October 2008

We reported yesterday that students at Tulane Law School allegedly absconded with Mr. Rogers’s shoe from the Louisiana Children’s Museum. Well, an intrepid trolley has returned the treasured keepsake. Let’s get the details….

In last Wednesday’s ATL / Lateral Link survey, we asked you whether you billed over Columbus Day Weekend this year. We received 1,175 responses, and were pleasantly surprised to learn that 26% of you had a pleasant three-day weekend. Associates in Boston were most likely to enjoy a discovery-free Columbus Day, with offices at Bingham, […]

[Ed Note: Do you have a question for next week? Send it in to advice@abovethelaw.com] ATL – I’m a 2L at a T25 school and I have one callback interview. My grades are average. Do you have any tips on how to nail the interview? Nervous Nelly Dear Nervous Nelly – Firm interviews are congeniality […]

[Ed. Note: Eliza Gray is a new writer for Above the Law. She graduated from Harvard and after a six-month stint in Brussels covering European Union politics at the European Voice, she moved back to New York to pursue a journalism career. She and Kash will be alternating Morning Docket responsibilities.] * Chief Judge ‘Naughty’ […]

Three Heller Ehrman employees have decided to sue the firm. They allege that the firm owes them wages under the WARN act, as well as the California state labor code. According to The Recorder: The named plaintiffs are Laura Werth, a technology assistant in San Francisco who joined the firm in September 1996; Carl Goodman, […]

* Dechert Chairman and CEO Bart Winokur holds the firm line. The money quote: Winokur says “this is all such bull, if you don’t mind my saying so,” in response to the layoff rumors. [Legal Intelligencer] (subscription). * Simpson Thacher is doing their bailout work on the cheap. Expect to be reminded of that come […]

There are a couple of updates to this morning’s post about the 10 Jenner & Block partners that have been laid off. Many people emailed us claiming that six associates were also let go. And there are six associate bios that we expected to see that are no longer on the firm website. But the […]

It’s a cute story gone horribly wrong. Twenty-eight doe-eyed pre-schoolers and their parents embarked on a field trip to the Land of Make Believe in Hope, N.J. While they pranced and frolicked at the amusement park, their bus driver passed the time by watching some hard-core porn on the bus. Unfortunately, he forgot to swap […]

Back in February, we broke the news of the engagement of Monica Goodling — the high-powered former Justice Department lawyer, who admitted to “cross[ing] the line” into politics with respect to DOJ hiring — to Michael Krempasky, the Edelman exec and prominent conservative blogger. We are now pleased to announce that Goodling and Krempasky got […]

I know a couple of Tulane Law School graduates, and those people can party. And gamble. And eat what they kill. Now, the Louisiana Children’s Museum knows how Tulane rolls too. The Tulane law school student body just received this email: Students, we need your help with a theft that occurred at Barrister’s Ball. As […]

Getting accurate information about professors is a problem for law students across the nation. Until pedagogical initiatives result in every student getting a certificate of participation, grades will still be very important to law students. At Boston University School of Law, every semester students submit reviews of their professors, and those reviews are published so […]

The troubled economic environment has led to layoffs, office shutterings, and the dissolution of Heller Ehrman. Now, the Washington Post is trotting out the idea of the death of the billable hour as a potential outcome of the financial crisis: Since becoming commonplace in the 1970s, hourly billing has been the subject of criticism by […]

The hits to the Chicago market keep on coming. In the wake of Katten Muchin Rosenman laying off 21 attorneys, and Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal cutting 25 attorneys and additional staff, Jenner & Block is getting rid of 10 partners: The Chicago-based firm is asking about 10 partners, both equity and non-equity, to exit with […]

* Citigroup wins … milk! [American Lawyer] * Brits can still beat-up their kids. [BBC] * AOL can’t put ads in personal emails, we hope. [Courthouse News] * Drive-through voting. [Associated Press] * … which of course should lead to drinking and driving and voting. Only in America! [Time]

We’ve reported on how various lawyers are wading into the California Proposition 8 battle through internal firm communication. Last week we told you about a “Yes on 8” Proskauer associate who emailed entertainment law blogger Russell Wetanson from his Proskauer email account. Apparently, one missive supporting a ban on gay marriage wasn’t enough for the […]

* What is the applicable hottness handicap for lawyers versus everybody else? [Sweet Hot Justice] * Hiring freeze at William and Mary brings the global economic crisis home to law professors. [TaxProf Blog] * I’ll believe in billable hour reform just as soon as I get my jet pack and flying car. [Wired GC] * […]

Today Dewey & LeBoeuf announced that they would be closing their Charlotte, North Carolina office as of December 31st. Dewey appears to be in full contraction mode, having already announced the closing of offices in Hartford, CT; Jacksonville, FL; and Austin, TX. According to a firm spokesperson: As part of its continuing review of global […]

Apparently, the activities of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) are now a matter of national import. The group, best known for absolutely nothing prior to a month ago, is now poised to “threaten the fabric of democracy,” according to Senator John McCain. One might have expected the Obama campaign to take […]

Salaries for New York judges have been capped at $136,700 for the past ten years. We reported on their attempt to force a raise by suing the New York legislature. New York Supreme Court justice Edward Lehner ruled in favor of mo’ money in June and gave the legislature 90 days to up their pay. […]

On Saturday the American Civil Liberties Union elected a new president, Susan Herman. She’s a constitutional law professor at Brooklyn Law School and had served as the ACLU’s general counsel prior to this promotion. It has been a long time since ACLU leadership changed hands: Herman’s selection gives the organization a new public face for […]