Dentons picks former EY executive Kate Barton as new global CEO

30 July 2024 Consultancy.uk

Law firm Dentons has appointed Kate Barton as its new global CEO. She joins the firm from EY, where she headed several of the Big Four firm’s business units.

Dentons is a multinational law firm is ranked as the sixth-largest law firm by revenue, with its annual revenue last reported at close to $3 billion in 2019. It is also the world's largest law firm in terms of its lawyer headcount. The firm, which has bases in both the UK and US, also operates in the world of risk consulting, offering advisory, assurance and remediation services to clients.

Now, the firm has installed a new CEO, with a foot in both the advisory and legal camp. Kate Barton will succeed Elliott Portnoy as the global leader of Dentons, having enjoyed a distinguished 35-year career with professional services giant EY.

Kate Barton, Global CEO, Dentons

Kate Barton has been appointed as the Global CEO of Dentons.

During her time with the Big Four firm, Barton was CEO of the company’s tax, law, and people advisory services, which had a global workforce of 70,000 professionals and – under her leadership – generated revenues in excess of $11 billion. Most recently, she also served as its global vice chair.

Reflecting on her appointment, Barton said, “I have watched Dentons redefine the legal services landscape with its pioneering business strategy and client offerings. I am looking forward to working with Elliott on a transition and to collaborating with Dentons’ accomplished regional leadership to continue challenging industry norms and adapting to the ever-changing world of technology and innovation faced by law firms and professional service firms around the world in order to deliver excellence for the benefit of our people and our clients.”

Portnoy, who will continue to work with the firm during a handover period with Barton until November 2024, co-founded Dentons. As CEO, Portnoy has overseen significant growth – Dentons serves clients in 167 locations in 82 countries – while advancing the firm’s “uniquely global, deeply local” approach to professional services. Under his leadership, Dentons has become one of the best known and most favorably regarded law firms in surveys of the world’s most important purchasers of legal and business solutions services.

Speaking on his successor, he said, “Kate has extensive experience in leading a complex and global professional service organization and has an outstanding skillset in managing people, processes and systems. Her successful client service experience, coupled with her thoughtful approach to integration, make her the ideal individual to lead our Firm,” said Elliott Portnoy, Global CEO. “She has my unqualified support, and I am confident she will lead Dentons from strength to even greater strength and success.”

The process to appoint the Global CEO was led by Dentons’ global board talent and governance committee chair, Gerald Singham, with the support of the firm’s global board and global advisory committee (which is composed of the firm’s regional and local boards). The process explored both internal and external candidates across all geographies.