Sidley’s Washington, D.C. office opened its doors in 1963 with just three lawyers and has grown to be one of the city’s largest law firms, home to more than 300 lawyers. Located on K Street, two blocks from the White House, we work at the crossroads of law and policy, providing comprehensive regulatory, litigation, and transactional services to domestic and international clients in numerous industries.
Many of our lawyers possess an invaluable perspective garnered from years of experience in prior government service. Dozens of D.C. lawyers have held high-level positions at the Justice Department, other federal departments and agencies, the White House, and on Capitol Hill. More than 120 D.C. lawyers have served as clerks in federal and state courts across the country, including 20 who served as U.S. Supreme Court clerks.
Sidley in the Community
Sidley’s roots in Washington are deep, as is our commitment to pro bono representation and involvement in the community. Our lawyers, legal assistants and staff devote tens of thousands of hours each year to pro bono work and have championed a number of area initiatives. Many projects come to us via longstanding partnerships with D.C.-based organizations.
- Sidley lawyers have staffed the Landlord Tenant Resource Center (LTRC) of the D.C. Superior Court since 2009, helping to level the playing field where more than 90% of defendants have no lawyer.
- Since its inception 20 years ago, we have volunteered twice a year with the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Program’s Advocacy and Justice Clinic, representing at least ten clients a year in landlord-tenant, disability benefits and family law cases.
- We have served for several years as reading partners and mentors to elementary school students through a program run by Everybody Wins! D.C.
- The office holds an annual Service Week that engages lawyers, summer associates and staff in a wide range of volunteer activities, including a blood drive, packing schoolbags for the Children’s Law Center, collecting toiletries and contributions for Miriam’s Kitchen and writing letters to service members overseas.
Recognition for the D.C. Office
Many of Sidley’s D.C.-based practices and the lawyers who comprise those teams are recognized as leaders in their respective fields. The 2016 U.S. News – Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” Survey rates 31 D.C. practice areas among the region’s top-tier groups; the office also received a first-tier metro ranking. More than 45 of our D.C. partners are recognized in Chambers USA 2015. D.C. lawyers also have received recognition from The American Lawyer, Law360, PLC, The National Law Journal, Who’s Who Legal, Best Lawyers, IFLR 1000, LMG Life Sciences, IAM Patent 1000, Washingtonian magazine, Benchmark Litigation and the International Legal Alliance.
Sidley values the recognition it has received in response to its pro bono activities. The D.C. office was honored for the ninth consecutive year in 2016 by the chief judges of the District of Columbia federal courts at the “40 at 50” Judicial Pro Bono Recognition ceremony, an event that honors law firms in which 40 percent of the lawyers devoted 50 or more hours to pro bono work. Also in 2016, Sidley was among 46 law firms recognized for donating a total of almost $5 million to the D.C. Access to Justice Commission’s initiative to increase funding to local legal services providers.