Ed. note: Above the Law has teamed up with Law Shucks. Law Shucks has done excellent work translating all of the layoff news into user-friendly charts and graphs: the Layoff Tracker.

For a while there it would look like the first consecutive weeks without layoffs since this time last year (by our reckoning, you have to go back to the weeks ending October 9 and October 2, 2008). Alas, one firm did come through with staff layoffs, about which more after the jump.

As usual, we begin with the US macroeconomic picture, and as usual, it ain’t pretty. For the week, the S&P 500 was down about 2%. That was the second straight week of losses, and the DJIA had its biggest weekly decline in three months. 263,000 net jobs were lost in September and the unemployment rate rose to 9.8 percent, despite perhaps the technical end of the recession. As with the stock market, bad results are one thing, but results worse than expectations are another, and that was the case here. Consensus estimates were net losses of 175,000, so the actual results were way short. August’s revised numbers were slightly better than original reports, though.

The poor results are creating pessimism around when things will start to turn around:

[T]he report also buttressed fears that economic expansion would be weak and hesitant, with scarce paychecks and economic anxiety remaining prominent features of American life well into next year.

“This is a weak report,” said Stuart G. Hoffman, chief economist at PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh. “The rate of job loss has tapered off, but we still haven’t reached the point where businesses are willing to hire.”

Could this create political difficulties for the president?

The closer we get to the time when incoming associates in the class of 2009 are supposed to start, the more deferral extensions we are likely to see. Over the weekend, news broke that Chadbourne & Parke had decided to push back half of its incoming class “indefinitely.”

We don’t have any information about whether the incoming associates on extended deferral will be offered any type of extended stipend.

Update: A spokesperson from Chadbourne responded to Above the Law’s inquires about the continuing stipend:

These deferred associates have already received $13,000 and will receive an additional $60,000 stipend beginning in February 2010.

The news shouldn’t be entirely surprising for incoming associates at Chadbourne. The firm laid people off in March, and cut salaries in April.

And remember, last October, Chadbourne instituted a hiring freeze. At the time, we had a few questions for Chadbourne:

In light of this hiring freeze, what does that mean for students who interviewed with Chadbourne? Are they de-facto canceling their 2009 summer program? If so, it seems like an awful waste of resources to send recruiters around the country for jobs that are no longer available….

And, of course, we have no idea how this will affect 2008 summers associates. We assume that any of them who received and accepted offers for full time employment next fall still have those offers.

Note to self: never assume.

There seem to be two options that firms are following. After the jump, let’s look at the options and take a reader poll.

We continue our slog push through the nation’s 100 top law firms, as ranked by our friends over at Vault. Here are the next ten firms, to be discussed in the comments to this post:

71. Reed Smith
72. Bryan Cave
73. Perkins Coie
74. Hunton & Williams
75. Patton Boggs
76. Arent Fox
77. Schulte Roth & Zabel
78. Howrey
79. Chadbourne & Parke
80. Crowell & Moring

Assorted observations about these firms, after the jump.

Chadbourne & Parke has already laid off associates. It has already frozen associate salaries. So perhaps cutting associate salaries outright isn’t too much of a surprise.

Associates at Chadbourne were just informed that their salaries would be cut. But they weren’t told how deep the cuts would go. Here’s the pertinent part from the firm-wide memo:

We will be reducing base salaries of attorneys, administrative personnel and other staff for the remainder of the year, beginning with the May pay period. All personnel will be advised of the reduction to their salary. Depending upon Firm financial performance and individual effort and contribution, all personnel will be eligible to recoup all or part of the amount of the reduction in the form of a bonus to be distributed at the same time discretionary bonuses have been traditionally distributed.

That really brings a whole new (and much more terrible) meaning to the term “special bonus.”

Just like with Baker & McKenzie, Chadbourne seems to be doing more than simply cutting associate salaries. The firm is doling out different cuts to different people, and it doesn’t appear that class year has a lot to do with it. It’s another shot at lockstep associate compensation.

Has Chadbourne management been listening to The Dow is Up Guy? Interesting details after the jump.

