Kashmir Hill & David Lat
Posts by Kashmir Hill & David Lat
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9/11, Deferral Stipend, Start Dates
Sidley Austin's Plans for 2010 Law School Grads(Plus another testimonial about Brian Schroeder.)
The big news out of Sidley Austin today involves Brian Schroeder, a 2009 Harvard Law School graduate who recently turned himself in for setting fire to a chapel housing the remains of 9/11 victims. Earlier today, the firm told ATL it was rescinding Schroeder’s job offer. But there are other developments at Sidley too. Regarding […] -
Exercise, Kids, Running, Securities and Exchange Commission, Securities Law
'Run, Forrest, Run!' (And then go get a J.D.)
The New York City marathon happens this Sunday. We know many lawyers who will be running it, and we wish them luck. The marathon did not impose a minimum age until 1981 (16, raised to 18 in 1988). Pegged to the upcoming marathon, the New York Times had a fascinating article earlier this week about […] - Sponsored
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
If 2023 introduced legal professionals to generative AI, then 2024 will be when law firms start adapting to utilize it. Things are moving fast, so… -
Education / Schools, Federal Judges, Politics, Sandra Day O'Connor, SCOTUS, State Judges, Supreme Court
Should Judicial Elections Be Abolished?(Or: ATL chats with Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.)
Retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor is not really retired yet. “I am more busy in retirement than before,” she told Above the Law in a recent interview. One of her myriad projects is Our Courts, a non-profit organization that develops Web-based games to teach seventh- and eighth-graders about government. We spoke with Justice […]
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Education / Schools, Media and Journalism, Sandra Day O'Connor, Technology, Washington Post
Educational? You Be The Judge.
Last year, we wrote about retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor entering a new field: video game development. She’s spearheading a project called Our Courts, which seeks to improve civic education in middle schools. The Our Courts website officially launched in January of this year. The first two games, “Supreme Decision” and “Do I […] -
Job Searches, Romance and Dating, Summer Associates
Summer Fling, Don't Mean a Thing?(Or: Another perspective on the summer associate experience and no offers.)
Here at ATL, we’ve received many, many emails about “no offers.” We’ve provided extensive coverage and open threads galore. The general message conveyed in these comments and emails is that firms somehow “owe” full-time, post-graduation employment to their summer associates. Under this line of thinking, once firms invite law students to spend a summer with […] -
Federal Judges, Judge of the Day, Money
Judge Stephen G. Larson Resigns Because Judges are Underpaid (But Are They Really?)
Federal judges have been complaining about their salaries for years now, but all they’ve managed to get recently is a small cost of living increase. Federal judge Stephen Larson of the Central District of California is taking a stand on the issue — by quitting. From the National Law Journal: U.S. District Judge Stephen G. […] -
Admin, Advertising, Shameless Plugs, This Is an Ad
Thanks to This Week's Advertisers
A quick word of thanks to this week’s advertisers on Above the Law: Harvard Business School – Business Strategy for Partners in Law Firms Kinney Recruiting Lateral Link Lawyers.com Quimbee: The case brief database If you’re interested in advertising on Above the Law or any other site in the Breaking Media network, download our media […] -
Caption Contests
ATL Caption Contest Winner: Shame on You
On Monday, we brought you this photo, then asked you to suggest captions for it. Over 4000 votes were cast, and one caption won by the narrowest of margins… “Firms run a risk of bad publicity when they lay off both labor lawyers and the print shop staff at the same time.” The runner-up, and […] - Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
Labor / Employment, Legal Ethics
Seyfarth Lays Off a First-Year Associate -- Then Gets Her New Firm Kicked Off a Case
Ed. note: This post has been revised in a number of important respects after it was published. As a result, many reader comments have been superseded, because they refer to parts of the post that have been edited or deleted. Please refresh your browser to read the latest version. Thank you. Sarah Getchell is having […] -
Caption Contests, Contests, Labor / Employment, Pictures, Reader Polls
ATL Caption Contest Finalists: Shame on You
Earlier this week, we showed you a photo of a protest before an undisclosed law firm, then asked you to suggest captions. We now have six finalists and would like you to vote for the best of the bunch. To refresh your recollection, here’s the photo: And here are the finalists: A. “Laid off associates […] -
Caption Contests, Contests, Labor / Employment, Pictures
ATL Caption Contest: Shame on You
It has been a long time since our last caption contest. In fact, we don’t believe we’ve done one since last year. So it’s time for a new one. The rules are the same as before: [P]ost your caption entries in the comments. We’ll take our favorites, incorporate them into a poll, and allow you […] -
Fashion, Plaintiffs Firms, Ridiculousness, Shoes, Trials
'Holier' Than Thou: Motion to Compel Defense Counsel to Wear Appropriate Shoes at Trial
Our colleagues over at sister site Fashionista aren’t alone. Lawyers also get worked up over shoes. Some, like former Enron prosecutor Kathryn Ruemmler, show up to court in four-inch pink stiletto spikes. Others hate on commuter shoes and Crocs. Attorneys have strong opinions about attire, and that extends to footwear. So we can’t say we’re […] -
Health Care / Medicine, Summer Associates, Swine Flu
Breaking: Swine Flu at Mayer Brown (Chicago)
At least one summer associate in the Chicago office of Mayer Brown appears to have contracted swine flu (aka the H1N1 virus), according to a firm memo that was circulated within the past hour. In addition, a second associate has been showing symptoms. Quipped one of the many tipsters who sent this our way: “As […]
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Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
If 2023 introduced legal professionals to generative AI, then 2024 will be when law firms start adapting to utilize it. Things are moving fast, so…
Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use.
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…
Sponsored
Sponsored
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm.
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The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms.
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Biglaw
Open Thread: Do Performance Reviews Turn Dubious in a Downturn?
Performance reviews have never been fun exactly. But these days, when firms are periodically going on “cleanses,” the review process is more nerve-wracking then ever. We are receiving anecdotal reports of associates who have always received good reviews suddenly being criticized for ridiculously trivial infractions — perhaps to lay the groundwork for a future performance-based […] -
Fashion
Fashion Dos-and-Don'ts, Brought To You By the Seventh Circuit
Fashion is always a hot topic here at Above The Law. Last year, a partner at Winston & Strawn got females’ panties in a bunch by questioning the length of their skirts. In the fall, our post on suitable interview suits generated quite the long thread. We seldom tire of talking about short shorts and […] -
Layoffs, Severance
Update: If You Show Me Yours, I'll Show You Mine(Or: A less casual comparison of severance packages.)
Hello, friends. The tables we’re compiling these days are not fun ones. We’ve posted running lists of the firms that have frozen salaries — as well as a list of those that haven’t — and, in this post, a list of the going rates in severance packages. With layoffs still going strong, knowing the severance […] -
Layoffs
If You Show Me Yours, I'll Show You Mine(Or: A casual comparison of severance packages.)
When non-lawyers ask what’s happening in the world of law these days (i.e., what ATL is covering), our first response is usually one word: layoffs. It’s been a dominant theme in our coverage since the fall. Non-lawyers are often sympathetic, but couch their sympathy with, “Well, lawyers get six months of severance, right? Getting fired […] -
Cold Offers, Job Searches, Summer Associates
Fall Recruiting Open Thread: Cold Offers
August marks the end of extravagant lunches and open bars, and the return to the starving-student lifestyle for this year’s batch of summer associates. This time of year also presents summers with a big, anxiety-inducing question: Am I getting The Offer — i.e., an offer to return to The Firm on a more permanent / […]