Boutique Law Firms
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Boutique Law Firms, California, Small Law Firms
Did This Asbestos Litigation Firm Steal a Competitor's Client Files?
Last week, a former attorney at a major asbestos plaintiff's firm sued his former colleagues. Joseph C. Maher II made some pretty intense allegations of lawyerly espionage that one blogger called a combination of the “lawyering skullduggery of The Firm with the medical malpractice aspects of The King of Torts." -
Boutique Law Firms, Litigators, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: Fire in the Belly
If not the money, and not the public good, then what motivates a trial lawyer to win? Tom Wallerstein says you need a fire in your belly... - Sponsored
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms. -
Boutique Law Firms, Legal Research, Money, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: A Moment of Truth
The changing market invites, if not demands, lawyers to offer concessions for clients. Happily, many of the concessions have relatively little impact on the firm’s bottom line, but can garner significant goodwill with clients. For example....
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Boutique Law Firms, Contract Attorneys, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: Scaling Up and Down
The major disincentive to growth in small law firms is the inability to predict future business. This uncertainty makes hiring additional associates extremely risky -- even if the immediate workload warrants it.... -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Depositions, Document Review, Litigators, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: The Bigger They Are, The Harder They Fall
'David versus Goliath' captures the challenge a smaller firm faces when litigating against an AmLaw 200 firm. A small firm can feel like David when facing a larger firm that can bring more resources to bear on legal research, drafting motions, reviewing documents, etc. So how can a small firm, especially representing a smaller company, effectively litigate against a proverbial army of lawyers representing a client to whom money is no object? -
Benchslaps, Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, California, Intellectual Property, Patents, Small Law Firms
Benchslapped: A Not So Fine Day for Feinberg Day
Last week, a federal judge in San Francisco booted several former DLA Piper attorneys, now at the litigation boutique of Feinberg Day, from a patent dispute involving Toshiba and Talon Research. It turned out that the attorneys, who represented Talon Research, had logged more than 3,000 hours for Toshiba when they were still at DLA. Not good. Let's look more closely at our benchslap of the day... -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Job Searches, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: Growing Pains
In a small or boutique firm, personality and “fit” are more important than they are in Biglaw. A small firm is more likely to have a distinct firm culture that is a reflection of its partners. The more owners, the more diffuse the personalities and culture. If nothing else, in a smaller environment you are going to be working in closer physical proximity to the other employees. So, how can small firms find new associates who fit best? -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Family Law, Jeffrey Toobin, Kids, Litigatrix, Media and Journalism, Pregnancy / Paternity, Sex, Sex Scandals
The New York Times Spills the Beans on the Casey Greenfield / Jeffrey Toobin Affair
The story of the tangled relationship between Casey Greenfield, a rising star in New York legal circles, and Jeffrey Toobin, arguably the nation’s leading legal journalist, has gone mainstream. Over the long weekend, the New York Times wrote an 1,800-word story on their affair. What juicy, previously unreported tidbits did the Times unearth? - Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
Biglaw, Billable Hours, Boutique Law Firms, Quote of the Day, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: Where Does the Time Go?
For attorneys who bill by the hour, one of the less enjoyable aspects of the job is recording time. Associates know that all too often their worth might be measured by their billable hours. Of course, big and small firms alike tolerate the timesheets because they are the firms’ lifeblood. Recording time enables firms to generate their invoices. The inherent purpose of entering time is to generate this request for payment. But an invoice can and should do much more, especially for a small firm or solo practice.... -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Career Center, Law Schools, Small Law Firms
ATL Survey Update: We Heart Our Firms, Money isn't Everything, and CSO Seriously Unpopular
Last Thursday, Above the Law opened its ATL Firm & School Insiders Survey and so far, so good. Students at nearly 100 law schools and lawyers at about 200 firms have responded. As previously noted, this survey is one of the first data-gathering tools we’ll be using to create a new, expanded ATL Career Center. As our data accumulates, we look forward to slicing and dicing it in myriad ways, in order to find patterns of interest to our readership, but more importantly, for useful insights for anyone researching legal education and careers. -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, California, Deaths, Litigators, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: 'There’s a Practice Guide for That'
Tom Wallerstein's firm, like most firms in California, has a series of Rutter guides on its shelves. And even though he runs a virtually paperless office, he still loves his printed Rutter guides. Wallerstein even has a joke about Rutter. Whenever a colleague questions his ability to solve a particular issue, he jokes, “I’m sure there’s a Rutter Guide for that.” The joke has a serious point, namely, that the basics of most practice areas can always be learned. And if it’s easy enough to learn a practice area, why shouldn’t a lawyer forming a small firm become a true generalist; handling everything from family law, wills and trusts, civil, criminal, and essentially whatever walks in the door? -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Career Center, Job Survey, Law Schools, Midsize Firms / Regional Firms, Small Law Firms
Finally... A Survey for Lawyers and Law Students!
