Media and Journalism, Shameless Plugs

And We Don't Even Have a Publicist

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Above the Law continues to attract attention from the mainstream media. Here’s an excerpt from the latest (delightful) piece, by Amanda Bronstad, for the National Law Journal:

In the past year, at least two other blogs, Skadden Insider and Above the Law, have raised eyebrows for publishing internal information at firms, such as confidential firings and sexual trysts with partners….

Above the Law posts gossip about law firms from the lawyers themselves. In recent posts, the blog reported that a Clifford Chance partner was seen romantically involved with a summer associate at a corporate reception and that Katten Muchin Rosenman “canned” a summer associate earlier this month for inappropriate sexual conduct.

A Clifford Chance spokeswoman declined to comment on “internal personnel matters,” but issued a statement saying, “Clifford Chance has strict policies against inappropriate behavior of any kind within our workplace, applicable to every employee and attorney.”

A Katten Muchin spokesman did not return calls seeking comment.

More discussion, after the jump.


Amanda Bronstad kindly contacted us in the course of her reporting. We had this to say:

David Lat, editor of Above the Law, which is owned by New York-based Dead Horse Media, said the blog promises anonymity, which helps people act on their “human instinct” to “unburden themselves of a secret.”

So far, he said, no law firm has asked him to remove material from the blog, but “an associate or a partner will tell me, ‘Your post about this subject or that subject caused a stir around here.'”

Reaction from Nathan Carlile (who once profiled us), over at The BLT:

If someone makes a blog post, does it make a sound? National Law Journal has a story ostensibly about growing tension between bloggers and law firms that actually reads more like a PSA for David Lat and his blog, Above the Law. Then again, we wrote about Lat last year. Well played, Lat. Well played.

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And from Kevin O’Keefe of LexBlog:

Expect more blogs like Above the Law. Skanky law firm content attracts a demographic with a lot of buying power. That’s not lost on advertisers.

“Skanky”? ‘Tis a bit strong, Mr. O’Keefe; not all of ATL’s content rises to that sublime level (although we try). Maybe “salacious” might be more accurate?
Law Firms Get Their Share of Attention From Bloggers [National Law Journal]
Law firms getting unwanted attention from bloggers [LexBlog Blog]
Morning Wrap [The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times]
David Lat Takes on the Legal World One Post at a Time [Legal Times]

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