Although November is just around the corner, some 2009 summer associates are still learning about their fates. As one might expect given how late it is in the recruiting season, the news that comes around now isn’t always the happiest.

Above the Law has received reports that summer associates from McGuireWoods are now hearing back about offers. The interesting part is that the firm has apparently decided to make offers in waves, i.e., on a rolling basis.

One tipster tells us that approximately 11 out of 48 summers have received offers of full-time employment — thus far. The rest haven’t been rejected; rather, they’ve been placed on what amounts to a waitlist. Depending on how things unfold over the coming weeks and months, they might get offers — or they might not.

This “hiring in waves” approach is effectively what Dechert did. The firm made offers to about half of its summer class, but told the other half that they’d hear about offers in January 2010.

Comment from a source at the firm, after the jump.

We’re now into the back half of the brand new Vault law firm rankings. Just like last year, we worry about a proliferation of “TTT” accusations in the comment threads. But such terms of art can miss the positives of many of the firms in this section of the Vault rankings. Here’s the list:

51. Fulbright & Jaworski
52. Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
53. Morgan Lewis & Bockius
54. McDermott Will & Emery
55. Alston & Bird
56. Bingham McCutchen
57. Fish & Richardson
58. Dechert
59. Greenberg Traurig
60. Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft

We have already extensively talked about the Morgan Lewis situation. Let’s move on to other firms after the jump.

Let’s say you leased a $25,000 car with an option to buy it a few months later. But when your option matured, you realized that automobiles previously priced at $50,000 were available for what you would have to pay for your $25,000 car. Wouldn’t you at least go back to the showroom and take a look around?

According to some Dechert summer associates, that is essentially what Dechert is doing to its summer class. As we understand it, Dechert has made offers to half of its summer class. But it told the other half of the class that they’ll have to wait until January 2010 before the firm even decides if it will give them offers. January!

In the meantime, Dechert is one of the few firms we know of that is going full speed ahead with 3L recruiting. So Dechert looks to be interested in hiring some 3Ls for its next class of incoming associates, before it even tells all of its 2009 summer associates where they stand with the firm.

I know, nobody is “entitled” to a job. But is it reasonable for a firm to treat its summers like fungible commodities? To quote the late Charlton Heston: “It’s people! Soylent Green is made out of people.”

Tipsters who summered at Dechert reported that the firm’s reason for delaying their offer decision until January was “purely economic.” But if that is the case, then why is the firm looking to hire additional people for the same incoming class?

Dechert summer associates weigh in after the jump.

Dechert’s stealthiness when it comes to layoffs have been well documented in these pages. But it has been an open secret around the firm that another round of layoffs were coming. Above the Law has spoken to sources that have been talking about Dechert’s impending layoffs for nearly a month.

Today, the ax is finally falling. We don’t have official numbers (Dechert has ignored our numerous requests for comment), but we have information suggesting that around 25 associates are being let go today. In addition to the associates, other tipsters report that “a bunch” of paralegals have been laid off, as well as some staff attorneys and legal secretaries.

Sources report that the pain is being spread between Dechert’s Mass Torts and Product Liability group (about a dozen attorneys) and its general litigation practice (another dozen or so attorneys).

We also understand that the vast majority of cuts affected 1st, 2nd, and 3rd year lawyers.

Today’s moves are the culmination of weeks of planning at Dechert.

More details after the jump.

As we’ve been reporting on layoffs, salary freezes and salary cuts, some disgruntled associates have suggested in the comments that partners should share more in the pain. Well, they are. In addition to PPP taking a hit due to revenue declining, de-equitizing partners now seems to be an option (and is rumored to have already happened at Jenner & Block, for example).

Barton J. Winokur, chairman and CEO of Dechert, is stepping up to the pain plate voluntarily. The firm has laid off attorneys and staff in the past few months, but firm leaders have taken a hit too. Winokur, for example, is taking a $1 million pay cut, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer:

Winokur disclosed the self-imposed pay cut, actually a reduction in his draw from firm profits, at a super-secret gathering of big-firm leaders organized by Thomson Reuters in Pebble Beach, Calif., in late April.

