November 2010
-
Job Searches, Public Interest
Columbia Students Take to the Streets Sign Petition Over Public Interest Opportunities
As T-Fifty wisely noted this morning, getting a public interest legal job is a lot harder than it looks. You can’t spend two years of law school trying to get Biglaw to notice you, and only turn on your public interest charm after Biglaw rejects you. You can’t treat public interest jobs like the ugly […] -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 11.30.10
* Some tips for people who need to look older so potential employers and clients will take them seriously. Or you could actually live a little and let nature do her thing. [Corporette] * Law as a business will survive this recession. Law as a profession probably won’t, not at the prices these law schools […] - Sponsored
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm. -
Biglaw, Intellectual Property, Musical Chairs, Partner Issues
Is Nixon Peabody Facing a Mutiny? Significant Partner Defections Could Happen
We know that most Biglaw shops couldn’t care less about mass associate departures. As exhibit A, I present this year’s bonus news. But partner defections are another matter entirely — especially if a number of partners leave all at once, or if a thriving practice group jumps ship all at the same time. According to […]
-
Harold Koh, State Department
WikiLeaks Gives Diplomats Headaches and Lawyers Work
WikiLeaks worships at the shrine of rabid transparency. And it does not just sacrifice government documents to the transparency gods; founder Julian Assange tells my Forbes colleague Andy Greenberg that corporate America is the site’s next big target. A big bank is going down, says Assange. Greenberg thinks it might be Bank of America. Dealbreaker […] -
Advertising, Fashion, Fashion Is Fun, Shameless Plugs, This Is an Ad
Proper Cloth Offers 20% Discount to ATL Readers
The holiday season is always a good time to start thinking about a new wardrobe. If you’ve ever seen us on television you know the Above the Law crew could use a little upgrade. But since bonuses are low this year, we know that people might need a little extra help when putting together appropriate […] -
A. Raymond Randolph, Department of Justice, Federal Government, Merrick Garland, Neil Gorsuch, SCOTUS, Solicitor General's Office, Supreme Court, William Fletcher
Congratulations to the 2011 Bristow Fellows
Federal government lawyers are having their pay frozen. But let’s face it: you don’t don’t go into government service for the money. You might do it for the experience. You might do it for the lifestyle. And, depending on the position, you might do it for the prestige. Someone once said to me, “You can’t […] -
Gay, Quote of the Day, Religion, Richard Posner, Sex
Quote of the Day: Judge Posner Upsets the Gays
The problem of priests’ sexually molesting boys would be solved if priests were allowed to marry and if women could be priests, because then the priesthood would attract fewer homosexuals. — Judge Richard Posner, in a recent post on The Becker-Posner Blog. -
Advertising, Biglaw, Career Center, Floyd Abrams, Partner Issues, Shameless Plugs, This Is an Ad
Career Center Survey Results: Top Partners to Work For - New York (Part 1)
With all the negative press surrounding partners lately — see, e.g., here and here — it’s about time for some good news, about good partners. Last month we asked you to nominate the best partners you work for, tell us why they are the best, and rate them in six categories: expertise within the practice […] - Sponsored
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms. -
Job Searches, Law Schools, LLMs, No Offers, Recovery
Double Down
Ed. Note: Will the Lost Generation ever find its way back into Biglaw? This new column is written by a member of the Lost Generation who initially was thrown off of the Biglaw bandwagon but was able to get back on, and is now trying to hang on to his Biglaw second chance. By the […] -
Biglaw, Partner Issues, Partner Profits
Small Class Sizes, Partner De-Equitization, and Increased Profits on the Biglaw Horizon
First the good news. American Lawyer surveyed managing partners at Am Law 200 firms and 80% of them said they were optimistic (“somewhat” or “very optimistic”) about the future profitability of Biglaw firms. The bad news? An ever shrinking group of people will experience the benefits that future. Managing partners are feeling good because they […] -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 11.30.10
* A Spanish woman has claimed ownership of the sun. Similarly, my father would womanize, he would drink. He would make outrageous claims like he invented the question mark. [Daily Mail] * Yesterday, Eric Holder said that the Justice Department was conducting a “very serious” investigation into insider trading on Wall Street. Rachael Ray’s going […]
-
Law Schools, Reader Polls, Student Loans
Should You Drop Out of Law School: The Sequel. A 1L Wants Your Advice.
