December 2008

After spending some quality time with Stephen Hawking and an abacus, we are now ready to report the bonus associates at Hogan & Hartson will be receiving this year. For the firm’s offices in D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Northern Virginia the scale is as follows: 2002 and above – $7,500 to $37,500 2003-2005 – $7,500 […]

We expect ATL friend Mark Herrmann at Drug and Device Law to weigh in on this matter fully and with much glee. But in the meantime, we wanted to alert the more botanical subset of our readership of some breaking news: if the cops surprise you, you don’t have to drink the bong water. At […]

In a complaint filed in Connecticut, a patient claims that she wrote down the cure for cancer while being treated at Hartford Hospital. She says that she gave the cure to her doctor for more research, but now she wants that research to stop — at least until she is able to patent her life […]

* The White House has raised the prospect of “pushing the cars into a managed bankruptcy as a solution to save the companies from financial collapse.” [The International Herald Tribune] * The Iraqi journalist who threw the shoe at President George W. Bush will go on trial for insulting a foreign leader, which could get […]

Sources at Sullivan & Cromwell confirm that the firm is going to pay (deep breath) the New York market rate on 2008 associate bonuses. We haven’t gotten our hands on an actual memo yet, but our sources are unhappy enough that we believe it to be true. From one S&C associate: “Either the firm is […]

* I wonder what Jack Bauer would say about pardoning John Walker Lindh. If only we had a commenter that could channel Bauer and share his thoughts with us … [Legal Pad] * If you are thinking about going down to D.C. for the inauguration, you should listen to Kash’s sage guidance. [WYNC] * At […]

Individualized memos have been issued to Skadden Arps associates to inform them of their 2008 bonuses and 2009 base salaries. The Skadden base salaries reflect the customary annual pay raises — sorry, Lathamites. Because Skadden’s announced bonuses this year are so much higher than the Cravath-established market level, folks at other firms have wondered: Are […]

California firm Grodsky & Olecki likes to have fun with its annual end-of-the-year holiday card. The firm likes them so much that it keeps cards dating back to 2003 archived on its site. In recent years, the firm has humorously touched on the Writers Guild strike, red state-blue state divide, and malfunctioning voting machines. Suffice […]

Lawyer fight! The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports that competition for clients is heating up in the bayou: Two attorneys competing for clients, prestige and a bounty of legal fees opened a hearing at Orleans Parish Civil District Court on Monday with a schoolyard brawl that shocked the buttoned-up crowd and ended with one led away […]

The effects of the global economic crisis continue to trickle through all aspects of the legal industry. Many firms simply aren’t willing to share the profits with associates as has been done in years past. While we tend to focus on the Biglaw view of this crisis, it’s important to remember that associates as smaller […]

We have been following the sad tale of a University of Michigan 2L and a U-M professor who got caught up in a prostitution scandal. Yesterday, the Michigan 2L responded to some of the comments that have been made about her. Today, the professor involved asked ATL for equal time and an opportunity to tell […]

We’ve previously reported on law firms having difficulty getting clients to pay their bills. It’s not just happening to firms working on deals that go bust; it has also happened to a firm representing a celeb after his marriage went bust. From Am Law Daily: Blank Rome is suing rapper/actor/activist Mos Def for over $60,000 […]

Let’s say you meet a woman. You like her, she likes you, and eventually you move in together. She helps around the house and, you know, “helps” with other things too. Let’s say that over the course of a year, you “spend” $10,500 on that woman. How would you explain where that money went, to […]

Following up on its inspirational holiday card, yesterday Cadwalader announced the NYC-standard crappy Cravathy bonuses. The transmittal memo, which included the familiar numerical table, was short and sweet: We are pleased to announce that the Firm will award year-end bonuses to associates and counsel as follows. Bonuses will be based on previously communicated criteria and […]

* A couple is suing United Airlines for “overserving” the husband by serving him red wine every 20 minutes on the flight. They say this is what caused him to beat his wife on the way to customs. [Chicago Tribune] * “Federal judges in some parts of the United States are delaying the swearing-in of […]

To balance out word of the robust O’Melveny bonuses, here’s some bad news out of California. Earlier this week, Gunderson Dettmer (boy I miss “ad”venture capital) laid off a number of junior associates. As veterans of the heady dot-com days may recall, Gunderson put itself on the map back in 1999 by leading the charge […]

This should not come as a great surprise, but let’s go ahead and close the loop. From the WSJ Law Blog: Nearly two weeks ago, mere hours after Marc Dreier was arrested up in Canada for allegedly impersonating an in-house lawyer at a pension fund, lawyers at the eponymous law firm were heralding its doom. […]

* What’s the reason for U.S. AG Michael Mukasey recusing himself from the Bernard Madoff investigation? It may be his synagogue. [Cityfile] * K&L Gates grand poobah Peter Kalis gripes about U.S. News & World Reports, gets all mushy about Pitt Law, and praises affirmative action. For minorities and kids from West Virginia. [TaxProf Blog] […]

Because TPW knows a thing or two about crisis and rescue plans. Seriously, though, it’s a good sign for the firm, even if it may not be a lucrative engagement — the Treasury press release reports that “total cost for the firm’s services is not expected to exceed approximately $500,000.” It raises the possibility that […]

It’s getting ugly out there. For the first time since 2005, associate bonuses at Wachtell Lipton have dipped below 100 percent of base salary. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the subject, here’s how bonuses at WLRK work. First, they’re lockstep, not tied to any billable-hours requirement or performance review. Everyone in the […]