Davis Wright Tremaine Searches for New Leader After Abrupt Exit

Davis Wright Tremaine is forming an internal search committee to look for its next leader after its managing partner stepped down from the position in a surprise move.

Scott MacCormack, who has led the Seattle-founded firm since 2021, relinquished his post March 11. Davis Wright Tremaine did not give an explanation for the move, beyond an initial statement announcing the change on March 13. MacCormack, whom the firm said will stay on as a partner, did not respond to a request for comment.

The firm plans to finalize a committee in the coming weeks to lead the search for a new managing partner, a firm spokesperson said Thursday. The group will focus on internal candidates for the job, the spokesperson said.

Davis Wright Tremaine is hoping to have a new managing partner in place by the end of the summer, the firm said. Pete Johnson, the head of the firm’s Seattle office, was tapped this week to fill the position on interim basis.

The firm is best known for its litigation work, especially among media and technology clients like Apple, Inc., Facebook owner Meta Platforms Inc., and Netflix Inc. Davis Wright Tremaine employs some 600 lawyers in the U.S.

The firm’s gross revenue climbed by nearly 17% to $563.5 million in three years under MacCormack’s watch. In 2022, he steered the firm’s merger with 44-lawyer financial services boutique McGonigle.

Scott MacCormack

MacCormack joined Davis Wright Tremaine in 2008 from Heller Ehrman. He previously served on the firm’s executive committee and led its energy practice.

He was elected managing partner in 2021, succeeding Jeff Gray, a San Francisco attorney who had led the firm since 2015.

Johnson, the interim leader, has served on the firm’s executive committee since 2019 and has chaired the firm’s partner compensation committee as well as its strategic planning committee.

‘No Easy Game Plan’

Leadership succession planning can be critical at Big Law firms because of the potential damage if things go awry, said Patrick McKenna, law firm management consultant who has advised firms on leadership transitions.

“You have so many baby-boomer partners nearing retirement who control a majority of a firm’s client base,” said McKenna. “That whole thing needs to be handled with care. It’s a tough issue to deal with. There’s no easy game plan.”

Succession woes at Boies Schiller Flexner, the firm long led by legendary litigator David Boies, helped spur an exodus of partners and blue-chip clients. The firm, however, held a chair vote in December that its leader-in-waiting said shows it has moved past that period of instability.

In December, Proskauer Rose’s chairman Steve Ellis, who had been in the position since 2020, abruptly stepped down to focus on his health. The firm later tapped partner Tim Mungovan to take the reins.

Davis Wright Tremaine elected a new group of executive committee members last year, including its new chair Camilo Echavarria. Echavarria, leader of the firm’s Los Angeles office, replaced Sarah Tune, who had been in the position since 2018.

Jaime Drozd, co-chair of Davis Wright Tremaine’s litigation group, was elected vice chair, while San Francisco-based lawyer Sanjay Nangia was elected secretary.

The firm is set to elect three new executive committee members at the end of the month.