Ropes & Gray LLP is an American multinational law firm. It was founded in 1865 in Boston by John Codman Ropes and John Chipman Gray. The firm has over 1,500 lawyers and about 1,300 employees worldwide, with 16 offices across the United States, Asia, and Europe. Its clientele consists mainly of corporations, financial institutions, government agencies, universities, and health care organizations.
The firm was founded in 1865 by two Harvard Law School graduates, John Codman Ropes and John Chipman Gray, Jr.. In 1878, William Loring, also a Harvard graduate, joined the firm, and it was renamed "Ropes, Gray and Loring" until Loring's departure in 1899, when he was appointed to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court,[1][2] and the firm was renamed as "Ropes, Gray and Gorham" with the addition of Robert Gorham. Following Gorham’s death, the firm was renamed Ropes, Gray, Boyden & Perkins in 1914, adding Roland Boyden and Thomas Perkins as name partners.[3]
The firm began with representation of, mainly, individuals, and Harvard University. With the addition of Loring, in 1878, the New York and New England Railroad became a client, and the firm began its shift to corporate law, growing to 11 lawyers and 15 staff by 1910.[3]
The firm grew during the 20th century, developing a bankruptcy practice during the Great Depression, a labor practice in response to The New Deal, and adding financial reports to its services after the creation of the SEC.[4]
In 1940, the firm's name was changed to Ropes, Gray, Best, Coolidge & Rugg, until 1961, when its original name, "Ropes & Gray" was again adopted.[5]
In 1942, a book written by Albert Boyden, which chronicles the history of the firm, was published under the title Ropes-Gray, 1865-1940.[6]
21st century
In 2003, the firm acquired New York City based private equity law firm Reboul, MacMurray, Hewitt & Maynard.[7] In 2005, it acquired NYC-based intellectual property law firm Fish & Neave.[8] Two years later, the firm opened its first international office in Tokyo,[9][10] followed by an office in London, in 2010.[11]
In 2012, the Korean Bar Association approved Ropes & Gray as the first Foreign Legal Consultant Office in Korean history, allowing the firm to open an eleventh office, in Seoul.[12][13] At the time, Ropes & Gray had 1,100 lawyers and had expanded its presence in Asia with offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, and in Tokyo.[13]
In 2017, the firm elected Julie Jones as chair, who had been a member of its management committee since 2011. After serving as chair-elect for two years, Jones took the helm in 2020, as the first woman to chair the firm.[14][15] In 2024, as Jones was re-elected to another five-year term, Neill Jakobe was elected to serve a five-year term as vice chair.[16]
In 2023, the firm opened an office in Dublin, Ireland.[17] Later that year, in July, Ropes & Gray announced the relocation of some Shanghai-based lawyers to its Hong Kong operation and the launch of an office in Singapore.[18][19]
In November 2023, amid antisemitic incidents at elite U.S. law schools,[20][21][22] Ropes & Gray was among a group of major law firms that sent a letter to top law school deans warning them that an escalation in incidents targeting Jewish students would have corporate hiring consequences. The letter stated: "We look to you to ensure your students who hope to join our firms after graduation are prepared to be an active part of workplace communities that have zero tolerance policies for any form of discrimination or harassment, much less the kind that has been taking place on some law school campuses."[23]
In 2024, the firm, previously 16th, was ranked 24th in the London Stock Exchange Group's global M&A legal advisor rankings, reflecting more than 200 deals valued at $136.8 billion.[17]
In September 2025, Ropes & Gray opened its fourth European office, in Milan,[24] raising its office count to 15, with seven U.S. offices, in Boston, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and Palo Alto, and other international offices in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Seoul, Singapore, Dublin, London, and Paris.[17][25]
Firm partner Joan McPhee defended former BP engineer Kurt Mix against obstruction of justice charges related to the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, with charges dropped in 2015.[29]
Representing the plaintiffs in Obergefell v. Hodges, in 2015. Attorney Doug Hallward-Driemeier argued before the U.S. Supreme Court that states must recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere.[30][31][32][33][34]
Representing Gawker in its 2016 Chapter 11 filing.[35]
Defending physicians' First Amendment rights in Wollschlaeger v. Governor of Florida, in 2017. The case concerned a Florida law banning doctors from inquiring about patients’ gun ownership.[36]
Represented Harris Associates in March 2010, with the Supreme Court's ruling in Jones v. Harris Associates establishing the standard governing claims of excessive mutual fund fees under § 36(b) of the Investment Company Act of 1940.[43]
Firm lawyers have advised companies on business transactions that include the following:
TPG Capital and the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board's $5.2 billion acquisition of IMS Health Inc., in 2009[47]
Genzyme Corporation's $2.9 billion deal with Bayer Schering Pharma AG, in 2010, granting Genzyme rights to market cancer drugs and control a program in multiple sclerosis.[48]
NSTAR's 2010 merger with Northeast Utilities for $7.1 billion[49]
TPG Capital's 2010 acquisition of J.Crew for $3 billion[50]
Bare Escentuals 2010 merger with Shiseido of Japan, for $1.7 billionl[51]
Bain Capital's 2011 majority acquisition of MYOB[52]
Genzyme's 2011 acquisition by Sanofi-Aventis, for $20.1 billion[53]
Berkshire Partners' 2012 acquisition of Lightower Fiber Networks and Sidera Networks for $2 billion[55]
Crown Castle International's 2017 acquisition of Lightower Fiber Networks for about $7.1 billion[56]
Bain Capital's 2018 sale by Toshiba Corp. of its semiconductor business to a group that included Apple, Seagate, Kingston, Hoya, Dell Technologies, and SK Hynix, in Asia's largest leveraged buyout and private equity deal to date, valued at approximately $18 billion[57]
Inspire Brands' 2020 acquisition of Dunkin' Donuts, for $11.3 billion[58]
Altimeter Growth Corp., in its 2021 merger to take Grab public for $39.6 billion, the largest SPAC merger to date[59]
Nippon Steel Corporation's 2023 agreement to purchase U.S. Steel for $14 billion[60]
Evident Corporation's 2025 $1.8B sale of Inspection Technologies division to Wabtec Corporation[61][62]
In 2025, the firm was ranked across numerous practice areas in Chambers Global[28] and Chambers USA[64] and was listed in Vault’s Best Law Firms to Work For.[65] The firm received an IFLR Americas Award for advising on First Quantum Minerals’ $1.6 billion high-yield offering, the largest mining high-yield deal in a decade.[66] LMG Life Sciences recognized the firm as Licensing & Collaboration Firm of the Year in the Americas in 2024[67][68] and Venture Capital Firm of the Year in the EMEA region in 2025.[69]The American Lawyer ranked Ropes & Gray second on its A-List in 2025, its fourth consecutive year in the top three.[70]
William Loring (named partner), Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court; Harvard Law School professor; general counsel of the New York and New England Railroad
↑Sorkin, Andrew Ross; Mattu, Ravi; Warner, Bernhard; Kessler, Sarah; de la Merced, Michael J.; Hirsch, Lauren; Livni, Ephrat (November 2, 2023). "Law Firms Warn Universities About Antisemitism on Campus". The New York Times. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
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