Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Founded in New York, NY in 1948, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom has approximately 1,756 attorneys across 21 offices.

$225,000

Reported to Chambers Associate (Sep 2026)

190

2026 summer class; 99.4% reported offer rate

Overall firm rank

$7M

Am Law #5

$4.1B

Rank #5; 1,756 attorneys

Not reported: Partnership Track.

Openings

Every firm on the Job Board

3L / Entry-LevelOpen
2027 Entry Level Associate General Application (+7 more roles)
New York, Washington, DC, Los Angeles, Palo Alto, Chicago, Boston, Houston, Wilmington
Opens
Opened Sep 1
Deadline
Rolling
Checked 1d ago
1L Summer 2027 · Class of 2029Opening Soon
Palo Alto, Chicago, Houston, Toronto
Opens
Nov 2, 2026
Deadline
Not announced
2L Summer 2028 · Class of 2029Opening Soon
New York, Washington, DC, Los Angeles, Boston, Hong Kong, London, Tokyo, Wilmington
Opens
Nov 2, 2026
Deadline
Not announced

Skadden pays $225,000, the same as 159 of the 197 firms that publish pay.

Listed firms by announced first-year comp

Firms by first-year comp
First-Year Comp	Firms
Above $225K	18
$225K	159
Below $225K	20

Source: firm announcements. 197 listed firms publish a first-year figure.

About Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom

Skadden was founded in New York in 1948 by Marshall Skadden, Les Arps, and John Slate. Joe Flom joined as its first associate that year, and Bill Meagher joined in 1959. The firm's history connects its growth to proxy contests and the development of the modern mergers and acquisitions market.

Its willingness to handle proxy fights in the 1950s and 1960s helped position the firm for the hostile takeover activity that followed in the 1970s. Alongside that work, Skadden developed complementary litigation, tax, and antitrust practices. Expansion into additional cities began in 1973 as client needs and transaction activity grew.

For students, this history explains the relationship between the firm's corporate identity and its broader services. A contested transaction can require deal counsel, courtroom advocacy, and tax or competition analysis at the same time. Skadden's development illustrates how those disciplines became connected within a firm serving clients on complex business

problems.

Description source

Rankings

Latest published editions. Each links to its source.

Size and Standing

$4.1B gross revenueAm Law 100, $4.1B gross revenue: #5 (opens in a new tab)
Lawyers in 12 countriesGlobal 200, Lawyers in 12 countries: #5 (opens in a new tab)
1,756 attorneysNLJ 500, 1,756 attorneys: #16 (opens in a new tab)
PrestigeVault Law 100, Prestige: #3 (opens in a new tab)

Associate Life

Pro Bono and Inclusion

Vault Practice Rankings

Show All 20

Practice Strength by Market

Every band below appears on this firm’s Chambers USA 2026 profile, checked September 26, 2026. Where Chambers splits a table into The Elite and Highly Regarded, every Elite firm ranks above every Highly Regarded firm.

View firm on Chambers

Scroll sideways to see recognition.

