogan & Hartson was among the top five lobbying firms in the United States.[34] Since the merger, the firm has remained among the largest lobbying firms, servicing $12.3 million in lobbying 2013.[35]
South African Revenue Service (SARS) scandal
In October 2016, Hogan Lovells was inserted into the Jonas Makwaka investigation as part of the Zuma corruption scandal.[36] The firm's role was "to conduct an independent investigation into allegations against Mr Jonas Makwakwa and Ms Kelly Ann Elskie".[37] Although the report concluded that "disciplinary action should be taken", the document was widely seen as effectively a whitewash.[38] Other international firms implicated in Zuma related scandals have included KPMG and McKinsey.
Elliot Mincberg – General Deputy Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations at the Department of Housing and Urban Development
Ignacia S. Moreno – Assistant Attorney General for the United States Department of Justice Environment and Natural Resources Division
John E. Osborn – Member of the United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy
US$2.605 billion[3]
