Harris St. Laurent & Wechsler LLP (HSW) is a premier boutique litigation and employment firm based in New York City with an office in Washington, D.C. that represents a broad spectrum of clients ranging from financial services executives and start-up founders to closely held business partners and leading companies.
Challenge
When HSW came to Reputation Ink, the firm was handling high-stakes commercial and white-collar defense litigation, as well as executive employment matters, for an elite group of clients but relied mostly on word-of-mouth referrals. This was a successful strategy while the firm was small, but as it grew, HSW realized it had to get more proactive and strategic to generate new business on a sustained basis. This was a go-to firm that deserved go-to recognition — and the book of business to match.
To accomplish this, HSW sought out a legal PR and content agency to partner with and selected Reputation Ink.
At the outset of our efforts for the firm, we met with the managing partner and other stakeholders to discuss HSW’s specific goals and priorities. Based on those detailed conversations, we identified three main initiatives:
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Raising the firm’s profile through strategic thought leadership efforts through targeted media relations to secure placements with legal and industry trades as well as top-tier media outlets
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Pursuing a strategic list of awards and rankings, including Chambers USA, Benchmark Litigation and Lawdragon, which the firm had never previously submitted to
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Revising the firm’s website content to better reflect its work and value proposition, along with a content marketing strategy to keep it fresh
With those initiatives in place, the Reputation Ink team got to work, focusing on the following tactics.
Ongoing strategy calls with partners and associates
We met one-on-one with HSW’s partners and associates to learn more about what differentiated the firm from its peers. During our strategy calls, we worked with each lawyer to identify the client engagements and growth goals that would guide our media pitching and award submission strategies. We also discussed underreported but important legal topics that each lawyer could talk or write about to leverage their thought leadership.
Awards submission drafting
We walked HSW through the submission processes for the awards they wanted to rank in, especially Chambers USA, Benchmark Litigation, Lawdragon and the Legal 500. Our team worked closely with the firm’s marketing committee to decide which lawyers, practice groups and legal matters to focus on. From there, we drafted submission materials highlighting each lawyer’s client and community accomplishments, as well as each practice group’s strengths and key decisions.
Interview preparation for awards and media opportunities
Many of the awards and media opportunities HSW targeted entailed interviews with awards organizers, reporters and editors. To make the best of these invaluable face-to-face opportunities, Reputation Ink coached HSW’s partners through best practices and shared insider insights on discussion points. For interviews with legal publication editors, we advised HSW’s lawyers on how they could encourage long-term media engagements and future interview requests.
Media and conference monitoring and newsjacking
A firm must act quickly to leverage relevant media opportunities regardless of the outlet. Our team regularly tracked calls for speakers and columns and alerted HSW to opportunities that would maximize their exposure to potential clients and referral sources. We also monitored the news, looking for opportunities to “newsjack” an HSW lawyer into stories.
Finding opportunities for everyone — not just the firm’s lawyers
HSW is unique compared to other New York litigation boutiques in how it leverages talent from outside the law to bolster its client teams. For example, the firm has an in-house doctor of psychology and performance coach who prepares HSW’s lawyers and clients for the rigors of trial. We worked with this individual and other essential professionals at the firm to find opportunities to showcase their contributions.
We have helped the firm secure many media and awards placements throughout this long-term engagement. These include:
Widespread legal ranking recognition
Without ever submitting for the following awards before working with Reputation Ink, HSW was ranked after its very first submissions:
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Chambers USA ranked two HSW partners and two practice groups in its 2021 guide after the firm’s first submission attempt. The firm has improved its placements each year since, with seven partners ranked between the New York and Washington, D.C. offices in 2024, along with two practice groups. Several partners are in Band 1.
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Benchmark Litigation listed HSW as a “Recommended” firm for dispute resolution and recognized eight partners in its 2023 guide. The firm was also a finalist for U.S. Labor and Employment Firm of the Year. As with Chambers, HSW ranked in Benchmark after its first submission attempt for 2023 and likely replaced a previously ranked firm given the crowded New York market.
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Lawdragon honored eight HSW lawyers across several of its annual guides, including: Lawdragon 500 Corporate Employment Lawyers, including a Hall of Fame designation for one of HSW’s executive compensation partners, Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators of America, Lawdragon 500 Leading Civil Rights and Plaintiffs Lawyers and Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyers in America
Extensive media coverage
Some of the notable media placements we secured include:
“I cannot say enough about Reputation Ink. They did extensive work in getting to know us and learning what differentiates our firm from our peers. Their team then developed pitches and awards submissions that neatly and succinctly communicated these points. As a result, we networked with editors and secured accolades we wouldn’t have had the bandwidth to manage on our own.” — Jonathan Harris, founding partner