Lat and I have already had a spirited debate about whether or not a 2L should drop out of law school. Predictably, Lat argued that the 2L should stick with it, while I extolled the virtues of running away and quitting. And the readers weighed in too: 66% of you said that the 2L should […] -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 11.29.10
* Law firms that overwork their employees have higher turnover of employees. I’m sure law firms would care about this if the supply of fresh lawyers wasn’t seemingly limitless. [Going Concern] * This is why in-house bonuses should be higher than the “don’t let the door hit you on the way out” bonuses Biglaw is […]
Sponsored
Sponsored
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
If 2023 introduced legal professionals to generative AI, then 2024 will be when law firms start adapting to utilize it. Things are moving fast, so…
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…
Sponsored
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms.
Sponsored
Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use.
Sponsored
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm.
-
Plaintiffs Firms, Quote of the Day, Vermin / Rodents / Pests, Washington Post
Quote of the Day: Finally, A Practice Area That's Growing
Potential clients keep contacting me, almost daily. I’m going to have to take my number off our Web site. — Maryland lawyer Daniel Whitney of Whitney & Bogris, aka “the bedbug attorney,” in an interview with the Washington Post. -
Biglaw, In-House Counsel
Inside Straight: Vive La Différence, Part II
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Inside Straight, Above the Law’s new column for in-house counsel, written by Mark Herrmann. Which lawyers are important at large law firms? Let’s set aside for a moment the guy who controls the tickets to the loge at the Lakers’ games, and think more generally. Who matters […] -
Associate Bonus Watch 2010, Bonuses, Job Survey, Money, Small Law Firms, Solo Practitioners
(Hopefully Not Very) Small Law Firm Bonuses: Time for a Reader Survey
While Biglaw types may or may not have had something to be thankful for over the holiday weekend, many small firm lawyers were feeling the Thanksgiving love via the SoloSez list serve. There were numerous magnanimous emails coming through about what small firm lawyers are thankful for. I found myself wondering whether these warm-and-fuzzy feelings […] -
Clerkships, Department of Justice, Federal Government, Money, Salary Freeze, Wall Street
Federal Lawyers: Hope You'll Still Enjoy Your 2010 Salary in 2012
There was a time in this country where the holiday season was a time to be rewarded for a good year of work. People received bonuses. People received pay raises, so their salaries could keep pace with their growing experience and maturity (or at least keep up with inflation). The America where that kind of […] -
Associate Bonus Watch 2010, Biglaw, Bonuses, Money
Associate Bonus Watch: Weil Will Match
The latest firm to announce that it’s matching the market — which, at the current time, is embodied in the Cravath bonus scale — is Weil Gotshal. According to the memo, from executive partner Barry Wolf, Weil associates “will be paid 2010 bonuses that are commensurate with bonuses paid by peer firms.” We assume this […] -
Biglaw, Citigroup, David Boies, Jed Rakoff, Layoffs, Litigators, Litigatrix, Pregnancy / Paternity, Trials
The Boies Schiller Three: An Update
It’s time for a brief postscript on one of this month’s juicier (and well-trafficked) stories: the dismissal of three women associates from litigation powerhouse Boies Schiller. We have a few additional tidbits that we can share with you. But this is probably the last story we’ll be doing on this drama, since we don’t expect […] -
Biglaw, Billable Hours, Partner Profits, Staff Layoffs
Staff Layoffs Could Happen as Firms Struggle to Pump Up Profits
Welcome back from your long weekend. I trust everybody is ready to put in a lot of hard work through the holiday season in order to finish the year off strong. Ah, what’s the point? Based on the early bonus news, it seems that Biglaw managers are going to go with stingy bonus payments for […]