We reported earlier today that Chadbourne & Parke was laying off people today (check out our prior coverage here). We just received this firm wide email:

Accordingly, with deep regret, we are reducing the number of attorneys in our offices worldwide by approximately 25. Today will be the last day at the Firm for many of the individuals impacted by this decision. They are all talented professionals who have made valuable contributions to the Firm. They will all be missed and we wish them well. All affected attorneys present in our offices today have been personally spoken with and we expect to speak with the others in the next few days.

Chadbourne is also imposing a deferred start date on incoming associates, but unlike Venable, the firm doesn’t appear to be offering extra money for 3Ls. New Chadbourne first years won’t start until January 2010.

Not that it’s a particularly safe thing to be a Chadbourne first year. Our reports indicated that 8 of the 25 people laid off were first year attorneys.

On the other hand, the firm is offering a three month severance package. Also, the firm is explicitly forgiving the bar loan that first years received.

Again, most of our sources say that Chadbourne was really “nice” about the whole process.

Read the full memo after the jump.

This layoff news is breaking right now, so we don’t have all of the details. But we understand that “heads are rolling” today at Chadbourne & Parke.

The firm did not respond to an immediate request for comment, but there are multiple reports of the layoff reaper making the rounds at the firm right now.

Layoffs are being done face-to-face and no firm wide announcement has gone out.

However, the firm is firing first years, so we don’t imagine that this is a “performance review.” In fact, one tipster puts it like this:

They were very nice. It is purely economical.

We understand that Chadbourne is giving a three month severance package.

You’ll remember that in October, Chadbourne announced a hiring freeze. That seems like an obvious move now, and not surprisingly it looks like that wasn’t enough of a cutback to ride out the economic storm.

But at the time Chadbourne said that the hiring freeze wouldn’t affect the 2009 summer program. We’ll see if that holds up in the face of layoffs.

Update (4:39): Chadbourne has now confirmed these layoffs. Check here for our continuing coverage.

Earlier: Hiring Freeze at Chadbourne & Parke Adventures In Burying The Lead
Prior ATL coverage of law firm layoffs

As we noted in yesterday’s Morning Docket, even the New York Times has taken note of the salary freeze trend at law firms. The Times reached out to Above The Law’s own David Lat for the story:

Although many associates are angry about the freezes, others are relieved, said David Lat, founding editor of AboveTheLaw.com, a blog about law firms and the profession.

“There is this sense that firms didn’t act prudently during the boom and now they are getting religion, and that it’s better late than never,” Mr. Lat said. “Many associates we have spoken to think the freeze probably saved jobs.”

At the beginning of the month, we did a round-up of firms that have frozen 2009 salary rates at 2008 levels. That list was 16 firms long. Since then, quite a few other firms have announced freezes. Due to frequent requests, we’re updating the round-up list since the number of firms with freezes (that we know of) has more than doubled, to 33 32. Check out the as-comprehensive-as-we-can-make-it list, after the jump.

Recently announced salary freezes include “solid ice freezes” at Blank Rome and Townsend and Townsend and Crew; and “Slurpee freezes” at Bingham McCutchen, Fish & Richardson, and Texan firm Andrews Kurth.

Memorandums, as well as a new list of all firms with “solid ice” and “Slurpee” freezes, after the jump.

We haven’t yet gotten our hands on the Chadbourne & Parke bonus memo, but a firm spokesperson confirmed what the general numbers look like. According to the spokesperson:

“Our bonuses are on Cravath, Half-Skadden, scale. Individual bonus determinations are based upon individual performance and pro rated for part time attorneys and attorneys who have been with the firm for less than the full year.”

I wonder if somewhere, Cravath’s Evan Chesler is thinking about ways to kill me?

Meanwhile, Chadbourne also announced a salary freeze:

As you know, the world economic outlook for 2009 is uncertain. Accordingly, as a matter of prudence, the Firm is reserving decision on associate salary levels for 2009. We will make a decision on this matter within the next several months as the global economic picture becomes clearer.

Half-Skadden bonus, Latham salary — but no layoffs, so there’s that to be happy about.

Earlier: Prior ATL coverage of associate bonuses
Prior ATL coverage of associate salary freezes

The winter wedding announcements are often a prestige wasteland, but we’re actually quite pleased with the caliber of the couples we’ve been able to round up for the first 2009 edition of Legal Eagle Wedding Watch (which admittedly includes some entries from late 2008).

