Archive for January 2009

Associate Bonus Watch And Nationwide Pay Freeze Watch: Chadbourne & Parke

By Laurie Lin

law firm associate bonus watch 2008 biglaw bonuses.jpgWe haven’t yet gotten our hands on the Chadbourne & Parke bonus memo, but a firm spokesperson confirmed what the general numbers look like. According to the spokesperson:

“Our bonuses are on Cravath, Half-Skadden, scale. Individual bonus determinations are based upon individual performance and pro rated for part time attorneys and attorneys who have been with the firm for less than the full year.”

I wonder if somewhere, Cravath’s Evan Chesler is thinking about ways to kill me?

Meanwhile, Chadbourne also announced a salary freeze:

As you know, the world economic outlook for 2009 is uncertain. Accordingly, as a matter of prudence, the Firm is reserving decision on associate salary levels for 2009. We will make a decision on this matter within the next several months as the global economic picture becomes clearer.

Half-Skadden bonus, Latham salary — but no layoffs, so there’s that to be happy about.

Earlier: Prior ATL coverage of associate bonuses

Prior ATL coverage of associate salary freezes

Non-Sequiturs: 01.23.09

By Laurie Lin

Choate.JPG* Today, there were layoffs at Choate. No, not that Choate (well maybe that Choate, it’s not like that Choate is Andover or Exeter) but the other Choate. [Boston Common Law]

* Traffic stats of law blogs. Yay readers! [Avvo]

* I wonder if I would understand this better if I had ever seen the inside of a courtroom? [Courtoons]

* They’ve revoked Wesley Snipes’s passport. Could someone please take away his SAG card as well? [TaxProf Blog]

* This would never happen at GULC. [Litination]

* I can’t promo this link any better than this: “LaBeouf needs La Chauffeur!” [Popsquire]

Jenner & Block Associate Argues Her First Case – In the Supreme Court

By David Lat

Lindsay Harrison front steps SCOTUS.jpgLindsay Harrison at One First Street. Photo by Patrice Gilbert.

To paraphrase the controversial Campari ads at issue in Hustler Magazine v. Falwell (aka The People vs. Larry Flynt), everyone remembers “their first time” — arguing in open court, that is. It’s a rite of passage that all young litigators must go through. At large law firms, associates (or even junior partners) typically tackle something minor for their first oral argument — e.g., a non-critical discovery motion — and then work their way up the ladder.

But that’s not the case for everyone; some people start at the top. Meet Lindsay C. Harrison. She’s a fifth-year associate in the D.C. office of Jenner & Block, who just had her very first oral argument — which happened to be in the U.S. Supreme Court. On Wednesday, she appeared before the nine justices to argue the case of Nken v. Mukasey (or, technically, Nken v. Filip; more on the name changes later).

Read our interview with Lindsay Harrison, after the jump.

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A Special Offer for ATL Readers

By David Lat

Practical Law Company PLC logo.jpgFree food. Free drink. Ample networking opportunities. What’s not to like?

Practical Law Company (PLC) — a U.K.-based company that just started offering its services here in the U.S., which we’ll be writing more about later — is holding a launch party next week here in New York. The festivities will be attended law firm folks (partners and associates), in-house lawyers, legal journalists, and others connected to the profession. The party will be held on Wednesday, January 28, from 6:30 to 10 p.m.

If you’d like to attend, please RSVP. The first 25 ATL readers to respond will be placed on the guest list. If you’re in the first 25, you’ll receive a confirmation email. (We will also append an update to this post after all the spots are filled.)

If your firm canceled its holiday party last year, here’s your chance to chuckle at inebriated law firm partners. Several members of the ATL crew will be in attendance. We hope to see you there!

P.S. Disclosure: PLC is an ATL advertiser.

Update: The 25 spots have been filled. Thanks for your interest!

The Innovation Agenda: Practical Law Company Sets Up Shop in NYC [Am Law Daily]

Legal Eagle Wedding Watch 1.18: We LoVermont!

By Laurie Lin

champagne glasses small.jpg

Last weekend, while most of you were lining up for the Inauguration, a few oddballs were elsewhere, engaging in nuptial activities. Obviously, pretty much every superstar lawyer in the country was preparing to report for duty in the incoming administration, so we must warn you that this week’s wedding announcements are a little short on prestige. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t lots of weirdness and dysfunction to mull over.

