Covington & Burling and WilmerHale reported little change in their lobbying work in the first quarter, suggesting clients are so far standing by two firms attacked by President Donald Trump.
Covington reported $2.1 million in lobbying revenue for the first quarter, according to disclosures and a tabulation by the firm. That’s around the $2.2 million the firm brought in during the same period a year ago. WilmerHale’s first quarter figure of $1.1 million compared to $1.28 million from the first quarter in 2024, according to data from the US Senate.
Trump is going after a handful of law firms in a retribution campaign that some leaders have described as existential threats to their businesses. The lobbying records show little impact so far—at least in one small portion of these firms’ business, which was only impacted mid-way through the reporting period.
Trump targeted some of Covington’s lawyers who provided legal advice to former special counsel Jack Smith in a Feb. 25 directive, his first action targeting lawyers he perceived as his enemy. Wilmer on March 27 faced a broader executive order, citing the firm’s ties to former special counsel Robert Mueller, that threatened government contracts held by the firm’s clients. The firm has won a temporary restraining order stalling its implementation and will be in court this week to ask a judge to permanently block the order.
Covington’s largest clients in the first quarter included chip giant Qualcomm, which paid the firm $680,000—the lowest quarterly amount since at least 2021. The Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers of America Inc., a longtime client, paid the firm $420,000.
The National Football League is a long-term client that didn’t pay the firm in the first quarter. The NFL was among a throng of businesses who turned to Trump-connected Ballard Partners since the election.
Covington has a long and broad relationship with the NFL, but the firm drew the ire of the league last year when it represented a since-folded streaming start-up proposed by Disney, Fox and Warner Bros Discovery Inc.
Wilmer in the first quarter got return business from the likes of Sinclair Broadcast Group and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, who paid the firm $140,000 and $150,000, respectively, in the first quarter, records show.
Covington and WilmerHale are not top players in the federal lobbying practice, and it only makes up a tiny fraction of the law firms’ overall business. Covington and WilmerHale generate around $1.5 billion in annual revenue, according to The American Lawyer. The order targeting WilmerHale also poses a threat to its larger business lines like appearing before federal regulators and federal court litigation.
Big Quarter for Lobbying
Law firms with the largest lobbying businesses reported healthy first quarter revenue, bolstered by clients navigating a new administration bringing much change to Washington.
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, which had the most federal lobbying revenue in 2024 among law firms, reported $16.8 million in first quarter revenue—up from $16.4 million the year prior.
Akin Gump had its largest quarter on record, a firm spokeswoman said, bringing in $16.4 million. That was up from $13.8 million a year ago, according to US Senate records.
Rounding out the third largest law firm lobbying practice last year, Holland & Knight reported $13 million in the first quarter this year. That’s up from $12.4 million in the year-ago period, according to Senate data.
Brian Pomper, co-head of Akin’s Lobbying & Public Policy Practice, said the firm has seen accelerated growth since the election.
“Clients across a range of industries are turning to us to navigate the trifecta of rapidly changing and complex trade policies, pending tax reform, and the torrent of executive orders,” Pomper said.
Law firms were not only recipients of lobbying revenue in the first quarter—some were paying clients.
Kirkland & Ellis and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett each paid Ballard Partners $100,000, according to Senate records. Those firms were among a group that reached settlements with the Trump administration and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, promising to provide millions in “pro bono” legal services agreeable to the president.