Typically, there is no press at this yearly conclave. An absence of publicity ensures its near-invisibility - and the candor of law-firm leaders, which Winokur apparently supplied in abundance.

In addition to his salary cut, Winokur emphasized that other Dechert leaders had taken similar hits.

The Inquirer points out though that Winokur took home $8 million the year before. But, hey, a 12 percent pay cut is still pretty substantial. And $1 million will probably be a larger percentage of his total take home this year as it’s not likely to be as good as last year. The first fiscal quarter was an ugly one.

Law Review: A law-firm CEO cuts his own pay [Philadelphia Inquirer]

There are still firms that are just now announcing start dates, even though we’re nearing the end of April.

Kilpatrick Stockton has the most interesting news. Yesterday, incoming first years were informed that they would not be able to start until April 2010. It’s a mandatory deferral. Above the Law received this statement from co-managing partner Diane Prucino:

Kilpatrick Stockton announced today that it will delay the start date of the firm’s Fall 2009 entry associates class. Entry associates are scheduled to join the firm in April 2010. Firm departments will have flexibility to have their entry associates join their teams earlier, depending on work levels. All entry associates will be offered a two-month salary advance.

Though the firm remains strong in this challenging and volatile business environment and had a solid financial year in 2008, this difficult decision is structured to further improve the long-term success of the firm and to enhance the achievement of our strategic goals through more efficient use of personnel and realignment of our expense structure. We, like other leading law firms, believe these measures are necessary to adapt to changes in the economy and to the demand for certain legal services. There is an intense commitment to enhancing the firm’s first-rate, innovative and cost-effective client service. With these goals in mind, Kilpatrick Stockton is dedicated to continuing to identify strategic growth opportunities to expand our world-class firm and improve our competitive position in the marketplace.

Kilpatrick’s deferral stipend isn’t very competitive compared to what other firms are offering for shorter deferment periods. As we understand it, Kilpatrick is only offering $17,000 to its incoming first years. It’s not even a deferral “stipend,” it is a deferral advance. Associates will have to pay the money back once they start at the firm.

Hopefully Kilpatrick Stockton won’t cut salaries over the next year on its incoming first years who suddenly have more debt.

News from Andrews Kurth, Bingham McCutchen, and Dechert after the jump.

* Former Attorney General John Ashcroft is opening a new firm with four offices in Boston, St. Louis, Austin, and Dallas, each to be headed by Bush appointed federal prosecutors. [The Wall Street Journal]

* The Supreme Court had a an energetic discussion yesterday about the use of race in hiring and promotion when arguing about the New Haven firefighter’s case. [The New York Times]

* A judge ruled that Blockbuster will have to go to court after allegedly sharing customer’s video purchases with their Facebook friends as part of a targeted advertising campaign. [Geek.com]

* Former broker Kosta Kovachev pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiring with Marc Drieir. [Reuters]

* The New York tax lawyer who killed his wife and two daughters before committing suicide may have run a $20 million ponzi scheme. [Bloomberg.com]

We just received word from Dechert that the firm is letting go of an additional 125 people today. An email from firm chairman Bart Winokur went out first thing this morning announcing 63 attorney cuts and 62 staff cuts:

In light of the decreased market demand for legal services worldwide, we are planning to reduce the number of lawyers and other time keepers in the firm by 63 and administrative staff by 62. Some of these individuals are being given notice today, and we are beginning the required consultation process with others. The reductions affect offices in the United States, Europe and Asia. Needless to say, we are taking these steps reluctantly and with great regret. None of these decisions has been made easily because we know how difficult it is to find new jobs in this challenging economic environment. We thank all these individuals for their contributions to the firm over the years.

Barton J. Winokur

Dechert has been shedding a lot of people over the past few months. Since December, we’ve reported on at least 101 layoffs at Dechert, with the cuts being made to staff, staff attorneys, and attorneys.

With the other cuts happening around Philly, including the full scale dissolution of WolfBlock, it appears that the Philly economy is in rough shape.

Good luck to all of our Philly fanatics out there.

