Associate Director/Director, Business Development - Litigation

Simpson Thacher’s premier global Litigation Department represents a wide range of sophisticated clients, including financial institutions, technology and life sciences corporations, boards, audit and special committees, and senior executives on their most significant matters. Clients benefit from our ability to leverage our broad experience and versatility to address their unique legal and business interests.  The Associate Director/Director, Litigation will serve as the Business Development (BD) lead and senior strategic partner to the Litigation Department, driving growth initiatives and working closely with some of the Firm’s most dynamic client-facing partners to shape and help secure new mandates from new and existing clients. This is one of the most visible and commercially significant BD leadership roles at the Firm, designed for a high-performing professional with deep market fluence and a proven ability to help drive growth.

This role requires both strategic oversight and hands-on execution, with the mandate to ensure Simpson Thacher continues to win high-profile and significant litigation, regulatory and enforcement matters. You will collaborate closely with the Chief BD Officer, Chief Client Officer, and other members of the BD leadership team to bring structure, insight, and scale to all dimensions of business development. You will manage a small, high-impact team, aligning with the priorities of Firm partners.

Practice Growth Strategy & Partner Support

• Serve as a trusted business advisor to the litigation partners—aligning on individual and practice-wide priorities, strategic growth ambitions, white space opportunities, expansion targets, and competitive positioning.

• Lead the development and execution of growth strategies for a broad array of practice areas within the Litigation Department, including client targeting and market positioning.

• Provide 1:1 and team-based support to partners on client relationship development, visibility efforts, cross-selling, and client coverage coordination.

Client Development & Targeting

• Identify, prioritize, and pursue high-potential client and sector opportunities.

• Guide creation of sophisticated pitch materials, meeting prep, and post-engagement follow-ups to establish best practices that reflect the nuance of Simpson Thacher’s client relationships.

Client Team Structuring & Engagement Infrastructure

• Build and support high-functioning client teams, complete with charters, feedback loops, operating rhythms, and milestone tracking.

• Ensure teams are collaborative, responsive, and aligned with client priorities.

• Equip teams with dashboards, optimized CRM systems, and proprietary insight trackers to drive visibility, follow-through, and value delivery.

Market Intelligence & Positioning

• Anticipate, surface, and synthesize litigation trends into briefing materials and actionable insights for partners and teams.

• Translate wins into market narratives, practice positioning strategies, and matter publicity opportunities.

• Collaborate with Strategic Intelligence, Communications, and Knowledge teams to institutionalize market insight workflows that benefit the entire Litigation Department.

Campaigns, Events & Visibility

• Lead and support high-impact BD campaigns and targeted visibility initiatives specific to litigation—ranging from specific matter-specific pursuits to broader strategic initiatives.

• Partner with the Events team to plan and execute events (roadshows, roundtables, conferences, hospitality) in collaboration with the partners to deepen client relationships and raise Simpson Thacher’s profile.

• Drive thought leadership and recognition efforts in collaboration with Communications to spotlight the Department’s differentiated expertise and industry leadership.

Practice Metrics & Internal Coordination

• Track KPIs for growth, relationship health, referrals, and coverage quality.

• Ensure the priorities of the Litigation Department are integrated into Firmwide initiatives (e.g., client teams, client experience (CXO) and innovation pilots).

• Serve as the internal convener and coordinator across BD, CXO, Strategic Intelligence, and Communications to ensure clarity and execution.

Team Leadership & Management

• Build and lead a high-performing team dedicated to the Litigation Department by setting clear goals, expectations, and development plans.

• Provide strong day-to-day management, coaching, and mentorship to junior team members; create an inclusive and collaborative culture.

• Partner with other BD Directors and Associate Directors to ensure consistent standards and coordinated delivery across practice groups.

Education

Required

• Bachelor’s degree

Preferred

• JD or MBA

Skills and Experience

Required

• Minimum 8 years of experience in business development, marketing, strategy consulting, or professional services, ideally within law

• Demonstrated ability to partner closely with senior legal and/or financial professionals to translate strategic priorities into concrete growth plans

• Comfort balancing responsiveness across high velocity workstreams and long-term relationship strategy

• Demonstrated experience leading and managing people effectively, with a record of developing talent and cultivating collaborative, high-performance teams

• Deep understanding of litigation and regulatory practice areas, as well as client expectations

• Entrepreneurial ownership, strong people leadership and high EQ

• Strong storytelling, writing, and communication skills—capable of distilling complex insight into persuasive business narratives

• Strong systems-building instincts and operational creativity

• Experience managing and translating market data into internal strategy

• Proven track record of driving growth across markets or regions; ability to shape and implement strategy

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills; ability to translate complex ideas into persuasive narratives

• Ability to exercise initiative and independent judgment

• Ability to manage multiple projects with competing deadlines

• Ability to interact well and build professional relationships while maintaining a high level of customer service, diplomacy and discretion

• Ability to proactively identify and analyze problems, develop solutions, and deliver results

Preferred

• Demonstrated ability to leverage data, analytics, and emerging AI tools to surface insights, streamline internal collaboration, and support client growth strategies

Salary Information

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