In last month's ATL / Lateral Link survey we asked you which holidays you worked on, or expected to work on, during 2007. About half of you reported that you had worked on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Last week, we asked you how you fared this year. Did you take the day off to honor a champion of civil rights, or did you make it a "day on"?

We received just under 1,300 responses, and 44% of you reported that you took the day off. Associates in New York, Los Angeles and Boston were most likely to celebrate the holiday, while associates in Chicago, Atlanta, the Bay Area, and Texas were most likely to be working. (Respondents in the Bay Area were also most likely to work over Christmas and New Year's. Is it time for them to get New York bonuses?)

How did it break down on a firm by firm basis? DLA Piper, Milbank, Sidley & Austin, Dechert, Hunton & Williams, Jones Day, Latham, Mayer Brown, McDermott, Hughes Hubbard, McGuire Woods, Morgan Lewis, Nixon Peabody, Paul Hastings, and Sullivan & Cromwell each had multiple happy associates who reported that they had taken the day off. Kirkland & Ellis, Baker Botts, Dewey & LeBoeuf, O'Melveny & Myers, Weil, and Winston & Strawn each had mixed responses. Associates at Skadden, however, uniformly reported that they had worked the holiday, as Martin Luther King Jr. day is a "floating" holiday for the firm.

Of those who spent the day at the office, about 54% reported that they weren't actually asked to work the holiday, but had things they needed to get done. About a quarter reported that their offices were open. Another quarter said that partners told them to work on the holiday. About 8% were asked to work by clients. A surprising number of respondents wrote in that other associates had told them to work on the holiday.

A little over a third of respondents who worked on the holiday thought that the work did not justify the sacrifice.

That's the conclusion suggested by this Houston Chronicle article, about the most fabulous law firm holiday parties thrown in that city.

In New York, the biggest and best law firm parties tend to be thrown by the biggest and best law firms. But they do things differently down in Texas, Land of the Plaintiffs' Lawyers. From Mary Flood's quite interesting article:

A random survey of about 100 Houston lawyers showed these to be the six hottest legal party tickets this holiday season:

• litigation firm Susman Godfrey's art-studded office reception;
• plaintiffs lawyer Richard Mithoff's traditional classy soiree;
• plaintiffs lawyer Mark Lanier's family-friendly extravaganza;
• plaintiffs lawyer John O'Quinn's sparkling gala;
• Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels & Friend's crowded office open house;
• defense lawyer David Beck's high-quality in-home affair.

More excerpts and discussion, after the jump.

Yesterday we posted an open thread on law firms that screw over no-offer lots of their summer associates. This post is about the flip-side: firms that dole out summer associate bonuses.

This topic has been raised by two tipsters, in two different contexts. First, this tipster reports on two firms that pay bonuses to summer associates, regardless of whether you previously summered with them:

I'm just starting to get offers, as callbacks are rolling along. I have offers from Baker Botts and Fulbright & Jaworski, both in Dallas -- and both are offering a week's pay ($3077 and $2700, respectively) as a bonus! Baker pays out on the start date, and Fulbright pays if you spend the first half with them.

And from a second source, news of bonuses paid to 1L summers who return to the same firm:

I received an offer to come back for a second summer at Foley & Lardner... with a catch: If I come back for the whole summer, and do not split or spend time anywhere else, I receive a $5,000 bonus. The bonus pays out when I accept this fall, not next summer. I have no idea if all the offices do this, but I should add that I am not at all in a major market.

Interesting. Are you aware of other firms that either (1) pay bonuses to summer associates or (2) pay bonuses to 1L summer associates who return for a second summer (and don't split)? Please discuss, in the comments. Thanks.

Earlier: Fall Recruiting Open Thread: No-Offer Factories

We're pressing on with our series of open threads on Vault 100 law firms. We know that some of you are eager to discuss firms ranked in the 70's, and we don't want to disappoint you.

And a quick word from one of our sponsors, ATL's Career Partner, Lateral Link:

"Lateral Link provides free access to the Vault firm information/career guides. Readers can get free access to the full information on our site as part of our career center."