Later this year, Above the Law will be launching a new, expanded Career Center. The new Career Center will be a resource for students and lawyers at all stages of their careers, and in all areas of legal practice (i.e., not just Biglaw). But we can be sure that news and insight into life at […] -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Election 2012, Kasowitz Benson, Lindsay Lohan, Morning Docket, Sex, Sex Scandals
Morning Docket: 02.08.12
* Extra frothy: Santorum’s trifecta of wins in Minnesota, Colorado, and Missouri has made Mitt Romney angry. Because even a guy who wins nonbinding primaries can be dangerous to a man’s campaign. [New York Times] * Richard Holwell, the judge who presided over Rajabba the Hut’s case, will be resigning and starting a boutique firm […]
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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
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms.
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…
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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.
Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use.
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Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: Which is Better for Clients?
A general counsel recently asked Tom Wallerstein, “Why should my company risk hiring a lesser-known, small firm?” Tom told him that it shouldn’t. Tom doesn’t think any company should unnecessarily “risk” its business without good reason. Tom will be the first to admit that there are some matters that simply demand big firm attention. But Tom also told the GC that there were many matters that he thought his smaller firm could handle just as well as could a big firm.... -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Lawyer Advertising, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: A Marketing Matrix
When Above the Law first covered Tom Wallerstein's "adventure in shingle hanging," he remembers someone quipping that his only business came from attorney referrals and that he didn’t have his “own” clients. The comment wasn’t true, but he still found it interesting. Is a client who pays you money somehow not “your” client, or not a “real” client, just because the client was referred to you by another attorney? That doesn’t make a lot of sense to him.... -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, California, Copyright, Intellectual Property, Small Law Firms, Trademarks
From Biglaw to Boutique: Beyond the 'Small Law Firm' Stereotype
For some, the phrase “small law firm” implies certain stereotyped practice areas, clients, and attorneys. At its worst, the stereotype invokes unsophisticated clients and matters that are routine and uninteresting. To break the stereotype, Tom Wallerstein remarks on some great practice opportunities for smaller law firms which exist in Silicon Valley.... -
Airplanes / Aviation, Books, Boutique Law Firms, Guns / Firearms, LLMs, Musical Chairs, Non-Sequiturs, Partner Issues, Small Law Firms, Trials
Non-Sequiturs: 01.19.12
* Dressing shrinks as wizards when they testify would be an AWESOME idea. I’m serious. Why can’t we have this? And titles, too. “Your Honor, I call Dr. Freud — Ph.D in weakness management and keeper of the sacred staffs of Ivory guard — to the stand.” [Overlawyered] * iTextbooks! Could be awesome, could widen […] -
Boutique Law Firms, Fashion, Fashion Is Fun, General Counsel, In-House Counsel, Litigatrix, Pictures, Reality TV, Romance and Dating, Small Law Firms, Television, Weddings
Here Comes the Bride: Stunt Woman Turned Lawyer Featured on 'Say Yes to the Dress'
If you're a bride-to-be, you've probably seen TLC's Say Yes to the Dress. Imagine our surprise when we tuned in to watch the show, and caught a glimpse of a beautiful lawyer searching for a wedding gown. But this was not just any lawyer -- this lawyer used to have an action-packed career as a stunt woman.... -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Small Law Firms
From Biglaw to Boutique: Why Wait?
Tom Wallerstein thinks that if you are in law school and you have the choice between working for an established firm -- big or small -- or working for yourself/starting your own firm, it’s a no-brainer that you should go with the established firm first. You can always leave the firm to pursue your own practice at any time, but the converse isn’t true.... -
Billable Hours, Boutique Law Firms, Money, Small Law Firms
Size Matters: Crisis of Faith
Valerie Katz thought she could do some missionary work and convert her friends in to small-firm lawyers. Something unexpected happened, though. One of her friends asked her why she believed small-firm life was so different from Biglaw. She went through my standard list of reasons: quality of life, money, autonomy, mentoring, etc. But that was where things took an unexpected turn: her friend did not buy it. Does size really matter, she thought?