Here are this week’s finalists:

1. Rachel Natelson and Seth Fogelman

2. Courtney Shea and Stephen Ball Jr.

3. Elyssa Sims and Vincent Dunleavy

More about these newlyweds, after the jump.

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Associate Bonus Watch: Latham & Watkins

By Laurie Lin

law firm associate bonus watch 2008 biglaw bonuses.jpgLatham & Watkins might be leading the charge for salary freezes, but that’s not going to stop the firm from paying out associate bonuses. Right?

Latham is not a lockstep bonus firm. As a tipster explains it:

Our bonuses are not lock-step- so those people working their tails off usually do end up doing better than market … It’s usually those who are at the threshold (1900 hours) who do worse than market or get no bonus at all.

Well bonus information just went out and it looks like those hours thresholds have shifted. Latham goes through great (and ultimately futile) lengths to make sure that the firm’s bonus information doesn’t appear in the press. A tipster explains:

The way they announced them was via an email with a link in it that took you to a page that listed both your specific bonus, as well as an “un-cut-and-pasteable” bonus memo.

After the jump, we post the first screenshot of the Latham bonus structure.

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University of Chicago Law School The Latest to Change Fall OCI

By Laurie Lin

Not Hiring sign.jpgThus far, the University of Chicago Law School has been immune to the fever of grade reform. While other law schools bend over backwards to make the same level of education look better on a transcript, Chicago has held the line.

But it’s not like U of C Law is just ignoring the economic realities of the day. Another trend among top law schools it to make their on-campus interview process start earlier so firms don’t “fill up” on other candidates. Chicago is officially moving in that direction:

The fall 2009 on-campus interview program may seem very far away during the Chicago winter, but the Office of Career Services has begun planning in order to maximize your opportunities during this important phase of the job market for students exploring law firm careers. This planning has led to a notable calendar change: The University of Chicago Law School’s fall on-campus interviews will be held August 17-28, with an orientation to the program scheduled for August 15th.

After the jump, Chicago Law makes its intentions clear — but there are other problems with changing the timing of OCI.

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Perkins Coie’s Vegas Vacation

By Laurie Lin

Perkins Coie logo.JPGYesterday, I mentioned that Fortune released a list of the Top 100 places to work. In that post I failed to note that Perkins Coie was ranked 82nd on that list.

According to Fortune:

A support staffer gave this impressive list of her benefits: $2,000 in technology flex plan allowance, $80 for wellness program participation, $475 for 20th anniversary with firm, $1,500 performance bonus, $50 Nordstrom gift card, $3,500 year-end bonus.

Well, tipsters report that Perkins Coie management is pumped about the news. Check out the firm-wide email and fun tipster responses after the jump.

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Magic Circle Meltdown: Layoffs at Allen & Overy, Linklaters, and Clifford Chance

By Kashmir Hill

london.gifThe London-based “Magic Circle” firms may have had a strong presence on the 2008 global law firm rankings, but a few of them are off to a rough start in 2009. Earlier this month, we reported, “having already laid off 20 New York litigators, Clifford Chance today let go of 70 – 80 London lawyers.”

The layoff disease has spread to two other Magic Circle firms. Layoffs were announced in the New York office of Allen & Overy yesterday. Our sources says:

Allen & Overy just fired two paralegals and three attorneys in the NY office. These firings are said to be “performance based.” Word on the street is that there will be more, but they will come in bits and pieces to avoid bad press. Rumors have already started about other attorneys being let go in offices abroad.

[UPDATE (Jan. 26, 10:34 a.m.]: In response to our inquiry about layoffs, A&O spokesperson Jaime Bruck says, “This is nothing more than the normal management of our business. We don’t comment on the reasons for individual departures. The total # of attorneys in NY is 171.”]

And Linklaters plans layoffs soon. The Old World firm is going “New World” by axing 70 partners and 10 percent of its associates, reports The Lawyer:

Linklaters’ top management is to drastically overhaul the firm’s structure, slashing up to 70 partners and 10 per cent of associates in a bid to become a smaller, more profitable operation.

The programme, understood to be called Linklaters New World, will also see redundancies among support staff. The firm’s offices in Western Europe are thought to be most vulnerable to cuts.

Those layoffs could start as soon as February.