Without further ado, here are the five firms for this afternoon (in Vault 100 order, prestige scores in parentheses):

41. King & Spalding LLP (6.183)
42. Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP (6.099)
43. Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges LLP (6.080)
44. Baker & McKenzie (6.079)
45. Baker Botts LLP (6.061)

Please discuss them in the comments. Thanks.

The Vault Top 100 Law Firms [Vault]

Earlier: Vault 1-5; Vault 6-10; Vault 11-15; Vault 16-20; Vault 21-25; Vault 26-30; Vault 31-35; Vault 36-40

To $160K and $170K, for first- and second-years, respectively, effective August 1. Here's the official table, which was an attachment to the email that just went around:

Update: One commenter notes: "They have taken compression to a whole new level with the $2,500 raise between 3rd and 4th year."

We agree. Just give the fourth years a gift certificate to the Olive Garden, and call it a day!

Memo from managing partner Walter Smith, after the jump.

From a verified source in the Washington office of Baker Botts:

Today, Baker Botts DC's associates started receiving raise notices in the mail. They all appear to match the "real" DC market, not this V&E crap. Retroactive to July 1.

The notices only refer to the recipient's salary; there isn't a formal memo outlining all salaries, at least not one that I've seen yet.

So... What about Baker Botts back in Texas? Our Baker-DC source said:

I've heard nothing so far. The firm switched to the no-summary-memo trend after your site got popular. Coincidence? I doubt it.

If you have information about whether Baker Botts has raised base salaries for its Texas associates, please email us (subject line: "Baker Botts"). Thanks.

Update (6 PM): Apparently Baker Botts associates in Dallas have NOT yet received memos about raises.

Earlier: Nationwide Pay Raise Watch: Texans Fill Their Ten Gallon Hats With Cash
Nationwide Pay Raise Watch: Is Texas Biglaw Raising -- Finally?

Following closely on news of the Vinson & Elkins raise, Andrews Kurth has also raised salaries for first- and second-year associates, to $160,000 and $170,000, respectively. As explained in the memo, the firm is "still working on the details of the compensation structure for other associate classes." Here's an article from the Texas Lawyer.

What about other Texas firms? Here's what we've been hearing:

Baker Botts: They should raise later this week or early next week. Prior to the V&E announcement, a Baker source speculated: "[T]hey seem to be waiting on V and E. I think they might be trying to leapfrog them, hoping V and E lowballs."

Akin Gump: "They had an associates' committee meeting [yesterday] and said there were working out a few details, but they would be raising in their Texas offices sooner rather than later. Who knows what any of that means."

The Andrews Kurth memo, in the form of an email from managing partner Robert Jewell, appears after the jump.

Every time we step away from our computer, big news breaks. Here's a thread for discussion of the verdict in the Scooter Libby case.

We'll update this post with comments and links as we read the coverage.

***************************

Okay, so here's the Washington Post lede (which we like better than the NYT and AP ledes -- it's the most substantive and informative of the three):

A federal jury today convicted I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby of lying about his role in the leak of an undercover CIA officer's identity, finding the vice president's former chief of staff guilty of two counts of perjury, one count of making false statements and one count of obstruction of justice, while acquitting him of a single count of lying to the FBI.

It's a big victory for special counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald (a proud graduate of Regis High School, which is also our alma mater). It's a blow for Libby's two talented defense lawyers: Theodore V. Wells Jr., of Paul Weiss, and William Jeffress Jr., of Baker Botts.

(Random digression: Ted Wells was at Lowenstein Sandler in New Jersey for many years, before he was wooed to the other side of the Hudson. Bill Jeffress was previously at the super-elite boutique of Miller Cassidy Larroca & Lewin, which was acquired by Baker Botts.)

During his closing argument, Ted Wells broke down in tears. Now he has real cause for crying.

