February 2010
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Craigslist, Crime, Rape
A Reason Not To Respond To Rape Fantasy Ads on Craigslist
We’re big fans of Craigslist here at Above the Law, especially the ridiculous job postings and lawyerly missed connections. But the site has a dark side too. A “forced connection” in December has led two men to be charged with rape. Ty Oliver McDowell, a medical technologist, thought he was fulfilling a Wyoming woman’s “rape […] -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket 02.16.10
* Bloomberg files a lawsuit to crack the Fed’s secrecy. “It’s like what it was like 30 years ago. Back in the days when journalism was exciting — really exciting,” said Amanda Bennett, Bloomberg’s investigations editor. [New York Times] * Perhaps under pressure from Mike Ghaffary and his BarMax iPhone app, BarBri changes its policy. […]
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Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 02.15.10
* Once again, First Amendment crusader Marc Randazza — who successfully represented Above the Law in Jones v. Minkin — comes to the defense of a besieged blogger. [Simple Justice] * Kevin Smith v. Southwest Airlines: the film director (pictured) and the airline duke it out in the court of public opinion, concerning Smith’s getting […]
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Health Care / Medicine, Quote of the Day
Quote of the Day: Too Much of a Good Thing?
We should worry about too many lawyers. — Dr. Robert M. D’Alessandri, president and dean of the new Commonwealth Medical College in Scranton, Pennsylvania, responding to the suggestion that opening more medical schools might lead to a glut of doctors. -
Education / Schools, Kenneth Starr, Law School Deans, Law Schools
Musical Chairs: Ken Starr Stepping Down as Pepperdine Law Dean
We heart Kenneth Starr. Aside from his platinum-plated résumé — Supreme Court clerkship, D.C. Circuit judgeship, service as Solicitor General — Starr brought us the most entertaining political scandal ever: the Monica Lewinsky affair. Don’t you long for a return to the pre-9/11, pre-Iraq / Afghanistan War, pre-Great Recession days, when our nation’s greatest worry […] -
Layoffs, Severance
Nationwide Layoff Watch: Drinker Biddle
Last year witnessed a Valentine’s Day Massacre in the legal profession. Over 800 lawyers and staffers lost their jobs in the week leading up to V-Day. This year, the week before Valentine’s Day was comparatively full of sweetness and light — totally appropriate for the holiday of love. In fact, it looked like last week […] -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket 02.15.10
Happy Presidents Day. We’ll be on a reduced publication schedule today. (And Elie is on vacation this week.) * The KSM trial is forcing attorney general Eric Holder to adjust his “political antennae.” [New York Times and The New Yorker] * Law students like mock trials but don’t want to get involved in the real […]
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Admin, Announcements, Travel / Vacation
Vacation Memo: Elie's Annual Winter Gambling Extravaganza
Last year at this time, I took a winter break to visit sunny Las Vegas. Everything went well until a drunk Irishman pushed all in with A-Q, against my A-K wired. He flopped a queen, two days’ worth of winnings evaporated, and I tried to commit suicide via the MGM Grand lion enclosure. This year, […] - Sponsored
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Job Searches, Law Schools, Pictures
Talk About a Frozen Job Market
Some students at Brooklyn Law School seem a bit frustrated by their job prospects. So they constructed this, outside one of the residence halls…. UPDATE: We’ve added a second, better photo of what the BLS students built, also after the jump. -
Law Shucks, Layoffs
This Week in Layoffs: 02.13.10
Ed. note: Above the Law has teamed up with Law Shucks, which has done excellent work translating all of the layoff news into user-friendly charts and graphs: the Layoff Tracker. In celebration of this law-firm-layoff-free week, we’re taking a break from reporting on the US government’s published unemployment numbers. We found something far more interesting […] -
Holidays and Seasons, Romance and Dating, Sex, Weddings
Valentine's Day Advice from Above the Law
The legal blogosphere has been shot in the heart with Cupid’s arrow. Here at Above the Law, we’re turning into matchmakers. The Texas Lawyer is telling us about lawyers in love. Am Law Daily is profiling Biglaw power couples. And Avvo has a guide to dating lawyers, claiming that you lawyerly types are a hot […] -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 02.12.10
* Dr. Dre is suing Death Row Records. I wish Eazy-E were alive to see this. [Pitchfork] * Lanny Davis, who recently moved from Orrick to McDermott Will & Emery, has started a crisis management blog. I have a question: “Dear Lanny: There’s an intern here at the Above the Law offices, and, well … […] -
New York Times, Reader Polls, Weddings
Legal Eagle Wedding Watch: Couple of the Year Finals
Semifinal voting for Legal Eagle Couple of the Year is over, and we’re frankly stunned by the couples you picked to move on to the finals. In Pool One, two Harvard Law grads — the number-three seed — beat two sets of Yale Law grads, one with twin Supreme Court clerkships. In Pool Two, you […]
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Associate Salaries, Salary Freeze
Update: Sidley Austin (Finally) Announces Salaries
Sidley Austin associates, never underestimate the power of flipping out. Earlier today, we reported that Sidley Austin associates hit the proverbial roof (“proverbial roof” = hit send button on emails to Above the Law) when Winston & Strawn announced its salary structure (which we reported even earlier today). The Winston announcement, coupled with the fact […] -
pls hndle thx, Romance and Dating, Weddings
Pls Hndle Thx: A Life Settlement
Ed. note: Have a question for next week? Send it in to advice@abovethelaw.com. ATL, With Valentine’s Day coming up, do you think there is any merit to the argument that people should settle when they are trying to find a mate? Is there particular merit to this claim as to (busy) attorneys? Litigate or Settle […] -
Associate Salaries, Salary Freeze
Another Frozen Pay Check from Sidley
After we published news of Winston & Strawn’s salary freeze, our Sidley Austin tipsters went apoplectic. A Facebook message I received moments after publishing the Winston news seems to sum up the mood of Sidley associates: My firm [Sidley] is more like Winston than it is like a good firm. I should have gone to […] -
Courtship Connection, Romance and Dating
Getting Back Together with ATL Courtship Connections(Calling all single New York lawyers....)
Way back when, in 2008, we talked about starting a little something called ATL Courtship Connections. We know there are a lot of lonely lawyers out there, and we wanted to do our part to throw you together and see what happens. Unfortunately, over the last year, we’ve been more focused on lawyers getting laid […] -
Divorce Train Wrecks, Fashion, Religion, Romance and Dating
False Advertising Meets Sharia Law
Think back to first-year contracts class, specifically, discussion of the U.C.C. and non-conforming goods. Then check out this article, from BBC News: An Arab country’s ambassador to Dubai has had his marriage contract annulled after discovering the bride was cross-eyed and had facial hair. The woman had worn an Islamic veil, known as the niqab, […] -
Associate Salaries, Salary Freeze
At Winston: Double Salary Freeze is On, But Rates Set to Rise
Another salary shoe has fallen in Chicago. Winston & Strawn froze salaries last year, and they are doing it again this year. A tipster reports: Chicago received salary memos yesterday; DC just received salary memos today – All are individualized with no general pay scale included – just the recipient’s salary information. Based on conversations […] -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 02.12.10
* President Obama will personally get into the debate about where to hold the Khalid Sheik Mohammed terror trial. [Washington Post] * New York State Senator Hiram Monserrate will sue the State Senate for ousting him. [Daily News] * The man in charge of shutting down the government. [New York Times] * As Congress tries […]