Vivian Rivera Drohan is a founding partner of Drohan Lee LLP, a New York-based law firm serving clients in litigation, financial services, corporate, tax, intellectual property, and regulatory matters. She serves as the President of the New York Women's Bar Association, is a member of the Puerto Rican Bar Association, and is a NAMWOLF member.
I asked Vivian what led her to start her own firm.
"I had two small kids. I was getting home at seven or eight o'clock at night and only seeing them go to sleep," she told me. "I really wanted to raise my own children. But I didn't want to give up work entirely, because I would have been miserable. So the one way to do it was to hang a shingle — it allowed me the flexibility to raise my own children instead of going the route of daycare or nanny."
She hung a shingle, built her client base, and eventually merged with a tax attorney and a corporate attorney to form Drohan Lee. The firm has been together ever since — through the financial crisis, through the shift to remote work, and through the growth that brought them clients including major banks.
The firm has stayed deliberately close-knit. Three partners — including her spouse, Jacqueline Drohan — one or two associates at a time and a network of counsel brought in as needed.
"We've had opportunities to merge with larger firms, and we chose not to," Vivian said. "The quality of life, us being able to work remotely, us being able to have a life along with our work practice — it was always very, very important to all of us."
What the firm offers instead of size is depth of access.
"You get a package. You just don't get one person, and this one person's not going to throw you to an associate, and you're never going to hear from the partner again. You pretty much get us."
Building the team has been equally intentional. Associates at Drohan Lee tend to stay eight or nine years before moving on — typically to large firms or in-house positions, which Vivian sees as a measure of success.
"We can't pay employees the same as a large firm," she said. "But one of the things that we offer is very in-depth training. They get client contact. They get to go to court. And the banks are willing to take our associates. Large firms are willing to take our associates. So we feel like we've trained them well."
At this stage of her career, mentorship has become one of the most meaningful parts of the work. Vivian takes on externship students through a connection at Vermont Law School and invests in showing them what a law firm actually looks like from the inside.
"I wish I had had somebody like that during some of the most important times. So I try my best to mentor and be there and give them some confidence, and also to show them what a law firm really runs like."
She recently accepted the presidency of the New York Women's Bar Association. "Am I crazy?" she asked herself. "I'm now adding in some more work. But it's okay. I'm looking forward to it."
Are you a business or financial services company looking for sophisticated legal counsel in New York? Connect with Vivian Rivera Drohan and check out Drohan Lee LLP.