“There are no NALP police.”
— James G. Leipold, Executive Director, NALP

Oh, but wouldn’t it be fun if there were? Let’s use our imaginations….

As the Bad Boys theme song plays in the background, a bespectacled Jim Leipold, accompanied by a gaggle of burly NALP goons, breaks down the door at 111 Huntington Avenue — the Boston offices of Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge.

Leipold handcuffs Kelly. “You are being arrested for your firm’s violation of Part V.C.1 of the NALP Principles and Standards,” he tells her. “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to speak to the managing partner of your law firm, as well as the right to blame the managing partner for your firm’s breach of the NALP rules. But don’t be surprised if you get hit with a stealth layoff after doing so.”

Bad firms, bad firms, whatcha gonna do? Whatcha gonna do when NALP comes for you?

NALP, the Association for Legal Career Professionals (fka the National Association for Law Placement), promulgates “guidelines that offer an ethical framework for all participants in law student recruiting.” In past years, these guidelines were generally followed by law firms, schools, and students. This year, however, with the economy in the tank, things are… different.

Over the summer, uber-prestigious Sullivan & Cromwell tried to ditch the requirement that law firms give law students 45 days to weigh offers of summer employment. S&C ultimately backed down. But as reported in these pages earlier today, Edwards Angell has told law students receiving offers that they have three weeks to accept, “or until the summer class fills up” — whichever is earlier.

And EAPD isn’t the only firm that has decided to make offers with shorter fuses. Another firm is giving offerees two weeks to make up their minds.

More information, plus reflections on the NALP rules, after the jump.

A couple of weeks ago, news broke that Sullivan & Cromwell was asking 2Ls to make summer decisions more quickly than the NALP rules suggest. You’ll remember that law schools banded together to pressure S&C to change its policy.

Will law schools react as strongly if other firms follow the S&C route? We could be about to find out. Above the Law is able to report that Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge has made offers for its 2010 summer program. But 2Ls have been told that they have three weeks to decide “or until the summer class fills up.”

The 2Ls we spoke with that have received offers from EAPD are asking if NALP is going to step in and prevent the firm from shortening the deadline. But as we have mentioned multiple times, Jim Leipold, executive director of NALP, has said that “there are no NALP police.”

Sullivan & Cromwell tried to keep its open-ended offer period secret from the general public. In contrast, EAPD is happy to explain why the firm wants quicker decisions from 2Ls.

The firm’s statement, after the jump.

Let’s close the day where we started, with EAPD. We reported this morning that the firm laid off 60 people. Over the course of the day, the firm made additional plans to cut back on its 2009 costs.

The firm will be delaying the start dates for its incoming first year associates. The new date is March 1, 2010. According to a firm spokesperson, deferred first years will receive a $10,000 stipend on top of the normal bar exam expenses. The Red Sox should be good this summer, Brady should be healthy, and the Celtics still have the big 3. Maybe that will help pass the time for a year?

But sadly there is more bad news for law students scheduled to work at EAPD. The firm informs Above the Law that it has canceled its 2009 summer associate program. The decision affects nine would-be summers. Edwards Angell will be paying $5,000 to the displaced summers.

“It looks like I picked the wrong day to stop sniffing glue.”

Earlier: Nationwide Layoff Watch: EAPD Lays Off 60

Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge had a round of staff cuts back in November. That seems like ancient history. But it looks like the firm could not hold its fire forever. Today, both attorneys and staff were informed that EAPD would have to cut back. Above the Law obtained this statement, from an Edwards Angell managing partner Walter Reed, and COO Jeff Hunter, explaining what has happened today:

After careful consultation with the Firm’s Department Heads and governing committees, we have reached the difficult decision that the Firm must reduce the size of its workforce. Today we will inform about 25 lawyers and 35 staff that their employment with the Firm is ended, and will offer them severance arrangements similar to those offered by the many other firms that have also made these difficult decisions.

According to the latest NALP numbers, that is over 15% of the firm’s associates. We understand that the cuts hit the firm’s offices in Providence and New York, as well as Boston. The severance package should be the market standard.

Read the full firm statement after the jump.

One of these days, I’m going to be able to lead off with some good news for attorneys or support staff. But it is not this day.

Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge has confirmed layoffs of a number of support staffers:

We have been engaged in a long-term review of our cost structure and due to improvements and efficiencies with our technology and processes, we determined that lower staffing levels are appropriate.

Meeting and exceeding our clients’ needs remains our top priority. We, like other law firms and businesses, continually strive to best position the firm. We felt it necessary to take proactive measures to align our talent with our client needs

We understand that 50 staffers were laid off: 25 from the Boston office, and 25 across all other EAPD offices. The firm said that no associates were laid off as part of this long-term review.

The firm could not provide us with information about the severance package offered to staff.

Some EAPD back story after the jump.

For the commenters who yearn to see more “ordinary” couples in the Legal Eagle Wedding Watch, we commend this pair to your attention. The groom is a radio personality, and the bride has a JD from Loyola. They seem likable and … ordinary. Is this the type of couple our readership craves? Should we devote one slot a week to a Tier-II couple? Designate one column a month as Ordinary Week? Please advise. (This is actually a serious question. LEWW recognizes that we can’t satisfy everyone, but we do aim to please.)

