August 2012
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Biglaw, In-House Counsel, Partner Issues, Partner Profits
Inside Straight: Do Law Firms Undervalue Good Lawyering?
A partner at a major law firm shares his thoughts on business development with one of our in-house columnists, Mark Herrmann. -
Antitrust, Biglaw, Canada, Crime, Facebook, Federal Judges, FTC, Law Schools, Morning Docket, Perverts, Romance and Dating, Ursula Ungaro, Violence
Morning Docket: 08.23.12
* Little known fact of the day: the late comedienne Phyllis Diller apparently had a storybook romance with Paul Hastings name partner, Robert Hastings. She once said that her longtime Biglaw beau was the “love of [her] life.” [Am Law Daily]
* The Federal Trade Commission has closed its antitrust review of Facebook’s proposed Instagram purchase, clearing the way for the social networking site’s users to post grainy pictures to their hearts’ content. [Bloomberg]
* A former Vancouver lawyer serving a 15-year sentence for money laundering claims that one of the Mounties who investigated his case played a game of “hide the Canadian bacon” with Judge Ursula Ungaro. [Province]
* A judge who resigned in April has been retroactively removed from office for admitting to having sexual contact with his five-year-old niece. He presided over family court matters. Figures. [New York Law Journal]
* Which accomplishments and activities should you leave off your résumé? A) law review editor in chief; B) second in the class; C) 4.05 GPA; D) nonprofit executive director; E) child porn aficionado. [Willamette Week]
* Stabbing your lawyer is so last season. Another criminal defendant reportedly attacked his defense attorney in court, but this time chose to whack his own counsel in the head with his handcuffed hand. [Boston Globe]
- Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
Boutique Law Firms, Fabulosity, Gay, Madonna, Music, Videos, YouTube
Strike a Pose: Meet the Attorney Behind That Fabulous Madonna Bar Mitzvah Dance Video
We chat with the attorney who starred in the viral Madonna bar mitzvah video. He is fabulous.
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Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 08.22.12
* Bill Cosby is worried that his likeness will be misappropriated after he dies. But it seems to me like the “Pull Your Pants Up Pudding Pops” will be a great use of his name. [Slate] * John Peter Green’s definition of legitimate rape is now in the Washington Post. [Washington Post] * Oklahoma school dress code bars people from wearing the apparel of out of state colleges and universities. This makes sense, the only reason most people live in Oklahoma is because they don’t have the option to live anywhere else. [Legal Blog Watch] * My only issue with these Gawker unemployment stories is that we don’t know enough about how the people ended up unemployed to begin with. For instance, the “pedigreed lawyer” profiled here claims him lost his job in 2010. But in Biglaw most of the recession based layoffs occurred in 2009. Sure, maybe the guy was stealth laid off, but there could have been a reason for that beyond the generally poor state of the economy. [Gawker] * Is maternity leave getting shorter? Or are women trying to “have it all” more amenable to working through maternity leave? I’ll tell you one guy who won’t be working through his paternity leave. [Adjunct Law Prof Blog] * You know what would be a lot easier than trying to stop “Sweepstakes Cafes”? Legalizing gambling. [WSJ Law Blog] -
Headhunters / Recruiters, In-House Counsel, Job Searches
House Rules: Finding Mary Poppins
What can a talented recruiter do for your job search? A lot, explains in-house columnist David Mowry. -
Celebrities, Quote of the Day
Quote of the Day: U Rich, Bro?
Lifestyles of the rich and, well, rich... -
Animal Law, UVA Law
UVA Law Tries To Attract More Law Students With Honey Than With Collars
UVA Law has a bee infestation. But bees are kind of cute, so it's really not that gross... -
Biglaw, Cold Offers, Layoffs, No Offers, Summer Associates
Nationwide Layoff and No-Offer Watch: Winston & Strawn
We're hearing reports of stealth layoffs and no-offers for summer associates at Winston & Strawn. What are the numbers looking like? - Sponsored
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms. -
Federal Government, Lawsuit of the Day, Sexism, Sexual Harassment
ICE Official's Suit Is Littered With Allegations of His Superior's 'Sexually Offensive Behavior' and 'Frat House-Type' Antics
How can the chief of staff of a federal agency allegedly turn her office into a frat house? Check out this complaint and find out... -
Advertising, Shameless Plugs, This Is an Ad
Thanks to This Week's Advertisers
Above the Law thanks its advertisers. -
Biglaw, Music, Videos, YouTube
Departure Memo of the Day: Boyz To Traurig
A Greenberg Traurig associate leaves the firm, but says it's so hard to say goodbye... -
Law Schools, Ohio State - Moritz College of Law, Videos
Law Students Continue to Be Flummoxed By Their Lockers
Are you a "dullard" if you can't open your locker during law school? -
Law Professors, Law Schools
Prospective Student Pesters And Annoys Yale Faculty
A prospective law student's overzealous networking culminates in a rebuke from Yale Law School.