With the Guardian reporting that “Britain has officially entered recession for the first time since 1991,” the layoff news from London seems inevitable. But some of the firms in the circle– Freshfields and Slaughter & May– are still feeling magical. Good news from those firms, after the jump.

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Morning Docket 1.23.09

By Eliza Gray

Gillibrand Senator.jpg* Governor Patterson has chosen Kirsten Gillibrand, a 42-year-old New York congresswoman, to replace Hillary Clinton in the Senate. [Reuters]

* On the 36th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade protestors gather for the annual March for Life on the National Mall. [The Los Angeles Times]

* The Senate has confirmed six members of Obama’s cabinet but Attorney General-designate Eric Holder is still waiting. [The Associated Press]

* Blagojevich may file a lawsuit challenging “unfair” Senate trial rules to the state Supreme Court. [The Washington Post]

* Obama ordered the Justice Department to review the case of an accused al-Qaida agent, the only enemy combatant held on US soil. [The Associated Press]

Poor Marc Dreier

By David Lat

Marc Dreier Marc S Dreier LLP.jpgQuips a tipster: “Dreier gets $20 million bond — but he didn’t steal enough to pay. This guy is no Madoff.”

Dreier Gets $20 Million Bond [Bloomberg]

Dreier to Remain in Jail [Am Law Daily]

Judge Says No to Bail Request; Dreier to Stay Behind Bars [WSJ Law Blog]

Earlier: Prior ATL coverage of Marc Dreier

Non-Sequiturs: 01.22.09

By Elie Mystal

Obama dildo.JPG* Well, surely this will be the most disturbing image anyone sees today. [Quiz Law]

* Orin Kerr defends the third-party doctrine, which holds that “a person cannot have a reasonable expectation of privacy in information disclosed to a third party.” We like the sound of that. [Volokh Conspiracy]

* Traffic stats on popular professorial blogs! [TaxProf Blog]

* Fascinating interview with a Venable partner who was on the U.S. Air flight that landed in the Hudson. [AmLaw Daily]

* Will Obama be good for the cause of criminal justice? [Underdog]

* Illinois’ state legislature is going to consider abolishing the death penalty there. But probably not until after they get done with Blago right? You know, why take that club out of the bag? [My Law Life]

Are We Ready For What Harvard Law School Is Selling?

By Elie Mystal

Harvard Law School seal logo.jpgAmerica, welcome to your new national nightmare: a country run on the thinking instilled by Harvard Law School.

Noam Scheiber’s brilliant article in the New Republic takes the first stab at capturing what this turn of events could mean for the direction of the country. After pointing out some obvious differences between the Bush 41-Clinton transition and the Bush 43-Obama transition, Scheiber explains:

But part of the explanation also lies in the elite institutions that socialized them–namely Harvard and Yale, their respective law schools. The two schools stand on opposite sides of a cultural chasm in the academic world. Even more than that, they stand for different theories of governing.

Obviously, Scheiber makes his argument by using broad generalizations about the two schools’ methods of education. Yale is portrayed as intellectually curious if a bit absent minded and unstructured. Harvard is austere and disciplined and a place where happiness goes to die.

Individual experiences will certainly vary. As John Matteson offered in the Sunday Times:

I can’t tell whether Barack Obama suffered into self-knowledge at Harvard Law the way I did. Whereas I never discovered an academic comfort zone in Roscoe Pound Hall, he became president of The Law Review — a feat of intelligence and dedication I can regard only with awe.

The generalizations about the two law schools have particular import though. Remember, Obama is seemingly bringing the entire HLS faculty with him to Washington.

Additional thoughts after the jump.

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Racist Tulane Law School Party? Ironic Tulane Law School Party? You Decide

By Marin

Tulane's Mexican party pic small.JPGTulane Law School finished third in our post about the Top Law Schools of the Year.

Apparently, they took that as a challenge. Some of the law students there decided to throw a little party. From Guanabee:

It’s racist party pics of a bunch of white law students at Tulane University dressing up like Mexican caricatures. It seems last weekend the President of the Tulane Student Bar Association…. attended (or threw?) a party whose theme was “The Border” according to a tipster who attends the same school. These pictures were posted on [her] Facebook profile under the title, “No we will not die like dogs! We will fight like lions!” Because Mexicans are a caricature from The Three Amigos.