Here are your contestant couples:

1. Bella Sewall and David Wolitz

2. Daniela Jampel and Matthew Schneid

3. Jaime Teitelman and Howard Wachtel

Click on the link below to read more about these newlyweds.

Christopher Hitchens has famously declared that “the four most over-rated things in life are champagne, lobster, anal sex and picnics.” LEWW humbly submits an addition to this list: the University of Pennsylvania. Or “Penn State.” Whatever you call it, we’re tired of it. Its graduates are ridiculously overrepresented on the weddings page. (We haven’t done a scientific survey, but we’d venture to guess that we’ve written more about newlyweds from Penn than from any other school—even New York schools.) And really, what’s so great about Penn, other than its football team?

As you can probably guess, it’s another Penn-heavy week on the Legal Eagle Wedding Watch. But don’t worry; we’ve lightened the tedium with a few other degrees—and some strikingly attractive contestants:

1. Stacey Sarfatti and Rustin Paul

2. Tamar Shuldiner and Keith Levenberg

3. Melissa Hutson and Matthew Rizzo

Click on the link below for these couples’ pictures and credentials.

In response to the many queries we receive from couples hoping to be selected for LEWW (yes, we do get them — mostly from grooms, oddly enough), we’d been thinking about drawing up some submission guidelines (sort of like the NYT’s).

But we’ve got a better idea. Three words: pay to play. See, we’ve got this thing, and it’s f****** golden. You don’t just give it away for nothing. Call us; we’ll talk.

Here are this week’s candidates (only two again, because it’s December and the pickings are getting slim):

1. Nancy Kuhn and Bernard Nussbaum

2. Shira Tolins and Benjamin Roth

More on the newlyweds, after the jump.

A firm-wide memo from Charlie O’Neil, managing partner of Chadbourne & Parke, announced that the firm was instituting a legal and non-legal hiring freeze in response to the economic downturn.

The lengths O’Neil went to try and bury this important piece of firm information are slightly amazing. The firm-wide email was entitled “How Are We Doing?” and the first 4 paragraphs read like the “Yay Us” emails we’ve seen from firms like DPW and STB.

However, in the sixth paragraph, O’Neil gets to the part where he talks about keeping control over firm expenses:

That said, expenses have been under constant review and we have taken a number of steps to better position us for the remainder of this year and next. Among the more significant is the decision to delay much of the planned technology upgrade. We recognize the need to improve technology and certain of the more important upgrades will continue. Others, including the upgrade to new desktop computers and software, will be postponed. We will review this decision in 2009 as the economic picture becomes clearer. Should conditions improve we will begin the upgrade sometime in 2009; otherwise it will be delayed until 2010. We will be issuing new guidelines pertaining to controls over Firm business expenses, including travel. We will also more closely monitor and limit certain other expenses which in a more robust economy might otherwise be acceptable We have also instituted a freeze on hiring legal and non-legal personnel. To the extent a practice area has need of additional legal personnel, we will seek to temporarily shift lawyers from a less-busy practice area to assist, rather than hiring laterally. We will take the same approach with non-legal personnel and departments. We welcome your thoughts on other cost saving measures.

Catch that? I bet O’Neil hopes you didn’t.

More after the jump, including the full Chadbourne memo and the firm’s response.

The Vault 100 march continues! In this series of open threads, we list the firms, and you all discuss their upsides and downsides. We’ll be wrapping this puppy up this week.

Here are the next ten (with prestige scores in parentheses):

71. Nixon Peabody LLP (5.218)
72. Hunton & Williams LLP (5.208)
73. Perkins Coie LLP (5.119)
74. Reed Smith LLP (5.057)
75. Patton Boggs LLP (5.050)
76. Chadbourne & Parke LLP (4.997)
77. Bryan Cave LLP (4.969)
78. Thacher Proffitt & Wood LLP (4.967)
79. Howrey LLP (4.926)
80. Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP (4.910)

Usually, we have fun with the “notable perks” chosen by Vault. But as we move down the list, the perks are becoming distinctly less notable — e.g., gym membership discounts, free parking, and “good views.” Oh well.