Sponsored
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
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Bankruptcy, Biglaw, Blank Rome, Breasts, Deaths, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Howrey LLP, Litigators, Money, Morning Docket, Murder, Rape
Morning Docket: 08.22.12
* Dewey know how much it costs to keep this failed firm on life support while its remaining partners try to collect D&L’s unpaid bills? A little more than $2M a month, according to the latest reports. [WSJ Law Blog]
* Former Missouri senators — including two Am Law 200 partners — are asking begging Rep. Todd Akin to step aside so the Republicans chances of securing the Senate seat aren’t legitimately raped. [Am Law Daily]
* Howrey going to explain this one to the judge? The defunct firm is blaming a deadly forklift accident at a document-storage warehouse for hindering its wind-down process. [Bankruptcy Beat / Wall Street Journal]
* “No matter what they said, it’s not material? Is that what you’re alleging?” It figures that a Skadden partner argued that employment statistics were irrelevant in the fraud class action suit against Brooklyn Law School, but at least the judge attempted to set him straight. [National Law Journal]
* Alaska is suing to overturn federal oversight of its elections, because the portions of the VRA aimed at protecting African Americans aren’t applicable if you can see Russia from your house. [Chicago Tribune]
* An official at ICE is suing because his boss, a woman, allegedly “created a frat house-type atmosphere that is targeted to humiliate and intimidate male employees.” Pledging totally sucks, bro. [New York Times]
* Psst, we think we know what Victoria’s secret is, and she’s no angel. According to police, she’s got a very bad temper, and if you deny her money for booze, she may strangle you to death with her bra. [Daily Mail]
* Jerome Richter, former Blank Rome litigation department chairman, RIP. [Philadelphia Inquirer]
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California, Federal Judges, Intellectual Property, Jury Duty, Patents, Technology, Trials
Dispatch from Apple v. Samsung Closing Statements: The World is Watching
Chris Danzig attended closing arguments in Apple v. Samsung. The day did not disappoint, with stellar performances by top lawyers from Morrison & Foerster, Quinn Emanuel, and WilmerHale. -
7th Circuit, Ann Althouse, Benchslaps, D.C. Circuit, Election 2012, Eugene Volokh, Free Speech, Non-Sequiturs, Politics, Rape
Non-Sequiturs: 08.21.12
* “Kanye West, Kelly Clarkson, and Nietzsche (figuratively) walk into the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Hilarity ensues.” [FindLaw] * The EPA gets benchslapped by the D.C. Circuit. [Instapundit] * What can law firms learn from… the Cheesecake Factory? Besides how to make people fat; Biglaw’s already great at that. [Adam Smith, Esq.] * If you enjoy gambling or legal hypotheticals, check this out. [Legal Blog Watch] * Professor Eugene Volokh examines the tricky tension between constitutionally protected speech and laws against blackmail. [Volokh Conspiracy] Professor Ann Althouse * Professor Howard Wasserman grades Representative Todd Akin’s apology for his “legitimate rape” remarks — and gives the congressman partial credit for “owning” it. [PrawfsBlawg] * Meanwhile, Professor Ann Althouse wonders: “Would the Democrats oust one of their own because he said one thing wrong?” [Althouse] * Don’t forget: tonight is the nomination deadline for our Lawyerly Lairs contest for the best law firm offices in America. [Above the Law] * Our commenting platform, Disqus, is having issues — which may explain why comments are mysteriously disappearing from the site. We apologize for the problem, which we are investigating. [Disqus] -
Family Law, Kids, Reality TV, Television
Convicted Felon Battling Estranged Wife Over Daughter's Fake Boobs and Butt in Custody Battle
Toddlers & Tiaras makes another appearance in the courts, this time in an epic custody battle... -
Abortion, Election 2012, Law Schools, Rape
The Legal Definition of 'Legitimate' Rape
A second-year law student is credited with the definition of "legitimate rape." Where does he go to school, and what does his definition look like? -
Law Professors, Law Schools, Money, Quote of the Day
Quote of the Day: If Law Students Took Data Into Account, We'd Be Living in a Different World
A law school scholarship isn't just free money when it's conditioned on merit. -
Biglaw, Heller Ehrman, Jack Abramoff, Money, Partner Issues, Partner Profits
Commendable Candor from Greenberg Traurig
Greenberg Traurig's CEO opens up on a variety of subjects, ranging from the firm's recent capital call to the measures it has taken to respond to prior scandals.