Geez guys, if you want to make ATL that badly, you could always just steal another shoe.

I guess some people are not clear on the rules, so let me help those people out. If you are already clear on the rules, please skip right to the jump, to see the blatant rule violations that were posted on Facebook.

Anyway, if you absolutely must dress up as a racial stereotype, you first need to ask yourself:

A) Are you a mascot?

B) Is it Halloween?

If you answer “no” to both questions, then you generally cannot mock other ethnic groups via costume, unless:

1) You’re “one-eighth” of the ethnic group you are mocking and can provide sufficient documentation to that effect upon request.

2) You’re in a play or some other performance piece and can legitimately blame directorial choices for your dress.

3) You’re trying to make a crushingly ironic point about the currently state of world affairs (a/k/a The New Yorker Exception).

But note that if you are applying under the guidelines set forth in subsection three, you can still legitimately be called out by others who aren’t in on the joke.

That is all. Pictures after the jump.

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K&L Gates to Associates: ‘That was not your bonus’

By Kashmir Hill

KL Gates would like that money back.jpgK&L Gates associates have not heard about their 2008 bonus or their 2009 raises yet. Bonus news is historically late at the firm, and raise news should come in March.

In the meantime, associates got an unexpected bonus along with their second paycheck of the year. This is an excerpt from the e-mail associates received yesterday:

Please see the email below regarding an error with the direct deposit of the January 22nd payroll. In short the issue is that your payroll appears to have been deposited 3 times and the firm is in the process of request [sic] 2 of those be returned. So, please be careful not to spend more then your normal pay until you see that they [sic] corrections have been made to your account.

On the downside, K&L uses an inept payroll company. On the upside, the firm’s cash flow must be nice and healthy if it can afford to triple pay all of its associates. Indeed, as we reported yesterday, profits per partner at K&L are up.

The associate who sent the e-mail along to us is a brave one:

they said they’d take it out by early next week. i think i could head up to atlantic city. triple it. then put it back in my account by next monday.

Sounds like a plan to us. Not a good plan, but a plan. Full e-mail from the director of payroll after the jump.

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Fortune Lists Top 100 Companies to Work For

By Marin

Happy workers.JPGFortune has released its annual list of the top 100 companies to work for. Despite the general feeling of malaise in the legal industry, a few law firms made the cut.

The highest ranked law firm (number 21 overall) is Arnold & Porter. Fortune reports:

Law firm offers world-class benefits to staff and attorneys: 18 weeks’ paid leave for maternity and adoption, $5,000 for adoption fees, $30,000 for fertility services, free onsite fitness center, on- and off-site child care.

I guess a salary freeze that their peer firms in the Vault 20 are largely avoiding doesn’t trump a free gym.

Fortune also released a list of the top 20 companies that are great places to work and still hiring. No law firms made that list.

So I guess we’ll focus on other law firms in the top 100 after the jump.

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Nationwide Pay Freeze Watch: Mayer Brown
You Heard It Here First

By Marin

pay freeze salary freeze pay cut law firm.jpgA couple of weeks ago we reported that Mayer Brown’s failure to reflect a salary increase in associates’ initial January paycheck could be an indication of a coming salary freeze. A tipster told us:

Today was the first pay day in 2009 for Mayer Brown NY. In the past, our first pay check of the year automatically reflected salary increases. No such increase today. Smells like a pay freeze?!?

In response, some commenters made it very clear that the failure to increase salaries in January had nothing at all to do with a salary freeze:

The fact that THIS year you don’t have an increase yet WITHOUT any firmwide announcement (which has NEVER happened, btw) doesn’t mean anything. It is what happens normally at every other MB office every year (and also has happened in NYC in the past). Sure, it is possible (maybe even probable) that MB will announce a freeze, but keep your panties on; the fact that a raise isn’t in your paycheck doesn’t mean anything other than that there hasn’t been an announcement yet (which we already knew). Hence, this is not newsworthy.

A firm spokesperson even jumped in on the general theme:

Mayer Brown spokesman Bob Harris says the firm “has not yet announced its plans for lawyer compensation in 2009″ and that it usually makes the decision in February.

A funny thing happened on the way to the normal, put the panties on, non-announcement of a decision usually made in February that is not at all newsworthy: about an hour ago, Mayer Brown announced a salary freeze.

