Musical Chairs: Joe Robinson and Bob Shaffer from Darby & Darby to McDermott
We’ve covered in these pages the many challenges faced by standalone intellectual property firms. One of them is competition from Biglaw shops seeking to scoop up top talent in the IP field.
Yesterday morning, Robert C. Sullivan Jr., president and managing principal of Darby & Darby, sent around an internal email announcing the departure of two prominent partners, Joseph Robinson (pictured) and Robert Shaffer. Robinson and Shaffer, who specialize in patent litigation, counseling and procurement, are joining the New York office of McDermott Will & Emery.
It’s not happy news for Darby, which a tipster describes as “one of the last IP boutiques of any meaningful size, [but] gasping for breath as it is.” Robinson, a biotech expert and noted patent litigator, is said to have been one of the firm’s top-grossing partners, “probably to the tune of about $4 million.” Darby is holding a town hall meeting to discuss the defections.
A source issues this warning to Robinson’s new colleagues at MWE:
[Robinson] is a control freak who wields the power he gets from high earnings with an iron fist…. He is a significant reason for the many partner and practice group defections at Darby in the past few years, and now he’s gone too. McDermott will love the revenue, hate the attitude.
In Robinson’s defense, does he sound all that different from many top partners or successful litigators?
Robert Sullivan’s email announcing the departures, after the jump.
DARBY AND DARBY — EMAIL — DEPARTURE OF JOE ROBINSON AND BOB SHAFFER
From: Sullivan, Robert C
Sent: Tuesday, October 20, 2009 8:45 AM
To: EX_All Personnel
Subject: Departures
Joe Robinson and Bob Shaffer have resigned from the firm to join the New York office of McDermott, Will and Emery.
While we regret their departure, we have been working on several strategic opportunities to grow the partnership ranks of the firm and enhance our revenue base. While we continue to face challenges, we feel that we have also been provided with new opportunities to rebuild the strength of the firm. We have a great brand name, hundreds of loyal clients and a business model which we believe can prosper in the current legal services market.
While our firm, like almost all law firms, has been significantly affected by the recession over the last year and half, we continue to have strong practices in many fields and in each of our offices - New York, Seattle, Frankfurt and Florida, and will continue to offer the same full range of intellectual property law services to all of our clients as we work to position ourselves to become stronger as the economy recovers.
We will be scheduling a town hall meeting shortly to discuss this further and to answer questions.
(64) 
Comments
first
SECOND IN THE BUTT
(IN THE BUTT LOL)
Lat and Elie, pay attention
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125132002307361669.html
Is it just me or has the writing improved on this blog?
So he is an asshole, bad attitude, rude to associates -- he will fit right in at MWE. Great hire!
So much for the highly touted "no assholes" mantra, MWE.
4 - if by "improved" you mean "become dry and boring," then yes, it has.
I said....what what ....in the butt
I said WHAT WHAT .......in the buttt
oooooookaayy?
They have only "hundreds of lotal clients" and their top two pardners leave? Not good for D&D assocs. WWJD?
If he is a-hole with a 4M book? Wait unitl he works with our IP brothers with substantially bigger books and bigger a-holes.
FYI: More muslim immigrants were plotting to kill all of you by shooting up malls.
Fact: If only 10% of muslims are jihadists, then over 100,000,000 muslims across the world are seeking to kill you.
Now, back to the irrelevant news....
#3, that was a very appropriate link. May be Mistal kan doo a storie on it.
darby was going down the tubes a long time before these two left.
Are WSJ links slow on any one else's computer? They're really slow on mine (gov't).
Are WSJ links slow on any one else's computer? They're really slow on mine (gov't).
14, the WSJ is somewhat conservative, and therefore not Obama-worshiping to the same extent as the rest of the news media. Consequently, the Executive Branch is attempting to prevent you from accessing anything that might allow you to see the light.
MSNBC and the lunatic blogs should come up for you easily.
Good riddens
17= Elie
yet more evidence the IP sector is continuing to contract- companies are running out of defendants to bring IP claims against and this sector will continue to shrink, even if the economy rebounds- if you are reading this and are still in law school, my advice is to stay out of IP
14: do you have that LEXIS subscription thing? That caused trouble at my firm last summer.
19, you are a fool with your advice to stay out of IP? The best two practice areas right now for anyone who wants to meet billables are IP and bankruptcy. And as evidenced by the small firm bankruptcy thread, bankruptcy is probably the least enjoyable of these two practice areas.
19 is a loser with a touchy-feely liberal arts degree who is bitter because he has no skills or hope for becoming a real IP attorney.
BTW, Darby should merge with Kenyon to become Kenyon & Darby & Kenyon & Darby, or Darby, Kenyon, Kenyon & Darby, or Darby^2 & Kenyon^2, or something....
He sounds to nice, kind, self-effacing and gentle to fit in at MWE.
WHO????
Another excellent illustration that McDermott Will and Emery is a very bad firm.
