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The lobbying and law firm Patton Boggs, the city’s biggest K Street practice, laid off 30 lawyers and 35 other employees including more than 20 people in Washington, D.C., according to multiple news reports Friday.
Those laid off included associates, public policy advisers, support staff and paralegals, the firm’s managing partner Ed Newberry told the Blog of Legal Times. He noted that the move would save the firm more than $14 million.
A spokesperson for the firm did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment.
Although Patton Boggs’ financial woes extend beyond its lobbying portfolio, the shop, though it is the biggest among lobbying practices, reported a 5 percent dip in Lobbying Disclosure Act revenue between 2012 and 2011. It reported $46 million in LDA fees in 2012, according to CQ Roll Call’s Top 25 lobby shops report. In 2011, Patton Boggs brought in $48.4 million in LDA revenue.
An unnamed Patton Boggs partner told Reuters, which first broke the layoff news, “I think the firm is just right-sizing.”
The shop is home to former Sens. John Breaux, D-La., and Trent Lott, R-Miss., who are among the outfit’s biggest rainmakers, along with name partner Thomas Boggs.
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