Practice	Market	Recognition, 2026
Antitrust	Nationwide	Band 1
Antitrust	New York	Band 1
Asset Management M&A	Nationwide	Band 1
Capital Markets: Debt & Equity	California	Band 1
Chancery	Delaware	Band 1
Corporate/M&AThe Elite	California: Los Angeles & Surrounds	Band 1
Corporate/M&AThe Elite	California: San Francisco, Silicon Valley & Surrounds	Band 1
Corporate/M&AThe Elite	Nationwide	Band 1
Corporate/M&AThe Elite	New York	Band 1
Corporate/M&A & Private Equity	District of Columbia	Band 1
Corporate/M&A & Private Equity	Illinois	Band 1
Corporate/M&A: Deals in Asia	California	Band 1
Corporate/M&A: Takeover Defense	New York	Band 1
Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation	California: San Francisco, Silicon Valley & Surrounds	Band 1
Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation	Nationwide	Band 1
Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation	New York	Band 1
Energy: Electricity (Transactional)	Nationwide	Band 1
Insurance: Transactional & Regulatory	Nationwide	Band 1
Insurance: Transactional & Regulatory	New York	Band 1
Intellectual Property: Trademark, Copyright & Trade Secrets: Transactional	New York	Band 1
Labor & Employment: Transactional	New York	Band 1
Litigation: General CommercialThe Elite	Nationwide	Band 1
Litigation: General CommercialThe Elite	New York	Band 1
Litigation: Securities	California	Band 1
Litigation: Securities	Massachusetts	Band 1
Litigation: Securities	New York	Band 1
Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government InvestigationsThe Elite	New York	Band 1
Political Law	Nationwide	Band 1
Real Estate: Mainly Corporate & Finance	New York	Band 1
REITs	Nationwide	Band 1
Securities: Litigation	Nationwide	Band 1
Securities: Regulation: Advisory	Nationwide	Band 1
Sports Law	Nationwide	Band 1
Tax	California: Northern	Band 1
Tax	District of Columbia	Band 1
Tax	Illinois	Band 1
Tax	New York	Band 1
Tax: Controversy	Nationwide	Band 1
Tax: Corporate & Finance	Nationwide	Band 1
Technology	New York	Band 1
Antitrust	District of Columbia	Band 2
Bankruptcy/Restructuring	Illinois	Band 2
Capital Markets: Convertible Debt	Nationwide	Band 2
Capital Markets: Equity: Issuer Counsel	Nationwide	Band 2
Capital Markets: Equity: Manager Counsel	Nationwide	Band 2
Capital Markets: High-Yield Debt	Nationwide	Band 2
Capital Markets: Investment Grade Debt: Issuer Counsel	Nationwide	Band 2
Corporate Crime & InvestigationsThe Elite	Nationwide	Band 2
Corporate/M&A & Alternative Entities	Delaware	Band 2
Financial Services Regulation: Consumer Finance (Enforcement & Investigations)	Nationwide	Band 2
Financial Services Regulation: Financial Institutions M&A	Nationwide	Band 2
International ArbitrationThe Elite	Nationwide	Band 2
International Trade: CFIUS Experts	Nationwide	Band 2
Litigation: General CommercialThe Elite	California	Band 2
Litigation: General Commercial	Illinois	Band 2
Litigation: General Commercial	Massachusetts	Band 2
Litigation: Securities	Illinois	Band 2
Litigation: Securities	Texas	Band 2
Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations	Illinois	Band 2
Media & Entertainment: Corporate	New York	Band 2
National Security	Nationwide	Band 2
Outsourcing	New York	Band 2
Product Liability & Mass TortsThe Elite	Nationwide	Band 2
Projects: Power & Renewables: Transactional	Nationwide	Band 2
Real Estate	Nationwide	Band 2
Real Estate: Mainly Dirt	New York	Band 2
Securities: Regulation: Enforcement	Nationwide	Band 2
Artificial Intelligence	Nationwide	Band 3
Banking & Finance	Illinois	Band 3
Banking & Finance	Nationwide	Band 3
Bankruptcy/RestructuringThe Elite	Nationwide	Band 3
Bankruptcy/RestructuringThe Elite	New York	Band 3
Capital Markets: Investment Grade Debt: Manager Counsel	Nationwide	Band 3
Derivatives	Nationwide	Band 3
Energy Transition	Nationwide	Band 3
Energy: Oil & Gas (Transactional)	Nationwide	Band 3
Environment: Mainly Transactional	District of Columbia	Band 3
Financial Services Regulation: Banking (Enforcement & Investigations)	Nationwide	Band 3
Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations	California	Band 3
Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations	District of Columbia	Band 3
Media & Entertainment: Transactional	California	Band 3
Privacy & Data Security: Litigation	Nationwide	Band 3
Projects: Oil & Gas	Nationwide	Band 3
Projects: Power	Nationwide	Band 3
Projects: Renewables & Alternative Energy	Nationwide	Band 3
Real Estate	Illinois	Band 3
Tax	Massachusetts	Band 3
Appellate Law	Nationwide	Band 4
Banking & Finance	California	Band 4
Banking & Finance	New York	Band 4
Bankruptcy/Restructuring	Delaware	Band 4
Financial Services Regulation: Banking (Compliance)	Nationwide	Band 4
Financial Services Regulation: Consumer Finance (Litigation)	Nationwide	Band 4
Healthcare	Massachusetts	Band 4
Healthcare: Pharmaceutical/Medical Products Regulatory	District of Columbia	Band 4
Hedge Funds	Nationwide	Band 4
Intellectual Property: Trademark, Copyright & Trade Secrets	New York	Band 4
Leisure & Hospitality	Nationwide	Band 4
Litigation: General CommercialThe Elite	District of Columbia	Band 4
Private Equity: Buyouts	California	Band 4
Private Equity: Fund Formation	Nationwide	Band 4
Real Estate	California: Southern	Band 4
Registered Funds	Nationwide	Band 4
Technology	California	Band 4
Technology	Nationwide	Band 4
Corporate/M&AThe Elite	Texas	Band 5
FCPA	Nationwide	Band 5
Healthcare	District of Columbia	Band 5
Intellectual Property: Patent	New York	Band 5
Life Sciences	Nationwide	Band 5
International Trade: Export Controls & Economic SanctionsHighly Regarded	Nationwide	Band 1
HealthcareHighly Regarded	Nationwide	Band 2