For now, we’ll to continue to celebrate the extraordinary. Our finalist couples have degrees from Harvard, Yale, NYU, Chicago, and other elite schools, some with athletic programs. All three brides toil in Manhattan law firms, and all three grooms serve humanity in important-sounding public-sector jobs. Here they are:

1. Jessica Buturla and Caswell Holloway IV

2. Sarah McDonald and Patrick Egan

3. Johanna Greenbaum and David Newman

More on the couples below, including photos.

We received a lot of reports about Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge in Boston. Most of them contained a surprising tidbit:

We were all told that we did really well and that “but for the economy,” we all would have received offers. When the no-offer phone calls came, we were told we had great reviews but that EAPD just couldn’t take us all on.

That sounds suspiciously honest. Everybody did fine and we’d like to hire all of you, but “hey kid, in case you haven’t noticed, the economy reeks like an upside-down port-o-potty — so what can we do?”

The “it’s not you, it’s me” line doesn’t even work in the movies, but in this case it seems strangely appropriate.

The EAPD no offer numbers, plus the firm’s official statement, after the jump.

We have confirmed the rumor of layoffs last week at Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge. Here is what we know:

1. Layoffs did take place at EAPD last week. The number of associates who were laid off was “less than ten,” according to management.

2. Management gave assurances that there will be no more terminations (although they also stated that they could have made deeper cuts than they actually did).

3. The firm posted the following on the intranet, and sent associates a link to the posting: “Although the firm grew in 2007, we did not grow as much as our staffing grew… As a result, today we undertook the very difficult process of eliminating a small number of attorney and staff positions. The decision to let go personnel was very difficult, but necessary given the changes in the economy over the past several months. We believe that these steps ensure that we will remain a strong, successful firm.

(Our source observes: “I’m not sure why they would post it on a website other than to make it difficult to forward.”)

4. Management downplayed the impact of partner John Hooper’s departure.

5. Most people do not know the individuals terminated and the departments affected, although litigation is rumored to have taken the brunt of it.

Here is, by our count, the list of firms that have openly acknowledged layoffs or “layoff-esque” personnel moves (e.g., buyouts of the “leave or you’ll probably be laid off” variety): Cadwalader, Clifford Chance, Dechert, Edwards Angell, McKee Nelson, and Thacher Proffitt.

If we’re missing a firm, please email us. Please include some documentation of the firm acknowledging the layoff or other personnel action, internal or external (e.g., an email from firm management, a link to a news article, etc.). Thanks.

Update: Confirmation and additional information from TheLawyer.com.

Earlier: What’s Going on at Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge?

Edwards Angell UK escapes layoffs [The Lawyer]

As we previously mentioned, former AutoAdmit.com executive Anthony Ciolli has sued a number of individuals involved in the AutoAdmit lawsuit (originally Doe v. Ciolli). In his complaint (PDF), he claims that the defendants caused him to lose his job offer at Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge in Boston.

But maybe Ciolli should be thankful he’s not at Edwards Angell right now. We hear the environment over there is less than peachy, characterized by tension and anxiety similar to what preceded the associate layoffs at Cadwalader and Dechert. From one source:

You may want to keep an eye on EAP&D today. There are rumors of a departure of one of the firm’s high-powered partners yesterday and that some associates may be axed.

And from a second:

Layoff rumors have been circulating for a week now. Word on the street is they’re going to let go several (dozen) associates later this week. Management has not addressed the rumors, but both partners and associates hear it is indeed going to happen.

If Edwards Angell axes associates, expect it to come tomorrow. It’s always best to break bad news on a Friday afternoon (which is when word of the Dechert layoffs got out).

If you have inside info, please email us. We have a call in to the firm; if and when they get back to us, we’ll let you know. Thanks.

Update: We hear, through the grapevine, that partners at EAPD have accused ATL “of being rife with inaccuracies.” We gave the firm the chance to comment on the rumors, but heard not a peep. We’re happy to correct any alleged inaccuracies if the firm ever provides us with information.

In light of the recent spate of law firm mergers, one can’t help wondering: How do these unions generally turn out? Are they storybook romances, in which the two law firms live happily ever after? Or do they turn into dysfunctional relationships, which the partners regret getting into?

In its weddings pages, the New York Times sometimes checks back in on a couple whose nuptials were announced in the Times years ago. Sometimes these couples are still happily married, with a gaggle of kids; sometimes they have gone their separate ways.

Imitating this tradition, the National Law Journal checks back in on Edwards & Angell and Palmer & Dodge, on the first anniversary of their November 1, 2005, merger. This particular merger was the law firm equivalent of a “shotgun wedding”: it took place quickly, with relatively little premerger planning.

The verdict? After some initial growing pains and culture clashes, things are fine. The larger combined firm is scooping up some excellent business. Here’s the money quote:

“Lawyers speculate whether size matters,” said co-managing partner Terrence Finn. “We’ve come to the conclusion that it does.”

Britney Spears, on the other hand, respectfully dissents.

A ‘Leap of Faith’ Merger, One Year Later [National Law Journal]
Kevin Federliine Holds Cellphone With Penis [A Socialite’s Life]

Earlier: Breaking: Britney Spears Files for Divorce!!!
Mark Vincent Kaplan: Lawyer to Layabout Lovers