April 2012
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Biglaw, Bonuses
Cravath: Your Move On Spring Bonuses
Will Cravath match S&C? Or double it? Or do nothing at all? -
Bankruptcy, Biglaw, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Dissolution, Howrey LLP, Lateral Moves, Law Firm Mergers, Law Firm Names, Musical Chairs, Partner Issues
Dewey Have Any Updates? Some Say Silence Is 'Deafening'
Aside from a report that some partners want criminal charges brought against chairman Steven H. Davis, as noted in Morning Docket, things have been relatively quiet on the Dewey front over the past day or two. Perhaps too quiet, for some people…. - Sponsored
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms. -
Biglaw, Crime, Dewey & LeBoeuf, John Edwards, Morning Docket, Partner Issues, Religion, Sex, Sex Scandals, State Judges, State Judges Are Clowns, Trials, United Kingdom / Great Britain
Morning Docket: 04.27.12
* Dewey get to see a member of this firm’s chairman’s office strut for a perp walk in the near future? After all, partners reportedly say that it’s thanks to him that D&L may close up shop “as early as next week.” [Law360 (sub. req.)]
* De-equitize this: Oh, how Biglaw firms in America wish that they could return to merry old England, where mandatory retirement policies for old fart partners are the norm, and the courts agree. [Legal Week]
* “We’re about to beat a dead horse here.” Even the judge presiding over the John Edwards trial got pissed when the defense repeatedly asked variations of the same question on cross-examination. [MSNBC]
* Ain’t no shame in his game (well, actually, there is). Judge Wade McCree’s lawyer says he’s sure the judge is sorry for his sext messaging. Yeah, sorry he got caught. [Detroit Free Press]
* Is this the first test of the “ministerial exception” in the Perich case? A teacher at a Catholic school was fired for getting in vitro fertilization treatments, and now she’s suing. [CNN]
* Insert your own UVA joke here, bro. Yeardley Love’s family has filed a $30M wrongful death suit against former college lacrosse player, George Huguely V. [Washington Examiner]
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ACLU, Education / Schools, Facebook, Free Speech, Kids, Rank Stupidity, Social Media, Social Networking Websites, Technology
When Will We Stop Punishing Children for Being Children?
The ACLU is defending three teenage girls who were expelled for saying on Facebook that they wanted to kill people. Here's why they shouldn't have been expelled… -
Deaths, Jury Duty, Labor / Employment, Lexis-Nexis, LexisNexis / Lexis-Nexis, Non-Sequiturs, Paul Clement, Sexual Harassment, Suicide, Twittering, Videos
Non-Sequiturs: 04.26.12
* Paul Clement is a beast, is basically what it comes down to. [The Daily Beast] * This is probably the grossest, most pornographic employment discrimination/sexual harassment/defamation lawsuit I’ve seen. Maybe fans of 50 Shades of Grey (affiliate link) might find it compelling. The writing in the lawsuit is probably better… [Courthouse News] * Predictive coding is good. Now it’s bad. Now it’s good. Make up your mind! [Law Technology News] * A touching obituary about a first-year Reed Smith associate who recently took his own life. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette] * Elie was on Fox News late last night (video embed after the jump). He brought the funny. The hosts of the show… not so much. They did bring the racist, though. [Red Eye] * If you ever get in trouble for tweeting or blogging about jury duty, Davis Oscar Markus is the guy to call. [Miami Herald] * LexisNexis recently unveiled its new, ginormous legal e-book library. It’s just like a normal law library, except you don’t have to ask the pesky law librarian for help. [LexisNexis] (Embedded Elie, after the jump.) -
Barack Obama, Quote of the Day, Student Loans
Quote of the Day: And This Makes Us Feel Better How?
President Obama finished paying off his student loans less than a decade ago. That fact isn't exactly comforting… -
Boutique Law Firms, English Grammar and Usage, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: Grammar Police
As lawyers, words are our stock and trade. What is an argument but a collection of ideas, expressed in words, intended to persuade? -
Associate Bonus Watch 2011, Biglaw, Bonuses, Cheapness, Money
Breaking: Sullivan & Cromwell Announces (Paltry) Spring Bonuses
Sullivan & Cromwell has announced spring bonuses. And they're WEAK.... - 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… -
Fat People, Lawsuit of the Day, Minority Issues, Racism
You Can Sue People For Making Fat Jokes About Black People? WHY WASN'T I INFORMED OF THIS???
