April 2008
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Contests, Reader Polls, Sports
ATL March April Madness for Law Firms, Round 3: Upsets Galore Heading Into the Final Four
The #1-seed, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, hath fallen, along with all of the other top-seeded law firms, in an Elite Eight that was good for “underdog” lovers. Heading into the Final Four are Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton (#7), Davis Polk & Wardwell (#5), Latham & Watkins (#8), and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett (#6). […] -
Drinking, Job Searches, Layoffs, Start Dates, Thacher Proffitt & Wood
What's Going On at Thacher Proffitt & Wood?
That’s what many of you have been wondering, in emails to us and in comments. We’ve investigated the situation at Thacher Proffitt & Wood, and we now bring you this detailed report. We’ll start off with the big rumors: 1. Thacher Proffitt laid off additional associates earlier this week. The firm’s response: “As always, we […] - Sponsored
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Gay, Judge of the Day, Lesbians, State Judges, State Judges Are Clowns
Judge of the Day: Jay Spechler
The fabulous Monica Goodling — if you’re on Facebook, join her fan club — isn’t the only person being accused of anti-lesbian bias these days. From the Daily Business Review (via JAABlog):
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Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 04.04.08
* You’ve come a long way, baby — but you’re not getting past the Second Circuit. Appeals court tosses $800 billion class-action lawsuit over light cigarettes. [New York Times] * The economy is in the toilet. Does that still count as news? [AP] * West Virginia Supreme Court, after shedding some members via recusals, rules […]
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Dewey & LeBoeuf
Dewey & LeBoeuf's Post-Merger Bonus Policy
The firm of Dewey & LeBoeuf — which, by the way, had a great 2007, with total firm revenue over $1 billion, and profits per partner of $1.57 million — just announced its new bonus policy. You can check out the full memo after the jump. The new policy reconciles differences between the pre-merger firms. […] -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs 04.03.08
*Naomi Campbell in trouble with the law… again. Campbell being arrested is barely novel news, but it gives us an excuse to post her photo. [Breitbart via Drudge] *Attorneys general react to financial crisis, telling failing businesses to be sure to shred personal documents on the way out. [Law.com] *The president of the California State […] -
Contests, Fred Fielding, Pictures, Politics, White House Counsel
ATL Caption Contest Finalists: Mr. Easter Bunny and POTUS
Some of you have wondered about the delay in choosing finalists for the ATL Caption Contest. We did not forget about it; we just wanted to save a little Easter for April, the proper month for the holiday. Easter in March is just plain wrong. As a refresher, this is the photo of President Bush […] -
Biglaw, Job Searches, Layoffs, Sonnenschein, Weirdness
What's Going On At Sonnenschein?
Over at Greedy South, various rumors are circulating about Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal. One poster claimed that the firm rescinded offers of summer employment to several incoming summer associates in the Charlotte office. Later on in the thread, others chimed in to claim that the firm is rescinding offers to full-time associates who were set […] - Sponsored
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Bar Exams, Job Survey, Perks / Fringe Benefits
Featured Job Survey: Bar Stipend Studies
Over the past few months, we’ve devoted several of our ATL / Lateral Link survey posts to compensation issues like base salaries, bonus amounts, and clerkship bonuses. But we’ve received quite a few requests to do another survey or open thread on another compensation issue: starting bonuses and stipends. Associates at four New York firms […] -
Judge of the Day
Judge of the Day: Steven Servaas
Michigan brings us today’s Judge of the Day, and there’s a shout-out to the University of Michigan… sort of. Rockford District Judge Steven Servaas never grew out of the middle school humor stage. Apparently, he likes to doodle on court documents and make jokes about chest size: The State Judicial Tenure Commission is trying to […] -
Contests, Reader Polls, Sports
ATL March April Madness for Law Firms, Round 2: The Elitist Elite Eight
There’s been some belly-aching about ATL Law Firm March Madness, but over 2300 people voted, so we shall press on! According to your votes, eight law firms have been chosen to advance. Here are the updated brackets: Now it’s time again to vote for the “cooler” firm, defining “cool” however you like. We appreciate your […] -
Paralegals
ATL Seeks REAL Horror Stories
Over on Slate.com’s advice column, a young, struggling paralegal is seeking advice. “Deterred in the District” is happy about the high-pay and “career prospects,” but whines about a difficult partner: The problem is that one of the partners I assist is particularly challenging. She’s intelligent and distinguished, but she is also a perfectionist. She’s an […] -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 04.03.08
* States, cities, environmental groups sue EPA in D.C. Circuit, seeking rules on vehicle emissions. [New York Times] * Defense lawyers and civil libertarians not cool with “surreptitious sampling” of DNA — e.g., collecting DNA from saliva on discarded cigarettes. (Strikes us as an uphill battle, at least under existing Fourth Amendment law.) [New York […]
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AI’s Impact On Law Firms Of Every Size
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Borat
'Lexytime': Borat Lawsuit Dismissed
Last year we provided extensive coverage of litigation arising out of Borat, Sasha Baron Cohen’s raunchy hit film. Things have been generally quiet on that front, but now we have some news. Sewell Chan reports over at the City Room: Was Sacha Baron Cohen’s 2006 film “Borat” a pure slapstick comedy? Does it have a […] -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 04.02.08
*Covington & Burling’s Lanny Breuer gets profiled for being the “go-to guy” for Sandy Berger, Roger Clemens, and Charles Prince (not to be confused with Prince Charles). [The Washingtonian] *If you were disappointed by your law school’s ranking this year in U.S. News and World Report, perhaps you’d prefer a 14-year-long historical perspective. [TaxProf Blog] […] -
Elizabeth Halverson, Fat People, Legal Ethics, State Judges, State Judges Are Clowns
Judge Elizabeth Halverson 2008 Update
Judge Elizabeth Halverson has graced stomped through these pages many times before. But this is her first appearance of 2008. The LA Times recounts some Halverson highlights: Her former bailiff said he was forced to heat and serve her lunch, check the temperature of her ice water, brush lint from her robe, help her put […] -
Lawyer of the Day, Rank Stupidity, Violence
Lawyers of the Day: David Lawrence and Aaron Matusick(Fight, fight, fight!)
We don’t get nearly enough news from the west coast, so we are happy to anoint two Oregonian attorneys our Lawyers of the Day. At first, the idea of landlord-tenant lawyers duking it out struck us as awesome. But apparently their fight involved slapping, running away, and a “talking-to” from a judge. Not so awesome. […] -
New York Times, Weddings
Legal Eagle Wedding Watch 3.9 and 3.16: Deposing Marriage
For LEWW, one of the best things about spring is the return of a reliable stream of lawyer-lawyer couples to the NYT wedding pages. Soon we’ll even be seeing SCOTUS clerks! This week five out of our six newlyweds sports a JD. Here they are: 1.) Michelle Lieberman and Daniel Lubetzky 2.) Michelle Davidowitz and […] -
Associate Bonus Watch: Covington & Burling (Washington, D.C.)
Covington & Burling is a bit late to the holiday bonus party, but as a spokesperson told us, their bonus announcements for non-NYC offices come in April. A tipster from the Washington, D.C. office wrote us today: Max bonus in the DC office was $75k. Minimum was zero. Average bonus ranged, by class year, from […] -
Contests, Reader Polls, Sports
ATL March April Madness for Law Firms, Round 1: The Sweet Sixteen
We realize we are a bit late on March Madness. Given that all the #1-seeded teams are headed to the Final Four for the first time in NCAA basketball history, we assume your brackets are rubbish and you are open to distraction. Last year, we held a March Madness contest for law schools. UVA Law […]