Earlier: Nationwide Layoff Watch: Dechert Lets Go 10 Staff Attorneys
Nationwide Layoff Watch: Dechert Cuts 19
Dechert Ices 72 Staff Positions

As we mentioned earlier this week, it looks like firms are taking a small break from layoffs to focus on people who aren’t even employed yet. 3Ls who hoped to start working this fall and 2Ls who dream about summer lunches in bunches continue to be sorely disappointed.

The latest firm to push back start dates for incoming first years is Squire Sanders. The firm confirmed the news earlier today. A firm spokesperson released this statement to Above the Law:

We moved start dates to January 19, 2010. As we have advised those affected by our decision, while this is unwelcome news, we know you are aware of the unprecedented challenges facing businesses around the world, including law firms. Though we believe our firm is well positioned in the long term to deal with the current severe economic downturn, we are not immune from it. Our client base remains a very strong one, and we are actively pursuing and achieving new opportunities. We hope to emerge from this economic downturn as an even stronger firm.

Squire Sanders was one of the original gangsters on the salary freeze front. But this time, they are rolling right along with many firms that have already pushed back start dates.

After the jump, we move onto the 2Ls.

Remember when being a staff attorney was a viable option in the Biglaw universe? As we have previously reported, many big firms are laying off their staff attorneys. Today, Dechert adds its name to that growing trend.

Within the past few hours, we received a number of tips about staff attorney layoffs at Dechert.

Our sources tell us that Dechert will lay off 10 staff attorneys today. The number accounts for about 1/4th of the firm’s total staff attorney force.

Dechert laid off 19 attorneys two weeks ago, and 72 staffers back in December. So this news should not be particularly surprising.

But it is another indication that the economic crisis is taking a toll on all types of Biglaw employment.

Good luck to the 10 staff attorneys leaving Dechert.

Earlier: Staff Layoff Watch: A Roundup
Nationwide Layoff Watch: Dechert Cuts 19
Dechert Ices 72 Staff Positions

We published a series of reports about stealth layoffs at Dechert last fall.

But given how many firms have laid off attorneys, there is no reason to be stealth about it anymore.

Gina Passarella at the Legal Intelligencer (who has been all over Dechert) reports that 19 attorneys were laid off today across all Dechert offices (subscription):

Dechert has confirmed that it laid off 19 attorneys today across its U.S. offices.

The group included associates and of counsel and several practice areas were affected, though the firm would not specify which ones.

After the jump, let’s close the loop on Dechert’s layoff of 72 staffers back in December.

Cutbacks are hitting every level of Biglaw. Firms have gotten very creative in their attempts to wither cut or control costs. Because of all these rollbacks, weathering the global economic crisis is more challenging than simply holding on to your job — though that is hard enough.

How is the economic crisis affecting people day-to-day? We received an interesting story from a Biglaw staffer that really brings home the daily struggle to make it through this recession:

Last year Dechert sent out that retroactive memo about taking a certain percentage from the attorneys’ bonuses if they didn’t enter their time on time. Well, now they are saying that they are going to do it to the paralegals as well, BUT since most paralegals don’t get bonuses, they are threatening to take five percent from our vacation pay if we don’t qualify for a bonus and if we are late entering our time. I only make about $120 a day (in New York City!), so if the partners, who are making millions, want to take $6.00 from a struggling paralegal, that is just disgusting. …

Do any other firms treat their staff [like this]?

Dechert aside (and for the record, we don’t know if this story is an accurate reflection of Dechert’s policies on this specific issue), what other kinds of everyday, “standard of living” sacrifices are people having to make in these difficult times? Contrary to the popular belief, bonuses and pay raises don’t really go into the “coke and prostitutes” fund.

Are associates reorganizing their debt repayment plans? Are paralegals putting off plans to go back to school, or accelerating those plans? Beyond the dollars and statistics, there is a very real cost to all of the bad economic news.

How is it going out there?

Earlier: Biglaw: Welcome to the Credit Crunch

Dechert has been the subject of a lot of bad news lately. The associates still at the firm will be pleased to know that they will be getting a market bonus for hanging on this long:

We are pleased to announce that we will be paying base bonuses for 2008 to associates in each of our U.S. offices as set forth below. The following base bonuses will be payable to those qualified associates in good standing at the time the bonuses are paid who have 1950 hours (billable, pro bono and nonbillable in accordance with past practices) in 2008.