Hey, hey, hey! Earl Brown, a former AIG lawyer, claims he was discriminated against because his boss kept making Fat Albert jokes about him. -
Attorney Misconduct, Benchslaps, Biglaw, Federal Judges, Kasowitz Benson, Legal Ethics, Litigators, Litigatrix, Partner Issues, Screw-Ups
Greenberg Traurig Gets Dropped By Client After Alleged Misstatement To Court
Did a partner's alleged misstatement cost Greenberg Traurig a client? Or is the partner in question being made into a scapegoat? -
Law Schools, Money, Student Loans, Unemployment
Dear Abby: My Kid's Law School Loans Are Ruining My Life
We’ve discussed the dangers of incurring student loan debt time and time again throughout these pages, but it seems that people still don’t get it. They’ve chosen to go to Dear Abby for the answers…. -
ATL Career Center Survey, Biglaw, Rankings
ATL Survey Update: Shiny Happy Firms
According to our research, which are the happiest Biglaw firms? And the unhappiest? -
Immigration, Paul Clement, SCOTUS, Supreme Court
Immigration Arguments: A Compromise, A Technicality, And A Guy Who Probably Doesn't Need This Junk Anymore
Why does Don Verrilli even want this job?
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Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
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Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
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Biglaw, General Counsel, In-House Counsel, Partner Issues
Inside Straight: How Do You Displace A Competent Incumbent?
In-house columnist Mark Herrmann tackles a tough question: How do you replace a competent incumbent? -
Airplanes / Aviation, Biglaw, Death Penalty, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Drugs, Food, Morning Docket, Nude Dancing, Wal-Mart
Morning Docket: 04.26.12
* Dewey need to take a look at the Biglaw industry in general before more firms implode? Hell yes, says an author who’s written on the economics and management of law firms. [DealBook / New York Times]
* Wal-Mart was served with its first shareholder suit over its alleged bribery scandal, because the only thing on rollback this week is the price of the company’s stock shares. [Reuters]
* Does diplomatic immunity give you a free pass for getting handsy with the maid? Guess we’ll see next week, when a judge rules on DSK’s motion to dismiss his civil suit. [New York Daily News]
* As long as you’ve got money, the TSA will totally look the other way if you’ve got suitcases filled with drugs. Vibrators, on the other hand, are simply out of the question. [Bloomberg]
* As of yesterday, Connecticut became the seventeenth state to kill the death penalty. But not so fast, death row inmates. You still get to die. Isn’t that nice? [CNN]
* Franchise agreements be damned, because even judges can understand that sometimes, you just need to eat a delicious sandwich while you’re getting a lap dance. [KTVN]
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Benchslaps, Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Federal Judges, Intellectual Property, Litigators, Partner Issues, Patents, Screw-Ups, Small Law Firms, Technology
Benchslap of the Day: Leading IP Litigator Gets Taste of 'Pimp Hand'
A prominent IP litigator gets the "pimp hand" from an ALJ. What did superstar Matt Powers allegedly do to earn this rebuke? -
Celebrities, Immigration, LSAT, Non-Sequiturs, Politics, SCOTUS, Supreme Court
Non-Sequiturs: 04.25.12
* With the Supreme Court talking about immigration today, let’s take a look at how all the SCOTUS justices got to America. [Reuters] * In any event, except for Scalia, the Court looks like it’s going to find a reasonable way through the Arizona immigration mess. If you’re detained for something, cops can check your status, but they can’t just go out and ask people to show them their papers on the street. Scalia thinks, I don’t know, he sounds like he thinks we’re still living under the Articles of Confederation or something. [SCOTUSblog] * You know, I think that in the end I don’t have a problem with LSAC raising fees to take the LSAT. I mean, the cost of law school is completely out of control, prospective law students have proven that they’ll pay any price for any thing. Remember I said this when I start charging $500,000 for “Elie’s Pre-Law Seminars,” which is just a DVD of me screaming at a ten-year-old for 30 minutes. [Balkinization] * I don’t ever want to piss Alec Baldwin off. I’m serious. [Dealbreaker] * I’m not sure these ways to stay sane in a “toxic” office would work in a toxic law office. Unless you add liquor. Alcohol lets you go toxic on them! [Forbes] * I love that Rob Portman, the man who inspired a walk-out at Michigan Law’s Commencement, is thought to be a “safe” pick for Romney. But hey, this is the same party that thinks nominating a wealthier Bob Dole against a charismatic president who can keep it in his pants is going to work out for them. [Recess Appointments] -
Advertising, Shameless Plugs, This Is an Ad
Thanks a Bunch to This Week's Advertisers
Above the Law extends its thanks to this week's advertisers. -
Antonin Scalia, Immigration, Paul Clement, Quote of the Day, SCOTUS, Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court
Quote of the Day: Still, It's Not Like You Are Justin Bieber
Solicitor General Donald Verrilli had another rough day in front of the Supreme Court, this time arguing the Arizona immigration law… -
Document Review, State Judges, Technology
Virginia Judge Orders Predictive Coding, Despite Plaintiff Objections. Is This the Start of a New Era?
Is acceptance of predictive coding starting to snowball in the judicial system?