January 2010
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Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 01.05.10
* Well, my resolution to be hopeful about the future of Biglaw in 2010 lasted all of five days. Thanks, Larry Ribstein, I guess I’ll still need to hang onto my Lexapro prescription. [Ideoblog] * Why do lawyers make so much money? Kash and Lat’s cover story for Washingtonian magazine, which addresses this question, is […] -
Eyes of the Law, Harriet Miers, Locke Liddell & Sapp, Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell
The Eyes of the Law: Harriet Miers Gets Sworn In
Our latest Eyes of the Law celebrity sighting involves a household name: former White House counsel and Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers. She may not have succeeded in getting on to the SCOTUS, but apparently she has joined another D.C. institution. We received this tip from a reader yesterday: FWIW…. Just got sworn into the […] - Sponsored
Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The rise of remote work has dramatically reshaped the relationship between Lawyers and Law Firms, see how Scale LLP has taken the steps to get… -
Crime, Guns / Firearms, Murder, Old People, Violence
Las Vegas Shooter Follow-Up
Details continue to roll in about Johnny Lee Wicks, the shooter during yesterday’s gunfight at the Lloyd George U.S. Courthouse in Las Vegas. Apparently Wicks set fire to his own house before heading to the courthouse. ABC News reports: The senior citizen who is being blamed for a Las Vegas courthouse shooting that killed a […]
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Barack Obama, Contests, Dreier, H. Rodgin Cohen, Harvey Miller, Layoffs, Reader Polls, Sonia Sotomayor
ATL Lawyer of the Year: The Nominees
Thanks to everyone who submitted possible nominees for our Lawyer of the Year award. We reviewed your 160+ comments and developed a slate of ten worthy candidates. Before we reveal them, we’ll talk about a few folks we passed over. A number of you suggested Mike Leach, the lawyer turned football coach who was recently […] -
Job Searches, NALP, National Association for Law Placement (NALP), Summer Associates
New NALP Rules Could Be on the Way
If Kanye West talked about this past fall recruiting season, he’d probably say: “Biglaw doesn’t care about the NALP people.” This fall, we saw firms give the suggested 45-day open offer period an extended middle finger. Harvard Law School’s career services dean had to lead a revolt against Sullivan & Cromwell. I even suggested that […] -
Advertising, Career Center, Job Searches, Shameless Plugs, This Is an Ad
Career Center: New Year, New Information
While layoffs dominated the law firm landscape in 2009, the worst of the downsizing seems to be behind us. But it looks like 2010 will be bringing major changes to compensation structures at law firms. Check out the ATL Career Center, powered by Lateral Link , for the latest information about which firms are moving […] -
Asians, China, Education / Schools, Law Schools
At Least You Didn't Go to Law School in China
How do you say schadenfreude in Mandarin? Babel Fish won’t tell me. In fact, Babel Fish doesn’t even have an option to translate German into Mandarin or Cantonese. (I think that’s BS — I’m sure you can get a good schnitzel in Beijing — but that’s beside the point.) Anyway, back to China. The ABA […] -
Associate Bonus Watch 2009, Salary Cuts
Associate Bonus Watch: Dechert Matches, Cuts Salaries in the Boondocks
On Monday, Dechert made its 2009 bonus announcement. It’s a match of the Cravath scale. The Legal Intelligencer reports: Dechert’s bonuses for 2009, though lower than those paid out for 2008, are in line with what market-setting Cravath Swaine & Moore announced in November. In a memo obtained by The Legal Intelligencer, Chairman Barton J. […] - Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 01.05.10
* Is it me or is Justice Scalia running his mouth a lot lately? [ABA Journal] * The Las Vegas courthouse gunman has been identified as a 66-year-old man. [New York Times] * Did you know you could use Twitter to harass lawyers you don’t like? [Legal Blog Watch] * Senator Charles Schumer wants the […]
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Admin, Announcements, Biglaw, Shameless Plugs
ATL Visits the West Coast
In light of the frigid temperatures we’ve been experiencing here in New York, Elie and yours truly have decided to visit sunny Los Angeles this Thursday, January 7. We’ll be doing two events, both of them free and open to the public (and featuring free food): 1. The Future of Big Law: A Debate When: […] -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 01.04.10
