They're having their holiday party in France?

2 - No, South Dakota

Kaye Scholer Partner retreat 11/1-11/2
Kaye Scholer request for associate evaluations 11/3

We're all getting fired! (or laid)

I am CONFIDENT that my firm will have an even bigger holiday bash.

-Confident t14 2L

Fail

I thought Kaye Scholer merged with Nixon Peabody?

Texas released LSAT scores today.

yay Kaye Scholer

*with hands trembling, attaching "Happy Holidays" stickers to resume intended for Kaye Scholer*

-nervous T-10 1L

No. 4 - "At the Pit tonight, everyone gets laid."

has litigation work been steadily heavy at Kaye lately?

On behalf of Kaye Scholer, we'd like to thank all of the laid off RE associates whose salaries have been used to step-up our holiday party...CHEERS!

No. 12
Using junior associates to do paralegal work can be very profitable.

"Bitches be shoppin'!"

Kaye Scholer -- Where Tulane and Hofstra grads go to die.

Why do gay people walk funny?

Not to get off topic, but is it just me or is Twombly the most confusing SCOTUS case ever? I'm having the hardest time parsing out some of the code pleading requirements, the FRCP, and the new doctrine (or lack thereof) created by Twombly.

I just like the word "Twombly." I twombled over to the coffee machine because my shoes were untied.

No. 18 (aka dumbass) - Circuit courts have interpreted Twombly differently. Find a Circuit Court of Appeals case in the relevant Circuit that interprets Twombly and then cut and paste. If it's a 7th Circuit decision, just steal Posner's words. That's what I do. It makes you look so much more impressive in the eyes of a partner.

"Now you know. And knowing's half the battle. G.I. Joe!!!!!!!"

Hey, everybody, #16 is a huge dick.

hmm...Conduct stealth layoffs (and avoid showing up on the 'official' lay-off lists)...Spend more on the holiday party when other firms are canceling theirs (PR ploy?).... I wonder what other decisions the firm makes solely w/ its 'image' in mind.... Personally I think a firm's image takes a bigger hit w/ such transparent attempts at appearing healthy, but maybe thats just me

Go easy on 18. Twombly can certainly be read a couple of different ways but, as 20 observed, let other courts do the leg work for you.

wtf does the snl cowbell sketch have to do with this?

Hofstra and Tulane grads could never work together, NEVER!

Touro Touro Touro!

25 - Don't you mean Fuckup Fuckup Fuckup!?

#s 14, 25 - please add Villanova and NY Law to your lists...thank you.

don't forget Rutger's :-)

I'm going to read the rule in Twombly as saying that complaints have to seem plausible in order to proceed to discovery. Is that fair? I don't have time or interest in hunting down some Circuit Court decisions, but I heard that the DC Circuit has a good reading of Twombly in light of 12(f) and a motion to strike.

The credited response?

Best title to a post since Elie took over. Nice one.

29 - Can you say legal malpractice? My advice: Just cite the standard from Conley v. Gibson :-) And one other thing, the D.C. Circuit's interpretation means jack shit if you're in the Second Circuit, which has adopted its own interpretation moron.

who gives a flying shit?

KS is a firm that has been outed as one who exports all their dreck work to India. Guess they are making the $ for their lavish holiday party off the profits they keep from exposrting work. LOSERS

After all the drinks at the Kaye party, everyone felt quite twombly, and tried to not twomble down the stairs.

After all the drinks at the Kaye party, everyone felt quite twombly, and tried to not twomble down the stairs.

RULE in Conley: A complaint should not be dismissed for failure to state a claim unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove not set of facts in support of his claim which would entitle him to relief.

Ugh . . . no, 31. That's wrong. The whole policy implication of Conley is that you can't lead defendants into lengthy and expensive pre-trial discovery without good reason, especially not in Antitrust cases. And the Conley standard doesn't square with the heightened pleading standards that SCOTUS, and possibly the 2nd Circuit, tried to enforce.

Citing Conley is like drinking American beer: you're close to water.

I like to play pocket twombly when nobody's looking.

28 - who is Rutger? What school does he go to? Does he go to Rutgers? Because that would be funny if someone named Rutger goes to Rutgers. Or maybe, in your attempt to be an elitist jerk, you failed to consider that you'll look a moron adding a possessive apostrophe to the name of a university. Or maybe you really are just a moron who doesn't know how to properly use an apostrophe.

Tip for future DB commenters: see if you can manage not to make an obvious grammatical mistake in a 3-word post attempting to put down other people.

TOURO TOURO TOURRRO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

#38 well done. you must have gone to rutgers camden and not rutgers newark.

