Uh-Oh! Super-Rich Biglaw Firm Is Trimming Its Ranks

Which law firm is trying to reduce headcount this time?

onOctober 9, 2015 at 1:01 PMOctober 13, 2015 at 9:31 PM

We’ve just entered the fourth quarter of the year, and for the past three weeks, we’ve covered law firm layoffs. By now, it’s obvious that law firms across the country — no matter what their size — are struggling when it comes to their litigation practices, and they’re doing everything they can to stave off potential financial ruin.

It seems that even top-tier law firms are having trouble these days, and we know this because the richest firm in the country is now attempting to trim its ranks in an effort to manage expenses and remain profitable through the end of the year.

We’ve received word that Latham & Watkins, a firm whose revenue surged to $2.6 billion in 2014, propelling it to the number one slot in the latest Am Law 100 rankings, is offering voluntary buyout packages to all legal secretaries in its Orange County office. According to a source, the firm began making these offers earlier this week, on October 5.

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Latham’s Orange County office has the highest staff to associate ratio of all its offices, so that’s likely the reason why the buyouts began there. We’ve heard that the firm will offer 1.5 weeks of pay for every year a secretary has been with the firm, as well as one year of paid COBRA benefits. Another source described the packages as “generous,” as some secretaries have been employed with the firm for 35-40 years. We reached out to the firm for confirmation, but haven’t heard back yet. We’ll update this post if and when we do.

Legal secretaries at the firm’s Orange County office should probably think about taking the money and running instead of tempting fate. After all, it’s better to self-Latham than to be a victim of the Lathaming that’s perhaps to come further down the line.

Do you have any additional details on what’s going on at Latham? Drop us a line. We wish all of the legal professionals who may be affected at Latham & Watkins the best of luck while they seek new job opportunities in the legal industry and beyond.

If your firm or organization is reducing the ranks of its lawyers or staff, whether through open layoffs, stealth layoffs, or voluntary buyouts, please don’t hesitate to let us know. Our vast network of tipsters is part of what makes Above the Law thrive — we’ll never ignore you. You can email us or text us (646-820-8477). Thank you very much!