Ballard Spahr, Biglaw, Canceled Summer Programs - 2010, Summer Associates, Thompson Hine

Ballard Spahr And Thompson Hine Cancel Their 2010 Summer Programs (Update: Squire Sanders, Too)

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Just last week, Ballard Spahr was sending around inspirational messages to its associates. Today, the firm has decided to cancel its 2010 Summer Program.
Thompson Hine has also decided to cancel its 2010 Summer Program. If nothing else the move should give Rogue Associate an opportunity to comment.
It’s one thing to cancel your entire summer program. But what is surprising about Ballard Spahr and Thompson Hine is that the firms did not make any formal, official announcement about the decision. Instead, students learned the information from their respective law school recruiting offices.
Update (1:04): Now Squire Sanders is also canceling its 2010 Summer Program. More details after the jump.
Here’s the Ballard Spahr “announcement” (via Penn Law School):

Dear Students,
As we near the close of bidding, we wanted to provide you with an update on schedule changes that we received so far today.
Akin Gump went from 40 interview slots in NYC and 40 interview slots in DC to 20 interview slots in NYC and 20 interview slots in DC.
Paul Weiss went from 80 interview slots to 60 interview slots.
Ballard Spahr will not have a 2010 summer program and, as such, has canceled on campus interviews.
All of this information is updated in Symplicity. Please note that we will continue to provide you with updates as is feasible. However, it may not be possible for us to email you with all changes so please be sure to check Symplicity before bidding closes tomorrow, July 21st at 11:59 p.m.

After the jump, we see that Duke students were the first to learn about the Thompson Hine cancellation.


At Duke Law School, it appears that bidding for summer associate interviews is already complete. This made the Thompson Hine announcement particularly annoying for students. Here’s what Duke law students who bid on Thompson Hine received this morning:

We received notification from the employer, Thompson Hine, that they will be canceling interviews. The employer informed us that:
“We are evaluating our recruitment processes in response to the market changes. With our Fall class for this year and the Summer class that we just had, our recruitment needs will be well met for the next cycle. Therefore, we are not participating in OCI or Resume Collects at any schools this season.
We will be focusing more on Practice Group specific needs and recruiting accordingly for those at schools.”
There is nothing else that you need to do at this point. I am sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused and wish you well in your other interviews. You will be removed from this interview and your interview schedule will reflect this change.

A tipster expressed this frustration:

I sure do appreciate Thompson Hine waiting until after the OCI bidding is done and the schedules have been set up to cancel. Very professional of them. It would have been a shame had I bid on a firm that wasn’t going to cancel their summer class.

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ATL commenters could have helped you make a different decision on which firms to interview with.
Good luck class of 2011. It looks like things are going to get more difficult before the economic storm breaks.
Update (1:04): It looks like Squire Sanders is also canceling its 2010 Summer Program. Here’s the email (again via Duke Law School):

We received notification from the employer, Squire Sanders, that they will be canceling interviews. At this time, they are not planning on having a summer class, but they will re-evaluate their summer needs for this spring. You are encouraged to submit a resume and cover letter directly to the employer as this time and follow up in the early spring. You will be removed from this interview and your interview schedule will reflect this change.

Pay no attention to that sound of wailing and gnashing of teeth. That’s just the sound of the class of 2011 realizing the phrase “getting screwed with your pants on” isn’t just a colloquial metaphor.
Earlier: Morgan Lewis Cancels 2010 Summer Program
A Message of Inspiration From Ballard Spahr
Did Gender Play A Role In Layoffs At Squire Sanders?

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