Faegre & Benson Layoff Update: Firm Denies, Associates Disagree

Yesterday, we reported on Thanksgiving week layoffs at Faegre & Benson. Our sources reported that between six and ten people were let go from just before the holiday.
The firm responded after our post went up. Faegre & Benson spokespeople denied that the firm laid anybody off:

Faegre & Benson did not lay off any associates last week. We did, as announced to Above the Law at the time, reduce our lawyer headcount in February 2009.

But associates we’ve spoken with still claim that they were, in fact, laid off last week.
Notes from our sources after the jump.


When we informed one of our tipsters that the firm denied that they laid anybody off, the tipster had this to say:

[GTFO]. I haven’t been laid off? Great! I’ll make sure to let them know that when my severance runs out.

Another source sent us this unsolicited email about Faegre after our post went up:

I think the “layoffs” at Faegre & Benson are terminations for cause. It’s eval time. Last time around we got a lot of info about the cuts. There’s nothing being said by management now. Of course, it begs the question, are they layoffs disguised as terminations for cause?

Sponsored

Does that help explain the discrepancy between the reports from our sources and the official statement from the firm?
We asked Faegre spokespeople to specifically respond to the claim that associates were terminated “for cause” right before Thanksgiving, but the firm redirected us back to their original statement denying that “layoffs” took place last week.
Is it possible that there is an honest miscommunication between Faegre and some of its associates? We’ll continue to cover this story if additional details emerge.
Earlier: Nationwide Layoff Watch: Faegre & Benson Gobbled Up Some Associates for Thanksgiving

Sponsored