* Antonin Scalia listens to Bach while writing opinions. I wonder if he has one of the original recordings of Toccata & Fugue J.P. Stevens smuggled out of Weimar in the 18th Century? [105.9 FM, WQXR] * If you are one of the Elect that has heard organ music oozing out of Scalia’s chambers, you’ll […] -
Akin Gump, Cocaine / Crack, Contests, Drugs, Holidays and Seasons, Reader Polls
ATL Contest: Akin Gump Has the Coolest Holiday Card
Congratulations to Akin Gump, winner of Above the Law’s inaugural holiday card contest. Check out their very funny and clever card over here. The voting wasn’t even close. There were seven entrants, but Akin walked away with over 44 percent of the vote. It was the commenters’ favorite, too: “I work at HayBoo [Haynes and […] -
Goldman Sachs, H. Rodgin Cohen
The Post-Rodge Regime at Sullivan & Cromwell:Meet Joseph Shenker, S&C's New Managing Partner
Today H. Rodgin Cohen officially moves his Subaru into the right-hand lane, making way for Joseph C. Shenker to take the pole position as Sullivan & Cromwell’s new managing partner. Rodge will still be around, but leadership of the firm shifts to Shenker. Both the New York Times and Am Law Daily have marked this […]
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Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
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Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The rise of remote work has dramatically reshaped the relationship between Lawyers and Law Firms, see how Scale LLP has taken the steps to get…
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Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
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Associate Salaries, Salary Freeze
Latham & Watkins: True-Up Raises Are Official
Before the holidays, we reported that Latham & Watkins planned on making a true-up salary raise, putting its associates back on the level they would have been on had Latham never frozen salaries in the first place. Today, Latham made it official. Multiple tipsters tell us the firm just announced its 2010 salary structure: It […] -
Crime, Guns / Firearms, Murder, Violence
Breaking: Shooting at Federal Courthouse in Las Vegas
A deputy U.S. marshal and a court security officer were shot this morning when a gunman opened fire in the lobby of the Lloyd D. George Federal Courthouse in Las Vegas. The gunman was shot in the head and killed near the courthouse. The identity of the shooter and possible motives for the shooting are […] -
Associate Bonus Watch 2009, Salary Cuts, Salary Freeze, Venable
A Bonus, A Salary Thaw, A Salary Freeze -- It's All Possible at Venable
We all know that Venable is a “wacky” place to work. But is the firm also cheap? Last week, the firm announced its 2010 salary structure. It’s almost like Venable looked at all the different ways firms are handling salaries and decided to try all of them, at the same time. The firm-wide memo from […] -
Law Shucks, Layoffs
Last Year in Layoffs
While I was off sampling eggnog from all across the land, Law Shucks was busy crunching numbers. To no one’s surprise, it turns out that 2009 was a very difficult year for those trying to hang onto Biglaw jobs: 2009 will go down as the worst year ever for law-firm layoffs. More people were laid […] -
Arnold & Porter, Salary Freeze
Nationwide Salary Thaw: Arnold & Porter
Ed. note: An earlier version of this post incorrectly stated that the firm has not yet communicated to its associates about salaries. This was correct as of late December, but shortly before the new year, the firm made its announcement. We have amended the post accordingly, and we apologize for the error. It’s a brand […] -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket 01.04.10
* Happy 2010. Welcome back to work. We read the New York Times on Sunday so you wouldn’t have to. [Above The Law] * Judge Ricardo Urbina throws out the baby with the Blackwater because of the DOJ’s overzealousness. [Washington Post] * Patricia Cohen, the ex-wife of the hedge fund billionaire Steven A. Cohen, swapped […]
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Antonin Scalia, Books, English Grammar and Usage, Jeffrey Rosen, John Yoo, Media and Journalism, New York Times, Real Estate, Torture, Wall Street
In Today's New York Times
If you happen to be on the frigid East Coast today, currently experiencing the coldest temperatures of the season, grab yourself a cup of cocoa and a copy of the Sunday New York Times. The NYT often has articles of interest to a legal audience, but this weekend’s edition has an especially high number of […]