Duane Morris
Law firm headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Duane Morris LLP is a law firm headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The firm was founded in 1904 as Duane, Morris, Heckscher, & Roberts,[2] and has offices in the United States, London, Singapore, Vietnam, Oman, Myanmar, Shanghai, and Taiwan.[3]
| Headquarters | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| No. of offices | 29 |
| No. of attorneys | 800+ |
| Major practice areas | General practice |
| Key people | Matthew A. Taylor (Chair) Charles J. O'Donnell (COO) |
| Revenue | |
| Profit per equity partner | US$1,081,000 (2021)[1] |
| Date founded | 1904 |
| Founder |
|
| Company type | Limited liability partnership |
| Website | duanemorris |
Ranking and recognition
U.S. News & World Report awarded[when?] Duane Morris top-tier national rankings in bankruptcy and creditor debtor rights/insolvency and reorganization law, construction law and litigation, employee benefits law, health care law, immigration, insurance, patent law and venture capital law. In 2025, U.S. News & World Report recognized the firm as one of the 'Best Companies to Work for' in the Law Firms category.[4]
In 2025, the Am Law 200 ranked Duane Morris as the 82nd largest law firm in the United States based on gross revenue.[5] The firm was ranked 74th in the U.S. based on size by the National Law Journal's 2025 NLJ 500 ranking.[5]
Growth
Chair Sheldon Bonovitz stepped down at the beginning of January 2008 and was replaced by former Vice Chair John J. Soroko.[6] Soroko became chairman emeritus in 2017 when Matthew A. Taylor took over as chairman and CEO.[7][8]
As of 2017[update], the firm had more than 750 attorneys across 27 offices.[3][9][non-primary source needed]
In January 2020, Duane Morris reached a merger agreement with Satterlee Stephens.[10]
Notable cases and deals
- Markman v. Westview Instruments, Inc.: Duane Morris represented the plaintiff Markman in a patent infringement lawsuit.[11]
- Tobacco Industry Litigation: Duane Morris and the Pittsburgh law firm of Buchanan Ingersoll represented the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in a 46-state class action lawsuit against the tobacco industry. The litigation concluded in 1998 with a $206 billion global settlement agreement for the 46 suing states.[12][13][14]
Notable alumni
- Barbara Adams, general counsel of Pennsylvania, under Governor Rendell
- Michael Baylson, federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- Roland S. Morris, former United States Ambassador to Japan, one of the founding partners of the firm
- Gene E. K. Pratter, federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- Marjorie Rendell, circuit judge in the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- Mark Singel, lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania from 1987 to 1995. Joined the firm in 2000 after leaving public service and left to start his own firm in 2005.