Class of 2007: $17,500
Class of 2006: $20,000
Class of 2005: $22,500
Class of 2004: $25,000
Class of 2003: $27,500
Class of 2002: $30,000
Class of 2001: $32,500
Class of 2000: $32,500

For high billers, the payouts increase:

We will be paying additional bonuses for the associates receiving the base bonuses who have billed 2200 hours, 2350 and 2500 hours. We will pay $7500 for each level attained.

Stub first years will take home five grand and like it:

Associates in the Class of 2008 will receive $5,000 without regard to hours.

And there is even more good news:

We have determined that, despite the difficult outlook for 2009, we will progress salaries for associates consistent with past practice.

All the layoff news must be unsettling for the people working at Dechert. This bonus announcement will probably help morale.

Read the full memo after the jump.

We started getting reports this morning that Dechert let go a number of secretaries and legal assistants. But the numbers from our tipsters were low, very low. The Legal Intelligencer just reported that Dechert has in fact laid off an amazing 72 staffers.

A firm spokeswoman confirmed that Dechert has laid off 72 administrative staff across its U.S. offices. She wouldn’t get into details about which positions or how many in each office, but said the cuts were basically proportionate across the firm’s 11 U.S. offices.

The 72 administrative positions account for about 12.6 percent of the firms 570 U.S. staff members. Dechert has around 1,045 attorneys firmwide and the spokeswoman said there are no plans to cut any more staff or any attorneys based on what they know at this time.

An attorney tipster moves straight to the problem associates at Dechert are all worried about:

[I]t’s not like we can have less secretaries unless there are less lawyers…

Dechert has come to the layoff buffet early and often. In October, there was a lot of contention about how many attorneys Dechert has been stealthily getting rid of. At least the staff layoffs are being properly announced.

But then again, Dechert staff also got to feel a little bit of that “Dechert style” on their way out the door. More after the jump.

So, some firms are not canceling their holiday parties.

Dechert’s makeup may be fading, but (apparently) the show must go on.

Dechert is still having its annual Holiday reception (cocktails, dinner and dancing) and, as usual, everyone at the firm is invited and everyone gets to bring a guest. The only changes are that it is on a Wednesday at the Grand Hyatt near GCT now (rather than on a Thursday at the Waldorf, as it had been for several years).

Be. Our. Guest! Be our guest, put our service to the test.

Meanwhile, Orrick is cutting back but not canceling their holiday party:

When: Friday, December 12th from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Where: The Orrick Building - 10th Floor

Let’s raise a glass together in appreciation for another year of hard work and good cheer.

Conference room holiday party. Yay?

Well, it’s better than being fired.

Earlier: Nationwide Layoff Watch: O’Melveny & Myers

Dechert has just announced the hiring of former Heller chairman Matt Larrabee. His official partnership with Dechert is thought to be a mere formality.

From Dechert’s press release:

“Matt’s experience is unusually diverse, with each of his practice areas intersecting with a number of Dechert’s core litigation practices: class action defense, antitrust, fraud claims, and complex commercial litigation,” said Dechert chairman Barton J. Winokur. “Perhaps most importantly, Matt will provide yet another highly experienced and sophisticated first chair litigator to Dechert’s already impressive group of trial lawyers. I think everyone would agree that Matt is one of the most respected trial attorneys in the nation and we welcome him to the firm.”

One firm’s loss is another firm’s gain. If Dechert ever has to dissolve, they’ve got a new pro in house.

Read the firm’s full statement after the jump.

Apparently, Dechert Chairman and CEO Bart Winokur still finds Above the Law not worth his time, but that hasn’t stopped him from talking about our information elsewhere.

Winokur spoke with the WSJ Law Blog to try to clear up some things about the firm:

1. Quite apart from any characterization as to reasons why associates might have been asked to leave and contrary to anonymous posts in abovethelaw.com, there were not 10, let alone 30, associates who were asked to leave in July with or without deadline.