In this market, it might be time to rethink previous definitions of normalcy.

Read the full memo after the jump.

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You Heard It Here First”

Nationwide Layoff Watch: Cadwalader Releases Nine Additional Attorneys

By Marin

Cadwalader Wickersham Taft new logo CWT AboveTheLaw blog.jpgHonestly, we’re not trying to pile on Cadwalader, but they just keep making news.

The Wall Street Journal Law Blog is reporting today that the firm has fired nine associates: three in New York and six in Charlotte:

“Cadwalader confirms limited terminations of a few associates in the Charlotte and New York offices; and adjustments to our Charlotte-only compensation schedule,” wrote firm spokeswoman Nicky McHugh in an email.

There are still associates in Charlotte? Maybe they should have taken the pay cut.

Our tipsters report that most of the layoffs hit the real estate practice group.

How are Cadwalader associates dealing with all the bad news? We’ve heard rumors of everything from Career Builder to Duck Hunt. Let us know about your Cadwalader coping mechanisms.

Cadwalader to Cut Nine More Associates [WSJ Law Blog]

Earlier: More Pain Coming to Cadwalader?

Prior ATL coverage of law firm layoffs

Sex, Drugs, And Billable Hours!

By David Lat

sweet hot justice logo.jpg[Ed. Note: The following piece was authored by "The Legal Tease" of Sweet Hot Justice fame. You can check out all of Legal Tease's other musings from Sweet Hot Justice here.]

My first intervention went down pretty much exactly like the ones you see on TV. Well, except that there were no cameras. Or tears. Or therapists. And it took place in a shoebox office in a law firm instead of, say, in my living room, surrounded by friends and family. Still, the core elements were the same: I had a serious issue and it needed addressing. No, I wasn’t a junkie, or an alcoholic, or addicted to fetish porn. My issue was far more dangerous. More destructive. More worthy, apparently, of the powers that be at the firm stepping in to make sure the situation didn’t get further out of control.

The issue? My billable hours were too high.

It was a couple of years ago, when it was actually possible to have billable hours, no less ones that were too high. The day started like any other: sitting at my desk on three hours’ sleep, mourning my former life as a person who…had a life, and wading through diligence for a massive public company merger that had consumed every billable, no less waking, hour of my life since I’d started working at the firm a few months back. I heard a knock on my door and looked up to see Bess, a senior associate I’d never met, smiling at my door.

“Hey there!” she chirped. “How’s it going?”

I looked down at the heaps of SEC filings covering every inch of my desk. How does it look like it’s going?

She kept smiling. “Sooo, gotta sec?”

No. “Sure.”

“Great! I figured we could just go grab a coffee and talk for a bit.” Oh, Jesus Christ. What the hell is this about? I don’t have time for this.

Turns out, that was the whole point.

Having a life, after the jump.

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Ask the Experts: Interview Pitfalls To Avoid (Part 1)

By Marin

Ask the Experts.jpg[This article was written by Miguel Escobar. Miguel is a Director in Lateral Link's New York office.]

You’ve done it! You’ve landed that coveted interview you first envisioned when entering the lateral market. Following up on previous “Ask the Experts” columns discussing the importance of thorough and meticulous interview preparation, let’s now address some common pitfalls to avoid during this potentially career-making interview. We’ll highlight 5 this week and 5 more next week.

(1). Dissing Your Current Firm. Do not focus on negative feelings you may have about your current firm, its Partners or your fellow Associates. Never make your desire to transition into a personal issue. Focus instead on your substantive reasons for wanting to make a lateral move. Some good reasons to move to another firm include: a desire for more hands-on responsibility and sense of ownership over your caseload, a desire for more growth opportunities and interaction with clients, a desire to focus or specialize in a particular field or even a desire to join the more tight-knit atmosphere of a smaller boutique. Be humble and stress that you have learned a great deal at your current firm but are now simply ready for the next step in your career.

(2). Mentioning billable hours. It’s entirely possible that your current job demands 2600 billable hours per year. It’s also entirely possible that this is your main (and rather understandable) reason for seeking a new position. Nonetheless, do not make the critical mistake of mentioning a desire for better hours as your motivation for choosing a new firm. While your desire for less demanding, “lifestyle” hours may be entirely reasonable, Hiring Partners aren’t eager to hire Associates who complain about their difficult hours.

More after the jump.

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