March 2009

We are hearing a lot of chatter about Kirkland & Ellis, perhaps in response to our post last week about possible layoffs there. In New York, at least four associates were recently let go. And conference space has been blocked off by partners today and no one knows why. There was a time when partners […]

We’ve been hearing talk of interesting developments at Boies, Schiller & Flexner, the litigation powerhouse founded by the legendary David Boies, which seems to be doing well despite the downturn (see their bonuses). If you have info to share, please feel free to email us. Here is some news that we can confirm. The BSF […]

* I can think of nothing funny about the February jobs report. [CNBC] * Dr. Sanjay Gupta doesn’t want to be Surgeon General. Word on the hill is that Patrick Dempsey is still available. [CNN] * It’s okay Mr. Mayer, just tell us the truth. “Well, Spidey said that mommy wouldn’t mind. And then, he […]

* Was something happening with Prop 8 today that I missed? I guess I was too busy chillin’ on the right side of history. [Law Dork 2.0] * Twenty people here, two hundred people there, pretty soon you’re talking about an awful lot of layoffs this week. [ABA Journal] * Is the Grim Reaper sexist? […]

A friend of ATL brings us a surprising report from a recruitment event at Northwestern University School of Law on Wednesday night. Despite the rough economic times, rampant layoffs, rescinded job offers, and general end of the legal employment world as we know it, many students decided to skip out on the chance to mingle […]

The layoff news keeps rolling in. The latest is from Bingham McCutchen. Unlike some of the recent cuts we’ve seen, the firm did not lay off a massive number of associates. That will be small consolation for the people let go today. We’ve received word that Bingham is laying off 39 people today: 16 lawyers […]

While a lot of the California firms have been laying off people in Washington, D.C., it’s been a little while since a D.C. based firm laid people off. But sadly, today Arent Fox had to let people go. Managing partner William Charyk released this statement via a firm wide email: During the early months of […]

As many of you know, part of the problem firms are facing during these challenging times is that clients won’t pay their bills. Lawyers can’t get paid unless clients pay. Whether or not clients are willing or able to pay, it certainly won’t happen unless they are billed. Hence, as most associates already know, the […]

After Latham laid off 440 people, the firm announced that they would be offering a deferral stipend to incoming first year associates. Latham offered $75,000 to people wiling to defer their start date until the fall of 2010. When Orrick laid off 300 people, the firm also offered $75K to associates willing to delay for […]

As we told you yesterday, Pillsbury management had booked a few conference rooms today to let people know the state of the firm’s layoff plans. The firm promised to release the numbers of associates who took the voluntary departure program. It doesn’t look like the firm has released the splits (between voluntary and involuntary) but […]

AmLaw is out today with a carnage top ten. They list the firms that have conducted the deepest layoffs by percentage of total associates. Orrick leads the way, its two rounds of layoffs (in November and on Tuesday) nailed nearly 20% of the firm’s associates. But is Orrick’s position in the top spot a little […]

* Adam Cohen sounds like a long-time reader of Above The Law. He mentions Jerry Springer’s Northwestern commencement speech and Clarence Thomas’s love of Egg McMuffins in this editorial on recessions being good for blogs. Yes, the layoff news means our traffic is insanely high these days, but we miss the time when Lawyers of […]

So, you know how we at Above the Law love to bring you something a little bit later in the day for our west coast and late night readers? I bring this up lest you think I have masturbatory ulterior motives for the timing of this post. So, this lady is apparently a law student […]

* Some reactions to the Wyeth decision. [Drug and Device Law] * And there are still questions about whether the Roberts Court can still be called “pro-business.” [The Volokh Conspiracy] * We’re not sure if this is the right time for Jeff Toobin to remind people that he is married. [Gawker] * Either Brad Pitt […]

Technically, there were layoffs at Haynes & Boone yesterday. But our cadre of Texas readers don’t need to start storing canned goods in their hats just yet. The Texas based firm made minor cuts to its New York office. A firm spokesperson released this statement to Above the Law: We can confirm that Tuesday, Haynes […]

Given the massive layoffs happening at major firms all across the industry, the plight of people at prestigious regional firms is easy to overlook. But make no mistake, nobody is safe from the recession. We received word today that the Connecticut firm, Wiggin & Dana, laid off a number of associates yesterday. Here is the […]

A week ago, we brought you news about Pillsbury’s “Voluntary Departure Program.” The firm adopted the program after partner Robert Robbins announced the firm’s impending layoffs on the Acela last month. On Tuesday, Pillsbury informed associates who requested voluntary departure if they had been accepted. We don’t yet have the numbers for how many people […]

First Latham, then Orrick, now O’Melveny. Yesterday, we mentioned that layoffs could be coming to O’Melveny & Myers. Today, the rains came. A firm-wide email just went out announcing that 200 people would be let go. The cuts amount to about ten percent of attorneys and ten percent of staff: It is against this backdrop […]

Last month, our friends at Practical Law Company (PLC) invited Above the Law readers to their launch party. This month, PLC has another special offer, also for readers of ATL. Back in this post, we described the services provided by PLC. But it’s so much easier to check them out for yourself — and now […]

We’ve been receiving reports of layoffs at Schulte Roth & Zabel since last summer, but were unable to confirm them until now. These days, it can be difficult to differentiate between layoffs and performance-based dismissals. Schulte’s spokespeople say all dismissals in 2008 were performance-based. They deny any recent layoffs in their office, saying that any […]