His client must be even more sad. Per the Post:

Under federal sentencing guidlines, Libby faces a probable prison term of 1 1/2 to three years when he is sentenced by U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton June 5.

Update: As one of you notes, sentencing guru Doug Berman thinks Libby's sentence could go much higher. See here.

Libby reacted to the verdict stoically. Again from the Post:

As the jury forewoman read each guilty count in a clear, solemn voice, Libby was impassive, remaining seated at the defense table, gazing straight ahead and displaying no visible emotion. His wife, Harriet Grant, sat in the front row with tears in her eyes and was was embraced by friends. Later she hugged each of Libby's lawyers.

Personally we feel bad for Scooter Libby. Much of his defense rested upon claims of memory lapses, and we know all too well about memory problems. We blame our rapidly deteriorating memory upon blogging, which does strange things to one's mental architecture, and excessive consumption of artificial sweeteners.

Libby Found Guilty in CIA Leak Case [Washington Post]
Libby Guilty of Lying in C.I.A. Leak Case [New York Times]
Libby Found Guilty in CIA Leak Trial [Associated Press]

They should have induced delivery by Baker Botts associate Alexandra Walsh, so she would have popped out her baby girl in the middle of trial, before the jury (and preferably during the strongest part of the government's case, for maximum distraction value).

Delivering a baby in open court would have created a magnificently dramatic scene. And it would have generated an unbreakable bond between defense counsel and the jurors that would have guaranteed acquittal for Walsh's client, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby. After you've watched a woman give birth, can you really send her client to the Big House?

Alas, the Libby defense team took a more conventional route. Alex Walsh didn't go to court last Friday, reporting instead to a Washington-area hospital, where she delivered a baby girl.

More details about Walsh, from CNN:

Walsh -- a 2001 graduate of Stanford Law School -- was named by Washingtonian magazine last year as one of the "40 top lawyers under 40." She has focused on white-collar criminal law and appellate cases.

If you go back to the Washingtonian listing, you learn that Walsh, after graduating from Stanford, "was hired to clerk for appeals-court judge Merrick Garland and then Supreme Court justice Stephen Breyer."

A member of the Elect with an interest in trial work? Impressive!

Congratulations, Alexandra, on the birth of your baby girl!

Verdict: It's a girl; Libby defense counsel delivers baby [CNN Political Ticker]
40 Lawyers Under 40 [Washingtonian]

Back by popular demand: the LIST OF SHAME.

Since the last publication of the list, one week ago, there have been some changes. Baker Botts has matched market in New York, so they are kinda-sorta off the list -- "kinda-sorta" because we don't think they've raised in other offices, including their Texas offices.

(Some of you have bitched about that, in poesy as well as prose.)

Thelen Reid is off the list, as of today. They were so eager to be removed from the LIST OF SHAME that they issued a press release touting their associate pay raises.

So here's the latest list. If you see inaccuracies, please email us (with supporting documentation). Thanks.

40. Baker Botts
43. Baker & McKenzie
50. Fulbright & Jaworski
58. Vinson & Elkins
70. Hunton & Williams
75. Nixon Peabody
77. Bryan Cave
82. Reed Smith
83. Dorsey & Whitney
86. McGuireWoods
90. Baker & Hostetler
91. Thelen Reid
92. Mintz Levin
95. Dickstein Shapiro
98. Kelley Drye
100. Seyfarth Shaw

Thelen Reid Brown Raysman & Steiner LLP Increases Associate Salaries [Thelen Reid (press release)]

Earlier: Prior ATL coverage of associate base salaries (scroll down)

Two quick pieces of news. First, multiple sources at Baker Botts in New York confirm that "Baker Botts NY has gone to market -- retroactive to January 1."

Second, we have some information about Munger, Tolles & Olson -- the super-prestigious L.A. firm with a knack for scooping up SCOTUS clerks. We reprint the info after the jump.

New Partners:

* Proskauer Rose: Fourteen new partners, three new senior counsel. Names here.

* Baker Botts: Eighteen (!) new partners. Names here.