112 reported ranking rows

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Private notesWhat you learned at the coffee chat, in one place.
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Your historyEvents, Gold Stars and when you applied.

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Locations

21 reported

New York, NYHeadquarters

Washington, DC

Los Angeles, CA

Palo Alto, CA

Chicago, IL

Boston, MA

Houston, TX

Show 14 more locations

Abu Dhabi, UAE

Beijing, China

Brussels, Belgium

Frankfurt, Germany

Hong Kong

London, UK

Munich, Germany

Paris, France

Sao Paulo, Brazil

Seoul, South Korea

Singapore

Tokyo, Japan

Toronto, Canada

Wilmington, DE

Firm Facts

: 1,756
US Partners: 345
: 4.08 (Am Law leverage, FY2025)
Firm Leadership: Jeremy London
Notable Alumni: Patrick Fitzgerald, Gregory B. Craig, Bruce Buck

Recruiting & Development

: No
: 99.4%

Culture, Diversity & Pro Bono

Women Partners: 23.5%
Pro Bono Hours Per Attorney: 90.8 hours

Facts verified by BigLaw Bear, narrative by the firm. Figures carry a source link where we hold one; prose is Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom’s own.

Firm Highlights

Revenue: $4.1BAm Law #5Source
Revenue Per Lawyer: $2.3M
Profits Per Partner: $7MSource

Attorneys by role

Partners: 345

Summer Program

Program features

Summer Pay: $225,000Reported to Chambers Associate (Sep 2026)Source
Total Summer Associates: 19042 1Ls, 148 2Ls. Class of 2026Source
Program Length: 10 weeksSource
Early Interviewing: Yes2027 1L and 2028 2L applications open Monday, November 2. Candidates submit a resume and undergraduate transcript, add fall 2026 grades once available, and complete a short online assessment administered by Suited. The process starts with a virtual screening interview, then full rounds with partners and associates in the practice areas of interest.Source
First Years Hired into a Practice: YesSource

Practice Areas

Applications indicate the preferred office and practice area(s) of interest. Over the summer, Skadden says, "summer associates work in different areas of law, strengthening lawyering skills and gaining insight into the firm in general." New associates attend the firm's Associates' Comprehensive Education program in New York and, at its conclusion, "join their practice areas."

Source

Pro Bono

Summers Can Take Pro Bono: YesSource
Counts as Billable: YesUncapped; every pro bono hour counts toward billablesSource
Average Hours Per Attorney: 90.8 hoursAm Law pro bono rank #19

How pro bono work is assigned

Skadden gives billable hour credit for pro bono work and is a charter signatory of the Pro Bono Institute's Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge. The firm encourages lawyers from day one to find a cause that interests them and match it to legal needs in their communities.

More about Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom

Skadden says it typically accommodates requests to split a summer between two of its 21 offices. The summer associate position pays at an annual rate of $225,000, semi-monthly. Summer associates receive informal feedback on everyday work, formal mid-summer and exit reviews, and may complete self-assessments and optional upward reviews.