Above the Law’s 2010 Lawyer of the Year contest is now over. Thanks to everyone who nominated a lawyer; thanks to our finalists, for being such accomplished and interesting individuals; and thanks to all the voters, who picked our victor. Here are ATL’s past Lawyers of the Year: 2007: Loyola 2L 2008: President Barack Obama […]
Please note the headline says “new” evidence. It does not say “good” or “credible” or “definitive” evidence. That’s because the evidence doesn’t really fall into any of those categories. In fact, the headline could have read “F. Lee Bailey Evades Caretakers, Gets to Internet Before Somebody Stops Him.” But whatever, former Dream Team (and now […]
Explore the mindset, cultural shifts, and training strategies that define the AI‑savvy lawyer, revealing why human judgment, standardized competence, and integrated learning—not technology alone—will shape the future of the profession.
It’s like Formula One. You want to see the car crash. We like to go to Rockefeller Center to watch the ice-skaters fall. — Carol Barbeiro, a lawyer, on why she went to see Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, the ill-fated, accident-prone Broadway musical. (Her boyfriend added: “She wants to see blood.”)
Nothing depresses me more than when bad things happen in the Caribbean (except for Haiti, ’cause I’m used to it, or Cuba, because they get better health care than we do). Especially during the winter months, I like to imagine that I could leave every material possession behind and move to the Caribbean and find […]
After a year like 2009 (aka the worst year ever for Biglaw), 2010 was bound to be better. According to the nearly 1,000 survey responses we received, 2010 did in fact turn out to be a busier year for most associates. An impressive 73% of respondents hit their firm’s minimum billable hours requirements or unofficial […]
The new U.S. News law school rankings are due out in March. And according to rankings guru Bob Morse, the publication is considering giving numerical rankings to the third-tier law schools. This would be a big change. For those unfamiliar with the law school rankings (and if you are unfamiliar with the rankings, you must […]
LexisNexis sat down with John Ursin, Managing Partner at Schenck Price, to learn how the firm is using legal AI to strengthen client service and daily legal work.
* Judy Clarke, counsel to Jared Lee Loughner, is known as the “One-Woman Dream Team.” Here’s to hoping the prosecution doesn’t get played like Frédéric Weis. [USA Today] * There is a time when the operation of the merger becomes so odious… plaintiff’s attorneys have got to put their bodies upon the gears and upon […]
Right now the legal world is abuzz about an essay published over the weekend in the Wall Street Journal by Amy Chua, a prominent (and pulchritudinous) professor at Yale Law School. The essay’s title, Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior, pretty much says it all. The piece is based on Chua’s new book, Battle Hymn of […]
Being a federal prosecutor is a great legal job, but it has its downsides. One of them, at least for me, was the anonymity. In your work as an assistant U.S. attorney, it’s not about you; it’s about the merits of the cases, and seeing that justice is done. That’s public-spirited and all, but it’s […]
* Tom DeLay gets sentenced to three years. [WSJ Law Blog] * If we want to ban threatening speech against Congresspeople, what will we really be banning? [Volokh Conspiracy] * Apparently my final solution on guns could lead to the well-regulated militia rising up. [First One @ One First] * Maybe it isn’t impossible to […]
Law firms and legal departments are writing the future of the profession in separate rooms. What happens when they actually work together?
If you thought that obsessing about money and feeling underpaid and underappreciated when it comes to your compensation stops once you become a Biglaw partner, think again. Am Law Daily reports on a new study done by Major Lindsey & Africa. The study shows that 61% of partners think they should be paid more. Oh, […]
Above the Law’s second annual holiday card contest was a great success. Thanks to everyone who responded to our call for nominations, thanks to the finalists who created such great holiday cards, and thanks to all the voters. The campaigning was vigorous. And the final winner actually wasn’t one of the two firms that was […]
I’m on record as thinking that it’s inappropriate to blame Sarah Palin or any other source of fiery political rhetoric for the horrific shooting that took place in Tucson on Saturday. I said it in real time as facts were coming to light; I said it on Twitter. There are any number of reasons why […]
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Inside Straight, Above the Law’s new column for in-house counsel, written by Mark Herrmann. I like what Steven Harper’s doing these days. After 30 years at Kirkland & Ellis, he retired from the fray, and he now comments on big law firms from an outsider’s perspective, at […]
I can’t count all the lawyers who say their firms have organized remedial classes for all the associates who can’t write. — William Fitzhugh, publisher of The Concord Review, a quarterly journal of exemplary high school research papers.