38 - No, I was talking about Jerry Rutger. Woe is I motherfucker. Woe is I.

Jerry Rutger came to KS a while back. He's dead. But thanks for pissing on the memory of a fallen Rutgers 14th year associate.

"you'll look a moron"

hahaha you forgot "like" sucker!!!!!

31: The DC Circuit is, by far, my favorite after the 9th. (And who doesn't love the crisp, lucid writing of the 9th Circuit?)

The 2nd Circuit is *okay*. The 7th wins bronze in the Circuit olympics.

I went to Rutger Hauer.

Hofstra, where all Long Island j.a.p's go to find husbands and void their bowels.

how many SA's at Kaye this upcoming year?

38 - ...that is, not make an obvious grammatical mistake akin to yours? Got it, thanks!

38 - Well said. These people put down schools from which their co-workers (with the same position and same pay) graduated.

Sometimes, when I get nervous, I stick my hands under my armpits and then I smell them like this

-Nervous unemployed for the next 10 years T10 1L

I thought Kaye Scholer a jeweler.

49 - But not the same Yale club privileges.

Hofstra Law, where all Long Island j.a.p's go to find husbands and void their bowels.

That's it. I'm out of here. I'm almost sure that the previous commentators were law students, because nobody cares about your degree out in the real world; it's possible to be a great lawyer from anywhere. Attorneys want to argue about Circuit splits and whether SCOTUS will grant Cert to any particular case.

46- What the hell are you talking about? I am not sure whether to laugh or get sick a little.

Bye 54! (or should I also call you 38?)

Let's get back on topic here. I believe that the fact that Kaye Scholer is throwing what will no doubt be a lavish soiree at the elegant Pierre can mean only one thing:

Kaye Scholer to same bonuses as last year!

Is there any truth to the rumor that most jewish chicks are terrible in the sack?

Well, I believe I believe that the fact that Kaye Scholer is throwing such a lavish soiree at the elegant Pierre can mean one thing: KAYE SCHOLER TO $190K.

~3L headed to Kaye

Well, I believe I believe the fact that Kaye Scholer is throwing such a lavish soiree at the elegant Pierre can mean ONLY one thing: KAYE SCHOLER TO $190K.

~3L headed to Kaye

Every Kiss begins with KAYE!

YAY!

paid for by jap's need husbands

58 -- Maybe yes, maybe no, maybe go f@#k yer self!

Mark Wahlberg's Wife

doesn't Twombly just require plus factors for a complaint under the Sherman act alleging parallel conduct

yea, parallelism alone isn't enough. need to show 'plausible grounds' if i remember correctly

22 - Yep, exactly what they are doing. They let associates go earlier in the year and are still doing so under the radar.

65- what departments are they getting laid off from?

Guys in my high school use to party at the Pierre all the time. It was no big deal.

66-aside from the RE already noted, litigation. They also have assigned younger associates from general litigation to products liability and bankruptcy.

Chuck Bass and Nate Archibald party at The Pierre. That's all the endorsement I need!

22 is right on... "Personally I think a firm's image takes a bigger hit w/ such transparent attempts at appearing healthy..."

Kaye = Dying TTT Firm (and TTT animal house)

I am CONFIDENT that my firm will have an even bigger holiday bash.

-Confident t14 2L

W...T...F....

When did this site turn into another AUTOADMIT?

I'm seriously going elsewhere for my legal fix...

72 - you are a serious troll - autoadmit? back to civ pro with you 1L!

I'm very confident mine is bigger.

A certain other firm whose New York office will have its holiday party at the Pierre in December has been conducting layoffs a few at a time under the radar. I cannot say more...

65/68- do you how the IP lit dept has been?

KS doesn't have huge corporate. They also don't go out of their way to be big spenders, which is why in the downturn, at least so far, it's not catastrophic. My guess is some other big firm cancelled and so KS got a nice discount on the space. =)

I haven't heard of any outsourcing yet, but I'm 100% sure that it's been discussed. Problem is how to train a good senior associate if you outsource all the grunt work that he would need to tear through as a first year.

Anyway, we'll see what next year brings... this is all just beginning.

77 - "Problem is how to train a good senior associate if you outsource all the grunt work that he would need to tear through as a first year."

The real problem maybe retaining the senior associates that a firm has. Pretty much the associate class coming up for partnership this year and next year (and perhaps going into 2010) will be screwed. I don't see how firms will make new Jr. partners when they are laying off from the existing Jr. Partners or from the counsel ranks.

There will be a core group of senior associates with a book of business and/or client contacts who will simply leave to establish their own or associate with another firm, probably a small firm with lower billing rate. If this happens, the business model of the AmLaw 100 firms will be broken for a certain class of clients.