I have tried to make it as clear as I possibly can...this firm is bad news. They represent violent overthrows of governments, they screw over their summer associates...twice (once when they showed up to work, telling them they'd be paid less, and again at the end of the summer when they failed to tell anyone for a very long time who was getting offers and who wasn't). They've let go a ton of people, and they've always been viewed as one of the "cheap" firms in town.
Do not work at MWE. Do not contract with them to do your work. They're bad news, and they should be made to pay for it.
McDermott kissed its "no assholes" rule away quite a while ago. That was a mantra in the 90's. Things have changed.
McDermott kissed its "no assholes" rule away quite a while ago. That was a mantra in the 90's. Things have changed.
Not only is McDermott terrible to its own people but they are known to over bill clients and then routinely get sanctioned, at least in IP. Fed Cir to hear sanctions appeal (Medtronic v. Brainlab) against TM and VE, McDermott's so called IP heavy hitters, on Nov. 4th in court room 402. McDermott's only defense is that if their attorneys' behavior was bad then the court should have stopped them. Generally that type of blame shifting doesn't even work for 3 year olds but maybe the Fed Cir will let them get away with it since it is one of their brothers.
Actually Robinson was one of my favorite partners at Darby -- straight shooter, has integrity, even if yes, he sometime a gruff New Yorker, but you always knew where you stood with him and he was also generous with complements if you worked hard. IMHO, he is probably the most important person as that firm, and he will be sorely, sorely missed on every level. When there was shit to deal with, only Robinson had the guts to do it. The current managing partner may seem friendly on the outside, but he as slick as they come on the inside....not good.
Actually Robinson is one of my favorite partners at Darby: straight shooter, and he has integrity, even if -- yes, sometimes he is a a gruff New Yorker, but you always know where you stand with him and he is always generous with compliments if you work hard. IMHO, he is probably the most important person at the firm, and he will be sorely, sorely missed on every level. When there is shit to deal with, the other partners run to Robinson because only he has the perspective and guts to handle it. The current managing partner may seem friendly on the outside, but he as slick as they come on the inside....not good.
28- Routinely? You cite one example. I'll acknowledge there are two well-known ones (the one you mention and the happy meal partner in Florida). But that's not uncommon. Every large firm in this country is sanctioned somewhere about once a month. Be angry that you got laid off, or that you never got hired, or that McDermott laughed at your resume, but try to have facts in support of your whining. Bad lawyers are all pomp and no circumstance.
31 - Agreed that zealous advocacy often leads to over stepping on occasion (TM and VE), however, you have to admit that MWE’s mgmt has driven the firm into the ground and made it a terrible place to work.
31
MWE sucks. I know from my own employment status. I was not laid off, I was hired, they did not laugh at my resume.
4M at MWE is not enough. All the power this guy might have had at Darcy will be gone at MWE because 4M makes you a mid-sized fish.
31 acknowledges two recent McDermott Will & Emery situations, but somehow forgot that McDermott Will & Emery also recently settled a malpractice claim regarding the bankruptcy of Saint Vincent's Catholic Medical Centers of New York. According to trade articles, the suit alleged breach of fiduciary duty, legal malpractice, attorney misconduct, and fraudulent concealment. Allegedly, McDermott purposefully delayed the bankruptcy filing of Saint Vincent's to keep members of the hospital's restructuring team in place and run up its own bills, which delayed the hospital's emergence from bankruptcy. The litigation trustee was seeking at least $200 million. It would be interesting to know the amount of the settlement, but it was filed under seal, purportedly to protect McDermott from providing confidential information to others who might pursue litigation against the firm.
Joe is a snake in the green grass and has left a trail of dead bodies behind him a mile long--there are so many people who hate this guy its amazing anyone would be dumb enough to hire him---the only reason he has his main client is the chief ip counsel owes him---he got one atty canned a few weeks ago over a personal slight-and he was a good hard working guy- Joe must have known he was leaving --what a prick--he had the partnership jumping through hoops to keep him happy then he sticks a knife in them---I think even his Japanese clients have figured him out---I think the over under for length of his stay at MWH is 12 months--
Sounds like he will fit in perfectly at McDermott and become co-head of the firm one day.
29 and 30. The fact that you posted and then had to come back and revise your bad grammar suggests that you would fit in quite well with this guy. My guess is that you've already decided to join him.
36 got it pretty much correct - a very very ugly little man warmly and uniformly dispised by vertually everyone - former and current management at Darby also much to blame - when they could have still managed the situation internally they instead gave it all up, at great cost to the overall well being of the firm, for some short term bucks...now the deal is closed - so, what else is new? May be interesting to see how Robinson does now with likely bigger sharks....