You know what to do! Have at it in the comments.

Earlier: Vault 100 Open Threads - 2009

It seems that summer associates and full-time associates are reasonably happy working at Chadbourne & Parke

But for one poor mail clerk, working in Chadbourne’s New York office has been an unspeakably painful experience.

Update: A Chadbourne source informs us that the mail clerk has died of his injuries. May he rest in peace.

Man’s Head Caught in Conveyor Belt in GE Building [New York Sun]

Yesterday at around 5:30 p.m., just as the New York office was getting ready to head off to the firm holiday party, Chadbourne & Parke issued its bonus memorandum. The upshot is that Chadbourne is paying year-end and special bonuses to “eligible” associates in New York, Los Angeles, Washington, and Houston (yes, Houston — wow).

The bonus table is your standard table, with the most senior associates getting $115,000 in bonuses ($65,000 year-end and $50,000 special). But it’s not a lockstep match due to the “eligibility” requirement. It’s not clear what the eligibility criteria are, but here’s the relevant language from the memo:

As in the past, eligibility to receive a full or partial year-end bonus will be performance based, with the quality of performance as well as billable or quality non-billable hours expectations each taken into account. Eligibility for a partial or full special bonus will be based on meeting or exceeding all of the Firm’s expectations.

It seems that Chadbourne is going with the Fried Frank model. Some people will get full special bonuses, some will get partial special bonuses, and some might get no special bonus at all. In addition, it appears that some CP associates might not even get a full year-end bonus, based on the memo raising the possibility of getting a “partial year-end bonus.”

In sum, it pays to be an eligible young associate.

Some notable moves within the legal profession:

Government to Private Sector:

* Former Maryland Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele, to LeBoeuf Lamb in DC. Last November, Steele lost his bid to represent Maryland in the U.S. Senate.

* Michele Hirshman, who served as Eliot Spitzer’s top deputy at the Attorney General’s office before he became Governor, is joining Paul Weiss, as a litigation partner. Described by the New York Times as “very smart, very tough and rather short,” she sounds perfectly diva-licious.

Lateral Moves:

* Antitrust superstar Charles “Rick” Rule, to Cadwalader, from Fried Frank. This truly IS like musical chairs: Cadwalader, Rule’s new home, recently lost its antitrust group to Skadden.

* Celebrated criminal defense lawyer Abbe Lowell — who did an excellent job defending Hamlet against murder charges — is moving from Chadbourne & Parke to McDermott Will & Emery.

* Mark Holscher and Jeffrey Sinek are joining the Los Angeles office of Kirkland & Ellis. They’re coming from O’Melveny & Myers and Thelen Reid, respectively. From the Law Blog:

Holscher and Sinek are best friends. They were roommates when they served as federal prosecutors in Los Angeles. Holscher, 44, served as an assistant U.S. Attorney from 1989-1995; Sinek, 46, served from 1989 to 1994. Sinek was the best man at Holscher’s wedding; Holscher was a groomsman in Sinek’s. Both graduated from Boalt Hall law school. Holscher told the Law Blog they’ve always wanted to work together.

Such ambiguously gay commentary led an anonymous reader to quip: “Hope that Alexandra Korry doesn’t read about this…”

On The Move: Charles “Rick” Rule [Antitrust Review]
Kirkland Beefs Up West Coast White-Collar Practice [WSJ Law Blog]
Abbe Lowell to Join McDermott from Chadbourne [WSJ Law Blog]
Former Maryland Pol Michael Steele Joins LeBoeuf Lamb [WSJ Law Blog]
Spitzer’s Longtime No. 2 Michele Hirshman to Join Paul Weiss [WSJ Law Blog]

Earlier today, we published salary data for Wilson Sonsini. We quoted a poster who was disappointed that the raise was retroactive only to February 1st. We then received this clarification from a source at the firm:

Our raise was made retroactive to February 1 rather than January 1 because we have a February 1 fiscal year start. Compensation matters are always handled as of February 1.

In addition, bonuses were 15 percent higher this year because partner profits were up 15 percent. Staff bonuses were also 15 percent higher.

We are very busy at WSGR these days — cranking on all cylinders!