Odd how 65/68 talk of "stealth layoffs" that are so rampant across practice groups at the firm, yet somehow, KS has managed to remain off ATL's radar. BS.

I can only assume that #79 is a KS Partner yet again trying to squash any rumors of these so called layoffs. Being one of the more than a "handfull" of lawyers recently let go by Kaye Scholer, I think the fact that the firm is having a holiday party at all is beyond disgusting in these economic times. The holiday party that has always been held at the New York Palace has always been a disgusting display of conspicuous consumption. However, in the past (or at least while I was there) times were good. The party was not just for the lawyers, but secretaries, mailroom staff, kitchen staff, basically anyone who gets a paycheck from payroll is invited. And now, when the cost of just one of these parties could have paid the salary for at least 2-3 associates to stay, the firm yet again proves how heartless it is. Lets lay people off, and not only throw a holiday party, but lets have it at the Pierre, and lets not just spend more money on the venue, but lets break tradition, and allow all of the employee's to invite a guest. I can think of no logic to this other than this being Kaye Scholer's way of saying "Hey, if I'm about to go down, at least I'm going to go out with a bang." Either that or people's spouses were sick of hearing about the inappropriate activity that ensued at the after party.

I can only assume that #79 is a KS Partner yet again trying to squash any rumors of these so called layoffs. Being one of the more than a "handfull" of lawyers recently let go by Kaye Scholer, I think the fact that the firm is having a holiday party at all is beyond disgusting in these economic times. The holiday party that has always been held at the New York Palace has always been a disgusting display of conspicuous consumption. However, in the past (or at least while I was there) times were good. The party was not just for the lawyers, but secretaries, mailroom staff, kitchen staff, basically anyone who gets a paycheck from payroll is invited. And now, when the cost of just one of these parties could have paid the salary for at least 2-3 associates to stay, the firm yet again proves how heartless it is. Lets lay people off, and not only throw a holiday party, but lets have it at the Pierre, and lets not just spend more money on the venue, but lets break tradition, and allow all of the employee's to invite a guest. I can think of no logic to this other than this being Kaye Scholer's way of saying "Hey, if I'm about to go down, at least I'm going to go out with a bang." Either that or people's spouses were sick of hearing about the inappropriate activity that ensued at the after party.

80/81 - According to the partner trolls, you were let go because you were "dead wood"

82 are you a partner troll, otherwise, how would you know ? According to the partner trolls it was purely economic and due to the fact that the department had no work. How else could you explain how the size of the department has dwindled, and with the exception of the new first years, no one has been hired over the past year. And not just to fill the space of those you refer to as "dead wood", but for those who left voluntarily on their own, and there have been quite a few over the past year.

In fact, to be more precise, since last summer, by my count at least 8 associates left voluntarily, as did 5 paralegals. An additional 8 associates were laid off and 4 paralegals were laid off with them. It seems to me that the fact that none of these paralegals were replaced, coupled with the fact that the only new blood brought into the department were the new 1st years in 2007 and again in 2008 shows that perhaps its the partners that are "dead wood" and not the people that worked for them.

83/84 - don't shoot the messenger

I can't verify 83/84's numbers but bodies started to disapear from real estate starting last fall.

66 - Real Estate and Corporate have been conducting stealth layoffs for just about a year now. Litigation is about to do some cuts.

80/81, if you don't mind me asking, what dept(s) were you in? also I'm curious to know what years you and the others that were let go were.
also, any idea how IP lit and products liability are doing?

87 - I heard the same about RE and Corporate. To tell you the truth, I haven't heard good things about either even before this market-meltdown.

88- I was in the RE practice group. The breakdown of who was let go is as follows (and this does not include those that left voluntarily because they anticipated the coming of Armageddon)
Class of:
2006 - (2)
2005 - (2)
2004 - (1)
2001 - (1)
1998 - (1)
Counsel - (1)

and at least 5 paralegals were let go.

I anticipate that the class of 2007 is next to be "reduced" as there are now no remaining people out of the 5 associates from the class of 2006 and only 1 out of the 4 associates of the class of 2005.

thanks for getting back to me. and sorry about your misfortune. Did you land on your feet okay?

You are very welcome. I'm still looking but keeping optimistic !

Well you will be happy to know that inviting a guest to the holiday party is just a rumor. The firm is only doing the holiday party for its employees for appearances only to show the legal world that the firm is in great shape. They cancelled the firm's family zoo party this year and, therefore, allowing employees to invite guests to the holiday party was supposed to make up for it. I say skip the party and give it to us in a year end bonus. We could use the money more.