What's Going On At Dickstein Shapiro?(Plus a leaked severance agreement.)

Plummeting profits, defecting partners, and layoffs of associates and staff -- is this firm in trouble?

This isn’t the first time we’ve posted a law firm severance agreement. Back in 2008, we posted the Paul Hastings contract, after laid-off associate Shinyung Oh included it as an attachment to her epic departure memo. She wasn’t a fan of that severance agreement: “As for your request for a release, non-disclosure, and non-disparagement agreement in return for three months’ pay, I reject it. Unlike you, I am not just a paid mouthpiece with no independent judgment. I will decide how and to whom to communicate how you have treated me.”

So here’s the Dickstein Shapiro severance agreement (which was sent to us with dates already redacted to protect source confidentiality). Some highlights:

  • The firm allows the layoff victim to work at the firm on an “at will” basis for a certain period of time, up until the “Departure Date.”
  • The layoff victim gets access to the “career transition counseling services” of SJL Shannon for three months.
  • When the “at will” period elapses with the arrival of the “Departure Date,” the lawyer gets six weeks of severance pay (a bit on the low side by itself, but note that we don’t know the length of the “at will” period that precedes it, due to the redacted dates).
  • The firm will generously “permit you to voluntarily resign effective on the Departure Date, rather than be terminated.”
  • And that “voluntary resignation” won’t harm your ability to claim unemployment, since the firm agrees to “not contest unemployment compensation should you choose to file for it.”

I’m not an employment lawyer, so I’m sure I’ve missed a lot here. What do you notice? Read the full severance agreement below, then share your observations in the comments.

DICKSTEIN SHAPIRO — SEVERANCE AGREEMENT

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Sponsored

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Sponsored

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‘We’re Not Going to be Everything to Everyone,’ Dickstein Chairman Says [Legal Times]

Earlier: Which Firm Had The Most Lateral Hires (And Partner Defections) In 2013?
The Biglaw Firms With The Highest Partner Billing Rates
Nationwide Layoff Watch: Negative News From New York and D.C.
Dickstein Shapiro: It Was the Best of Times, It Was the Worst of Times
Breaking: A Dramatic Farewell Email (And proof of Paul Hastings layoffs.)

Scissors Cut Money

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