We also (finally) received confirmed information about Chadbourne & Parke. We reprint it after the jump.

As previously mentioned, we’re on a reduced publication schedule this week. We’ll be doing a daily news round-up (and maybe a few other random posts here and there). We’ll return to our normal diarrhea of the keyboard publishing schedule on January 2.

* Civil libertarians, just raise the white flag. The Justice Department knows what you’re doing RIGHT NOW. [Washington Post]

* His father always knew there was “something special” about Judge Frank Easterbrook. And litigants who have appeared before FHE feel the same way. [Buffalo News via How Appealing (of course — no offense, but we aren’t regular readers of the Buffalo News)]

* In other Seventh Circuit news, Judge Richard Posner delivers remarks about maritime law to an audience of supermodels. We swear we’re not making this up. [Washington Post]

* Following up on our prior report, here’s a clear sign that Chadbourne & Parke partners don’t have enough business. [WSJ Law Blog]

* If McDonald’s french fries never taste the same, blame it on the anti-trans-fat legislation. [UPI]

* Complications of diabetes: not just medical, but law-related, too. [New York Times]

* If you’re a judge with unfulfilled literary aspirations, try writing something safe and non-controversial. Ideally it should be something nobody would want to read. We suggest a pop-up book about the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch via How Appealing]

* Even more fun than charades: take Peter Lattman to a party, start reading out random newspaper headlines, and challenge him to find a legal angle to the stories. [WSJ Law Blog]

Over at Infirmation / Greedy NY, there’s an interesting thread about Chadbourne & Parke. It started off with this post:

I heard a rumor from a partner at my firm that C&P is in “turmoil” and that numerous partners are looking around for new firms. Has anyone else heard a similar rumor? Any comment from C&P associates?

Which was seconded by this one:

“I’ve heard the same thing. I actually know of multiple C&P partners who have been talking to other firms about moving their practices…..”

But opposing viewpoints were offered in these two posts:

“Not what I hear. To the contrary I understand that the mood is upbeat and that C&P is busier than ever and growing. And, they matched bonuses and said in their memo that some associates would get more than their class year. Sounds like a good place to be.”

“I am an associate at Chadbourne and have seen no turmoil. I hear many rumors, but have not heard these. Any more info? Looking at the firm from the inside, IMHO it seems to be doing well and heading in the right direction. I get market comp at a decent place to work. So, I hope for my sake that the OP has it wrong. Just my two cents.”

If you have any detailed, solid information that might help resolve this confusion, we’d love to hear from you.

Turmoil at Chadbourne [Infirmation / Greedy NY]

The latest collection of moves within the profession:

From government to private sector:

* George Bundy Smith, former judge on the New York Court of Appeals — the state’s highest court (duh) — to Chadbourne & Parke, as a litigation partner.

Lateral moves:

* “A little ditty, about Jack and Diane”: M&A lawyer Jack Bodner, bankruptcy lawyer Dianne Coffino, and bankruptcy lawyer Ben Hoch, to Covington & Burling (NY), from Dewey Ballantine. We hear that this trio is “extraordinarily nice.”

Dewey Ballantine is in the process of merging with Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe — a combination that has been delayed (and might possibly fall apart).

Covington will soon unveil plans for new office space in the fancy, Renzo Piano-designed New York Times building. It may be the coolest move since the Skaddenites got to shack up with the Conde Nasties (but there are probably fewer hotties among the ink-stained wretches of the Times than the staffers of Vogue).

* Duane Morris launches its Baltimore office by snagging three partners and an of counsel from DLA Piper: Jay Gordon Cohen, Keli Isaacson, George Nemphos, and Wilbert Sirota (of counsel).

On the Comeback Trail?

* You can’t keep a good woman down: Star Jones, the prosecutor turned television personality, is doing a radio show (after getting booted from “The View”). Good luck, Star!

Star Jones: a star reborn? [Miami Herald]
At Last, Star Jones Reynolds’ Dramatic Comeback! [Gawker]
NY Lawyers Switching Firms [NYLawyer.com]
Firm Opens Baltimore Office With Raid [NYLawyer.com]
Three More Walk Away From Dewey [WSJ Law Blog]