Interesting string….36 and 39 got it right, except 36 is too generous and 39 is either dyslexic or was just driven into the not uncommon dysfunctional rage Joe frequently elicits at the very mention of his name. Most interesting is 29/30 and 38…38, I think, got it wrong. For those of us who knew him well, 29/30 sounds like Joe himself trying to put his spin on things…just telling us what a great guy he really is, just “tough”…fairly typical of his rampant self-delusions and posting here also telling of what really lies beneath…Is that you Joe?...we see you…
36, 39, and 40 are totally dead on. And 30 got it right re: the current managing partner, Rob Sullivan. Under his friendly appearing facade, he is a deceitful, scheming crook. To those associates who are still there: take it from an insider (I was an associate there many years ago): DO NOT TRUST ROB SULLIVAN. Your days are numbered, so leave while you can. Sullivan will screw you over when it comes to bonuses and promotion. D&D has been a sinking ship since 2002. The NYC office had 24 partners and 60 associates back then. Two partners left that year, and at the time it was an extraordinary departure. Now, NYC is down to 9 partners, only 5 of whom were around in '02. Robinson and 4 other partners (Fields, Schechter, Baum, Leason) were the only partners making rain. Is it a coincidence that they have all left?
Listen to http://oralarguments.cafc.uscourts.gov/mp3/2009-1058.mp3
41 - you said Fields but I think you mean Fehlner since Fields is still there.
I have worked with Joe for 13 years and would hire him again without hesitation if the need arose. He is a no bullshit individual who puts the client first. His interpersonal skills may turn some off, but his results speak for themselves.
oh please ---he couldnt think is way out of a paper bag---hes brute force and always i mean always needs someone else thinking for him so he could pawn those ideas off as his own----he had good people behind him---that he treated like shit
45 is right, I speak from experience. He put one over on you 44.
43 - thanks for the correction, yes i meant fehlner. 44 is obviously the same author as 30, whom we all know is the real joe himself. give it up man, you're not fooling anyone.
To current and prospective associates: Don't believe the crap that the Rob "the snake" Sullivan is spitting out re: "we are hiring new partners" or "ww're working to grow the firm in new directions." that is spin, pure and simple. i will say it again: GET OUT AS SOON AS THE MARKET RECOVERS. YOU WILL NOT HAVE A JOB IN 12 MONTHS WHEN D&D DISSOLVES. DON'T GO DOWN WITH THE SHIP. the next partners to go are ludwig and garner. both in their mid-60s and both savvy enough to know when its time to jump from a sinking ship. at least one of the the more recently crowned partners is also actively looking to jump, leaving just 6 partners in NYC, none who make any rain.
44, if you're in a position to hire him, my guess is you're not seeing the whole picture.
41 and 47. Are you hiring? haha
41 and 47. Are you hiring? haha
Of course 41 and 47 is "hiring." My guess is that 41/47 is a headhunter injecting negative spin about Sullivan the future of Darby in the hopes of taking a commission.
there are only a few associates and partners left worth their salt anyway--and maybe two or three staff worth anything-the rest are total losers--you dont have to have an ulterior motive to see the sitiuation there and know they are in trouble----joe is a scorpion and sullivan is no better---it should be no surprise when they behave as such----they are brute force with no intelect or humanity
there are only a few associates and partners left worth their salt anyway--and maybe two or three staff worth anything-the rest are total losers--you dont have to have an ulterior motive to see the sitiuation there and know they are in trouble----joe is a scorpion and sullivan is no better---it should be no surprise when they behave as such----they are brute force with no intelect or humanity
My goodness! Who are these people?? "52" talks about people with no intellect yet this person can't even spell the word! No credibility "52" No wonder you feel left out.
a typo doesnt change the facts----this SOB has ruined people's careers and lives simply to cover his own ass or further his own interests--even people who were loyal to him and served him well----he's a scorpion plain and simple and will get what he deserves one day---make no mistake dont trust him and dont be fooled----
55, which people's career has he ruined?? If you make a statement like that why don't you provide some real names and some real evidence. Be a man and identify yourself as someone with credible knowledge of what's going on instead of some disgruntled underachieving employee who has nothing better to do than cast aspersions on others.
A scorpion? He should fit in well with the rest of the gang in Sutherland Asbill.
Frog, toad, and scorpion, indeed.
Hey 44. Boy have you been fooled.
Assuming you are one of one of Asshole's (aka Joe's) clients, let me enlighten you: He has no idea what is going on at all times. He relies solely on his Associate's - who he treats like shit - to do everything, and spends no time on the matters himself (even though he does bill time to the matter).
Asshole actually likes to brag about this fact. You are a sucker.
If you were pleased with the work at Darby, then you should leave the work there because most of the people who were actually doing the good work are still there.
suit yourself 56 -----i stand by what I have said------hes a vindictive prick who will throw anyone including his fellow partners under the bus if he can gain even the slightest advantage for himself----
From IP Law 360:
"McDermott Will & Emery LLP announced Tuesday that it had hired high-tech guru Louis J. DelJuidice,"
High-Tech Guru? LMAO
From IP Law 360:
"McDermott Will & Emery LLP announced Tuesday that it had hired high-tech guru Louis J. DelJuidice,"
High-Tech Guru? LMAO
Hysterical #60. Temperance O My Bothers. Temperance.
Hysterical #60. Temperance O My Brothers. Temperance.
how does one obtain guru status?