In 2023, the legal industry saw major law firms such as Brownstein Hyatt, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, and Holland & Knight surpass their annual lobbying revenue records, signifying the business community’s steadfast efforts on Capitol Hill amidst a challenging legislative landscape.
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck announced federal lobbying revenues of $62.6 million, achieving a firm record of $16 million in the Q4, 2023 alone. The firm’s notable lobbying clients included pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson and the Saudi Kingdom’s Public Investment Fund, the key financial backer of the LIV Golf circuit.
Simultaneously, Akin Gump, which lobbies for AI company OpenAI and Japanese steel behemoth Nippon Steel, disclosed over $54.7 million in federal lobbying revenue — a 3% year-on-year increase. Nippon Steel enlisted Akin’s services to navigate the political complexities surrounding its bid to acquire United States Steel Corp. in December.
Even though the pace of enacted legislation slowed considerably due to a divided Congress, lobbying dollar figures surged. As reported by Mehlman Consulting, the legislative body passed only 34 public laws in 2023, the smallest total since 2013. However, overall lobbying expenditure exceeded $3 billion for the second consecutive year, marking a trend that began in 2020, as indicated by Open Secrets data.
Other law firms, while successful, did not share in this growth. K&L Gates’ lobbying revenue for 2023 diminished to $17.5 million from the $21.4 million raked in during 2022.
Looking ahead to 2024, the industry expects no substantial drop in lobbying activity, despite the potential decrease usually tied to election years. Rich Gold, a public policy leader at Holland & Knight, predicts robust activity driven by the continued implementation of significant bills, such as the 2021 infrastructure legislation and the anticipated regulations from the Biden administration. Furthermore, a bipartisan tax package worth approximately $80 billion in business and child tax breaks is also under review, thereby opening the avenue for lobbying engagement regarding 2017 tax law provisions slated to expire in 2025.
Diverse issue sets like government funding deals, national defense reauthorizations, artificial intelligence, and US-China relations, among others, create opportunities even as they pose challenges. Thus, these uncertain times bear consequential policy matters, making lobbying an almost indispensable aspect of business strategy.
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