Where the major political parties spent their legal dollars between 1Q2021 and 1Q2022?
I pulled the FEC data for the DCCC, DNC, DSCC, NRCC, NRSC, and RNC from January 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022 to see where the major political party arms spend their money. I looked at any expenditure labeled legal, law, or attorney. I deduped and merged entries for this 15-month period. To start, here’s where Democratic-affiliated outlets spent money, to any outlet receiving at least $25,000 in this period. (It excludes internal spending or transfers.)
| PERKINS COIE | WA (DC) | $27,815,540 |
| ELIAS LAW GROUP LLP | DC | $2,424,174 |
| WILMER CUTLER PICKERING HALE AND DORR LLP | DC | $2,149,733 |
| BROOKS PIERCE MCLENDON HUMPHREY & LEONARD LLP | NC | $1,043,825 |
| KAPLAN HECKER FINK LLP | NY | $1,020,537 |
| LATHAM & WATKINS LLP | PA | $645,175 |
| DECHERT LLP | PA | $622,246 |
| HEMENWAY & BARNES LLP | MA | $470,814 |
| KREVOLIN HORST | GA | $385,765 |
| DENTONS COHEN & GRIGSBY PC | PA | $382,242 |
| BONDURANT MIXSON & ELMORE LLP | GA | $209,606 |
| COVINGTON & BURLINGTON LLP | DC | $162,481 |
| BALLARD SPAHR LLP | PA | $160,930 |
| BALLARD SPAHR LLP | AZ | $160,930 |
| CHERRY, BEKAERT & HOLLAND | VA | $150,333 |
| MUNGER TOLLES OLSON LLP | CA | $143,955 |
| MILLER CANFIELD PADDOCK AND STONE PLC | MI | $137,672 |
| HIATT, JONATHAN | MD | $120,300 |
| GREENBERG TRAURIG LLP | PA (NY) | $117,587 |
| LAW OFFICE OF EVELYN GONG PLLC | NY | $116,910 |
| LOCKRIDGE GRINDAL NAUEN PLLP | MN | $90,000 |
| THE LAW OFFICE OF ADAM C BONIN | PA | $58,020 |
| MELOY LAW FIRM | MT | $49,728 |
| GUREWITZ, MARY ELLEN | MI | $40,800 |
| HERRON, MICHAEL | NH | $39,025 |
| SONNENFELDT, MICHAEL | NY | $36,500 |
| FOX ONEILL SHANNON SC | WI | $35,656 |
| STAFFORD ROSENBAUM LLP | WI | $34,822 |
| CIVITECH | TX | $31,800 |
| JACKSON LEWIS PC | KS | $29,500 |
| JAMS INC | CA | $27,002 |
| BRYAN D HOBEN ESQ | NY | $26,500 |
| WOLF RIFKIN SHAPIRO SCHULMAN RABKIN LLP | NV | $26,410 |
| JAMES & HOFFMAN | DC | $25,980 |
Firms with (a second state) in parentheses indicated that spending was labeled as being sent to another branch of that firm in that second state. Unfortunately, I cannot explain why identical amounts went to Ballard Spahr in two different states (there were not perfectly symmetrical transactions); I did not merge in case they are duplicates, but I left both there as a point of comparison.
Here are the firms on the Republican side. (Note more firms but smaller totals, and more spending that may not precisely align with “legal” expenditures but more media or press-related costs.)
Unfortunately, I had the same duplication problem with Wiley Rein and with King & Spalding.
