The 2010 Lateral Report: Company Town

Before the market meltdown in the fall of 2008, Charlotte, N.C., was headquarters to the largest and third-largest banks in the United States measured by deposits -- Bank of America and Wachovia Corp. But in the last 18 months, the banks that used to be the biggest exclamation points in a booming regional economy became Charlotte's biggest question marks. As the banks go, so go their law firms. Last year there were cuts in 18 of the 21 Am Law 200 offices in Charlotte, and the cuts were deep.