* Wilson Sonsini: Thriteen new partners. Names here.

(Only two members of the class of 1998. How long is the WSGR partner track as a practical matter?)

At Risk:

* Some are speculating that William Haynes II, general counsel to the Department of Defense, will be replaced after CIA Director Robert Gates gets confirmed as Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's successor (as expected).

But with his Fourth Circuit nomination in limbo, where would Haynes go? The Legal Times suggests that he'll end up with "a high-powered legal job at one of the nation's top defense contractors," which sounds likely to us.

Deceased:

* Anthony Lapham, counsel at Goodwin Procter and former general counsel to the CIA, at the age of 70, of a heart attack.

Proskauer Rose Promotes 17 Attorneys [Proskauer Rose LLP]
Baker Botts Announces New Partners for 2007 [Baker Botts LLP]
Firm Names 10 New NY Partners [NYLawyer.com]
Firm Raises 13 to Partnership [NYLawyer.com]
Will the Pentagon's Top Lawyer Follow Rumsfeld Out the Door? [NYLawyer.com]
Law Blog Obituary: Goodwin Procter’s Anthony Lapham [WSJ Law Blog]
Anthony A. Lapham, 70, Former C.I.A. Lawyer, Dies [New York Times]

Oodles of juicy moves today, especially out of and into the federal government. As the leaves change, so do the lawyers.

Government to Private Sector:

* Federal prosecutor John Hueston, a leader of the team that prosecuted Enron execs Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling, is heading for the greener pastures of Irell & Manella.

All around the country, AUSAs with white-collar criminal experience are leaving U.S. Attorney's Offices -- including our former workplace -- for the more lucrative precincts of private practice. The trend is especially pronounced in the legendary Southern District of New York, as noted by Anna Schneider-Mayerson.

Private Sector to Government:

* Corporate and securities lawyer Michael Halloran, a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop, has been appointed to serve as deputy chief of staff and counselor to Christopher Cox, chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Lateral Moves:

* Broker-dealer compliance specialist Steven Lofchie, to Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, from Davis Polk & Wardwell. (In this day and age, compliance is a hot area. We're guessing Lofchie got offered a nice deal.)

* Tax lawyer John Narducci, to Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, from White & Case.

* IP lawyer Robert Wasnofski Jr., to Dorsey & Whitney, from Baker Botts.

* M&A lawyer Sandy Feldman, to Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham, from Torys.

Retirements:

* Plaintiffs' lawyer Alan Schulman, of Bernstein, Litowitz -- and formerly of the indicted Milberg Weiss -- is retiring at the end of the year.

Not Going Anywhere -- Yet:

* Apple CEO Steve Jobs and HP CEO Mark Hurd are sticking around -- despite the problems that their companies face.

NY Practice Leader Leaves One Elite NY Firm for Another [NYLawyer.com]
More NY Partners Switching Firms [NYLawyer.com]
Milberg Weiss: Merger Talks Break Down; An Alum Retires [WSJ Law Blog]
Enron Prosecutor John Hueston to Join Irell & Manella [WSJ Law Blog]
The Gang That Shot Straight Is Disbanding, For a Profit [New York Observer]

Musical Chairs is our summary of the most important or interesting moves within the legal profession. We read through the announcements (and pick out the high points), so you don't have to.

If you have good gossip about any of these job changes and the players involved, or forthcoming announcements, please drop us a line (subject line: "Musical Chairs").

Lateral Moves:

* Patrick Collins and Peter Stergios, to McCarter & English (in New York), from Greenberg Traurig.

* Dennis Duffy, to Baker Botts (in Houston), from Time Warner Inc.

Returning Attorneys:

Kelley Drye & Warren: Former partner John Kiley, back from online retailer TechSmart, and former associate Jean Park, also from TechSmart. Kiley will co-chair the firm's labor and employment practice, and Park comes in as a partner.

Firms Bolster Labor and Employment Practices [NYLawyer.com]
Time Warner VP Settles in at Firm [NYLawyer.com]