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Law360 (July 8, 2020, 9:51 PM EDT) -- Miami and Tampa law firms led the way as more than 1,200 Florida firms received loans from the federal Paycheck Protection Program to help endure the COVID-19 pandemic, including 11 practices that obtained the upper tier of loans between $5 million and $10 million.
According to data released by the federal Small Business Administration, 1,257 businesses categorized as private law offices or legal aid services were granted PPP loans of $150,000 or more across the Sunshine State. Miami had the most recipients of any city, with 219, followed by Tampa with 134.
The firms receiving the biggest loans, between $5 million to $10 million, were Becker & Poliakoff PA, Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP, Cole Scott & Kissane PA, Conroy Simberg PA, GrayRobinson PA, Gunster Yokley & Stewart PA, Kubicki Draper, Morgan & Morgan Tampa PA, Stearns Weaver Miller Weissler Alhadeff & Sitterson PA and Wicker Smith O'Hara, McCoy & Ford PA.
"The funds have made a positive difference and have helped enable us to avoid laying off a single employee," GrayRobinson President and CEO Dean Cannon said. "We applied for the loan to do just what it was intended to do, which was help protect jobs and avoid needing to make layoffs in the wake of the economic uncertainty created by COVID-19."
The Orlando-based firm, which has offices across the state and in Washington, D.C., reported that it retained 500 jobs, according to the SBA.
The nearly $660 billion program offers government-backed private loans up to $10 million for small businesses, which are generally defined as having fewer than 500 employees. The loans are forgivable as long as they are used primarily to cover payroll and other business operating expenses such as rent and utilities, according to the SBA.
More than 170 of the largest law firms in the U.S. were among the businesses approved for loans. While most firms received less than $350,000, data shows that 128 BigLaw firms and other law offices received forgivable loans between $5 million and $10 million.
In Florida, 32 law firms received between $2 million and $5 million, including a second entity connected to the personal injury giant Morgan & Morgan. Others in this tier included Berger Singerman LLP, Shutts & Bowen LLP, Kelley Kronenberg PA and Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod, according to the data.
The SBA also reported awarding loans of $1 million to $2 million to 68 firms in Florida, $350,000 to $1 million to 374 firms, $150,000 to $350,000 to 772 firms, according to the data.
Another 10,348 Florida businesses categorized as law offices received smaller loans, according to the SBA.
South Florida, the most densely populated part of the state, received most of the loans. In addition to the 219 loans awarded to firms in Miami, loans were awarded to 94 firms in Fort Lauderdale, 60 in West Palm Beach, 54 in Boca Raton and 36 in Coral Gables.
But the state's other major business centers also were well represented, with 86 loans going to firms in Orlando and 61 to firms in Jacksonville. Next on the list was Sarasota with 32, Florida's capital city Tallahassee with 31, St. Petersburg with 26 and Fort Myers with 20.
In terms of the number of jobs retained, GrayRobinson and Cole Scott topped the list at 500 with Boies Schiller close behind at 490. Morgan & Morgan's Tampa entity said it retained 469, and Shutts & Bowen rounded out the top five with 462.
Among the firms that received at least $5 million, all reported that they retained at least 200 jobs, with the exception of Wicker Smith, for which the data appeared to be missing.
Of the firms listed in the top tier in Florida, all are headquartered in the state except for Boies Schiller. The firm declined to comment on its loan application, but its comptroller is based in South Florida, where it listed its address, according to the SBA. The firm has lawyers based in Miami and Fort Lauderdale.
Several other firms either declined to comment or did not immediately respond to inquiries about their PPP loans Wednesday.
--Additional reporting by Emma Cueto, Xiumei Dong and Celeste Bott. Editing by Steven Edelstone.
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