| WILEY REIN LLP | MD | $2,681,866 |
| WILEY REIN LLP | NJ | $2,681,866 |
| JONES DAY | DC | $2,146,453 |
| CONSOVOY MCCARTHY | VA | $1,858,158 |
| HOLTZMAN VOGEL JOSEFIAK PLLC | VA | $1,744,962 |
| SHUTTS & BOWEN LLP | FL | $1,550,270 |
| KASOWITZ BENSON TORRES LLP | NY | $1,262,500 |
| ON MESSAGE INC | VA | $1,251,610 |
| MCGUIRE WOODS LLP | VA | $799,938 |
| DHILLON LAW GROUP INC | CA | $699,618 |
| NECHELESLAW LLP | NY | $676,039 |
| BUTZEL LONG ATTORNEY'S AND COUNSELORS | MI | $506,095 |
| BELL MCANDREWS & HILTACHK LLP | CA | $433,952 |
| VAN DER VEEN HARTSHORN AND LEVIN | PA | $349,864 |
| FISCHETTI & MALGIERI LLP | NY | $333,945 |
| CONSTITUTIONAL LITIGATION & ADVOCACY GROUP PC | DC | $300,000 |
| NEWMEYER & DILLION LLP | CA | $225,286 |
| BLANK ROME | PA | $209,030 |
| HALL BOOK SMITH | GA | $190,249 |
| MICHAEL BEST & FRIEDRICH LLP | WI | $179,573 |
| BAKER & HOSTETLER LLP | OH | $150,000 |
| RASKIN & RASKIN PA | FL | $150,000 |
| DIGENOVA & TOENSING LLP | DC | $141,146 |
| GOLDSTEIN LAW PARTNERS LLC | PA | $140,823 |
| DEROHANNESIAN & DEROHANNESIAN | NY | $137,526 |
| DILLON MCCANDLESS KING COULTER & GRAHAM LLP | PA | $136,749 |
| KLEINBARD LLC | PA | $126,129 |
| CROSBY OTTENHOFF GROUP | DC | $110,000 |
| SNELL & WILMER LLP | AZ | $107,411 |
| SKADDEN ARPS SLATE MEAGHER & FLOM | NY | $106,233 |
| JOHN CIAMPOLI ESQ. | NY | $95,388 |
| LAW OFFICE OF LINDA A. KERNSLLC | PA | $88,647 |
| ROBINSON GRAY STEPP & LAFFITTE LLC | SC | $83,805 |
| KING & SPALDING LLP | DC | $81,649 |
| KING & SPALDING LLP | GA | $81,649 |
| TAYLOR ENGLISH DUMA LLP | GA | $81,421 |
| IMPERIUM PUBLIC STRATEGIES | TN | $80,000 |
| SPARTAN PUBLIC AFFAIRS LLC | VA | $80,000 |
| LODGE, JOHN III | TX | $79,831 |
| CLARK HILL PLC | PA | $75,000 |
| KINCAID, ADAM | VA | $75,000 |
| STATECRAFT PLLC | AZ | $71,785 |
| BRICKER & ECKLER LLP | OH | $70,770 |
| THE NATIONAL REPUBLICAN REDISTRICTING TRUST | VA | $70,000 |
| ALAN R OSTERGREN PC | IA | $68,025 |
| LANDSLIDE STRATEGIES | VA | $65,000 |
| BULEY, JEFFREY | NY | $63,136 |
| BRADLEY ARANT BOULT CUMMINGS LLP | AL | $60,614 |
| BELIN MCCORMICK | IA | $57,988 |
| VAN DE BOGART LAW P.A. | FL | $51,481 |
| MARQUIS AURBACH ATTORNEYS AT LAW | NV | $50,357 |
| PHELPS | TX | $48,297 |
| SHANAHAN LAW GROUP PLLC | NC | $47,927 |
| PORTER WRIGHT MORRIS & ARTHUR LLP | OH | $38,871 |
| LITTEN & SIPE LLP | VA | $36,554 |
| CROSS XAMINE INVESTIGATION INC | MI | $36,195 |
| DAVIDSON, DONNA GARCIA | TX | $35,000 |
| KEVIN CLINE LAW PLLC | NC | $34,158 |
| 2652 GROUP LLC | VA | $34,082 |
| OGLETREE DEAKINS NASH SMOAK & STEWART P.C. | SC | $31,593 |
| HUCKABY DAVIS LISKER | VA | $31,500 |
| DANIEL K HAGOOD PC | TX | $30,098 |
| BROWN, MICHAEL | DC | $30,000 |
| CUTOLO BARROS LLC | NJ | $30,000 |
| MR&A LLC | PA | $29,193 |
| AMERICA RISING LLC | VA | $27,709 |