McKeon didn\u2019t just hold the job, she transformed it. She led the firm through explosive global growth, overseeing thousands of lawyers across continents while steering through industry-shaping moments, from major lateral integrations to the pandemic and beyond. Under her watch, Morgan Lewis didn\u2019t just get bigger \u2014 it got smarter, more strategic, and more intentional about culture, technology, and what leadership actually looks like in a modern law firm.<\/p>\n
McKeon\u2019s successor, David McManus<\/a> \u2014 who\u2019s been working at the firm for more than 30 years \u2014 will work alongside her for a training phase of sorts before he officially assumes the role in October for a five-year term. McManus has had several leadership positions at the firm, and knows that he\u2019ll be stepping into some very big shoes once McKeon steps down, saying he\u2019ll work hard to \u201ccarry on the legacy that Jami has built.\u201d American Lawyer<\/a> has some additional details from his statement:<\/p>\n \u201cOn behalf of the entire partnership, I want to express our deep gratitude to Jami for her extraordinary impact on Morgan Lewis. She has been an inspirational and passionate leader and mentor, guiding our firm with vision, integrity and an enduring devotion to our clients and our people\u2014while shaping a culture that will continue to propel our future successes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI have seen firsthand how that momentum has evolved, and I look forward to partnering closely with Jami in the months ahead to ensure a seamless transition and build on the foundation she set forth\u2014reinforcing what makes us distinctive while developing in ways that position our firm for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n McKeon, who announced her plans to retire<\/a> from the firm in late 2025, said, \u201cIt has been a true privilege to serve as chair of Morgan Lewis and to work alongside such talented and dedicated colleagues around the world. I am incredibly proud of all that we have accomplished together.\u201d<\/p>\n Jami McKeon opened the door for other women leaders in Biglaw, and that\u2019s a legacy that extends far beyond any one firm. As Morgan Lewis turns the page, Biglaw is still operating in the world Jami McKeon helped create, whether it fully realizes it or not.<\/p>\n Congratulations to David McManus on his upcoming leadership role at Morgan Lewis, and a very fond farewell to Jami McKeon as she calls time on a tenure that reshaped Biglaw.<\/p>\n Morgan Lewis Names New Chair as McKeon Closes Out 12-Year Tenure<\/a> [American Lawyer]<\/p>\n Staci Zaretsky<\/a>\u00a0is the managing editor of Above the Law, where she\u2019s worked since 2011. She\u2019d love to hear from you, so please feel free to\u00a0email<\/a>\u00a0her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on\u00a0Bluesky<\/a>,\u00a0X\/Twitter<\/a>, and\u00a0Threads<\/a>,\u00a0or connect with her on\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n The post Morgan Lewis Picks Its Next Leader As Jami McKeon Closes Out A Historic Run<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n Biglaw doesn\u2019t change overnight \u2014 until someone comes along and quietly, persistently forces it to.<\/p>\n That\u2019s exactly what Jami McKeon<\/a> did over the past 12 years at Morgan Lewis & Bockius, and now, as she prepares to hand over the reins, it\u2019s worth taking a moment to appreciate just how much of the modern law firm playbook bears her fingerprints. When she took over in 2014 as the firm\u2019s first female chair, it wasn\u2019t just a milestone for Morgan Lewis, it was a signal to the rest of Biglaw that the \u201cboys club\u201d at the top wasn\u2019t inevitable.<\/p>\n McKeon didn\u2019t just hold the job, she transformed it. She led the firm through explosive global growth, overseeing thousands of lawyers across continents while steering through industry-shaping moments, from major lateral integrations to the pandemic and beyond. Under her watch, Morgan Lewis didn\u2019t just get bigger \u2014 it got smarter, more strategic, and more intentional about culture, technology, and what leadership actually looks like in a modern law firm.<\/p>\n McKeon\u2019s successor, David McManus<\/a> \u2014 who\u2019s been working at the firm for more than 30 years \u2014 will work alongside her for a training phase of sorts before he officially assumes the role in October for a five-year term. McManus has had several leadership positions at the firm, and knows that he\u2019ll be stepping into some very big shoes once McKeon steps down, saying he\u2019ll work hard to \u201ccarry on the legacy that Jami has built.\u201d American Lawyer<\/a> has some additional details from his statement:<\/p>\n \u201cOn behalf of the entire partnership, I want to express our deep gratitude to Jami for her extraordinary impact on Morgan Lewis. She has been an inspirational and passionate leader and mentor, guiding our firm with vision, integrity and an enduring devotion to our clients and our people\u2014while shaping a culture that will continue to propel our future successes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI have seen firsthand how that momentum has evolved, and I look forward to partnering closely with Jami in the months ahead to ensure a seamless transition and build on the foundation she set forth\u2014reinforcing what makes us distinctive while developing in ways that position our firm for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n McKeon, who announced her plans to retire<\/a> from the firm in late 2025, said, \u201cIt has been a true privilege to serve as chair of Morgan Lewis and to work alongside such talented and dedicated colleagues around the world. I am incredibly proud of all that we have accomplished together.\u201d<\/p>\n Jami McKeon opened the door for other women leaders in Biglaw, and that\u2019s a legacy that extends far beyond any one firm. As Morgan Lewis turns the page, Biglaw is still operating in the world Jami McKeon helped create, whether it fully realizes it or not.<\/p>\n Congratulations to David McManus on his upcoming leadership role at Morgan Lewis, and a very fond farewell to Jami McKeon as she calls time on a tenure that reshaped Biglaw.<\/p>\n Morgan Lewis Names New Chair as McKeon Closes Out 12-Year Tenure<\/a> [American Lawyer]<\/p>\n Staci Zaretsky<\/a>\u00a0is the managing editor of Above the Law, where she\u2019s worked since 2011. She\u2019d love to hear from you, so please feel free to\u00a0email<\/a>\u00a0her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on\u00a0Bluesky<\/a>,\u00a0X\/Twitter<\/a>, and\u00a0Threads<\/a>,\u00a0or connect with her on\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n The post Morgan Lewis Picks Its Next Leader As Jami McKeon Closes Out A Historic Run<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Biglaw doesn\u2019t change overnight \u2014 until someone comes along and quietly, persistently forces it to. That\u2019s exactly what Jami McKeon did over the past 12 years at Morgan Lewis & Bockius, and now, as she prepares to hand over the reins, it\u2019s worth taking a moment to appreciate just how much of the modern law […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":146919,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-146918","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/xira.com\/p\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Staci-Zaretsky-VCQyZv.jpg?fit=150%2C100&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146918","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=146918"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146918\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/146919"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=146918"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=146918"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=146918"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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