2. Contrary to the implication in The Legal Intelligencer article, I do not believe that we are replacing “people with better people.” To clarify what I said to The Legal Intelligencer, as associates get more senior, they need to keep doing higher and higher levels of work, and not work that can be done by their juniors.

3. Additionally, in response to the slowdown in our structured finance practice, rather than lay-off associates, we assigned associates to full-time pro bono work, where they could continue to hone their legal skills while at the same time helping others. When the economy stabilizes and business picks up, it is our expectation that they will be part of the firm’s vibrant practices.

Parsing the language after the jump.

Readers have demanded more information about the so-called “stealth layoffs” at Dechert. Finally, we have additional information to report.

Readers, commenters, tipsters, recruiters, employees, and the Virgin Mary who appeared to me in a breakfast grapefruit are all reporting that a number of associates will be laid off at the end of this month. These layoffs have nothing to do with the March departures from the firm, and contradict the firm’s official statements on the matter.

As best we can tell, no less than 10 and no more than 30 associates were told at the end of July that they would be laid off in 3 months. According to one tipster:

Effectively we were told that we can come in to work, but do not have to, and we can tell the recruiters and places where we interview that we still have a job at Dechert. Now, at the end of the three months our salaries would stop coming. These three months was our severance. At the same time the partners did absolutely nothing to help us locate jobs because most were too afraid to do anything.

As many of you know, Gina Passarella of the Legal Intelligencer was able to speak at length (free version) with Dechert Chairman Bart Winokur. Mr. Winokur declined to speak with ATL directly, but in the Intelligencer article he does not really deny that associates were asked to “move on” in this manner. Instead, the Intelligencer reports:

“In my view, layoffs are when you decide to cut head count,” Winokur said. “It’s not when you decide to replace people with better people.”

Winokur said the culture of the firm is to improve year over year and when people reach a point of seniority and still aren’t getting better, the firm will sometimes tell them they don’t have a future at Dechert.

Whatever advantages there are to stealth layoffs are pretty much destroyed when your firm chairman starts talking about replacing people “with better people.” People we’ve talked to have emphasized that the firm is doing nothing to help associates put on notice find new jobs.

Even if you look at all of the evidence in the light least favorable to the firm, it doesn’t look like the number of July/October layoffs rise to the level that has been mentioned by some of our commenters.

But, there might be some other stealth moves going on. Read more after the jump.

We really don’t know why everybody is so certain that Dechert is laying off a massive number of people. 20, 50, “nearly 100 attorneys,” no number seems too high or outrageous to post in the comments when it comes to Dechert’s “stealth” layoffs.

Clearly the firm is going through some kind of reorganization process, but there haven’t been any official “layoffs” since March.

But with all this smoke, there is bound to be a little bit of fire.

Read Dechert’s official response to the rumors after the jump.

In the interest of completeness, here are a few quick postscripts to stories that we previously covered in these pages, but didn’t get around to mentioning during the craziness of last week. They come from the National Law Journal and/or the WSJ Law Blog.

1. Judge Robert Somma: The cross-dressing former bankruptcy judge (at right), who resigned from the bench after a drunk driving arrest, has joined the bankruptcy practice of Posternak Blankstein & Lund, a midsize firm based in Boston, as senior counsel. [National Law Journal; WSJ Law Blog]

2. American Justice School of Law: This defunct Kentucky law school, which in 2007 was hit with a class action filed by some of its students, has filed for bankruptcy. [National Law Journal; WSJ Law Blog]

3. L’Affaire Kozinski: The panel of federal judges from the Third Circuit investigating Ninth Circuit Chief Judge Alex Kozinski (at right) has retained Robert Heim, head of litigation at Dechert, to oversee the probe (which will be staffed by lawyers from Dechert and Morgan Lewis & Bockius). [National Law Journal; WSJ Law Blog]

4. University of Michigan’s Wolverine Scholars Program: Sarah Zearfoss, dean of admissions at UM Law, has defended the program against allegations that it’s an attempt to game the U.S. News rankings. She pointed out that the program is small, likely to result in the admission of just five to ten students (out of a class of 360), and that very few UM undergrads (about 200) would even be eligible for it. [WSJ Law Blog]