Fried Frank has announced year-end and special bonuses for its associates and special counsel in its New York office. The numbers are consistent with those previously announced by other firms.
But whether this is a true market match is unclear, since the firm is a bit vague with respect to what percentage of associates will receive “special” bonuses. From the memo: “We will also be paying a one-time special bonus to associates on a discretionary basis based on performance…”
Read the full memo, after the jump.
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Skadden associates were notified of their bonuses by emails to individual classes, so we have no global memo confirming the numbers up and down the ladder.
But we have confirmation of the year-end and special bonus matches for the classes of 2007, 2005, and 2004.
Developing… Check back for updates.
Several updates, after the jump.
Continue reading “Associate Bonus Watch: Skadden Matches (We Think)
(And Not Just In New York)”
What’s going on with law schools these days? Strange and scary things are afoot. Last month, there was the Indiana University law student who shot up his casebooks. In September, St. John’s University Law School was placed under lockdown, after a gunman was spotted on campus. There was also the rumor — unfounded, as it turned out — that Regent law student Adam Key brought a gun to school.
Now we learn this, from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer:
The threat, directed toward Law School students and the Law School, was found scrawled across the wall of a campus bathroom Oct. 30. UW officials declined to reveal the exact wording of the graffiti, but School of Law Dean Greg Hicks summarized the sentiment as being that the school is “training up little Nazis.”
Really? Isn’t that what Harvard Law School is for? Or maybe Regent?
More after the jump.
Who lives in Arkansas? And designs MySpace pages? And likes to post on, appropriately enough, Craigslist?
Winnable high profile ENTRAPPMENT [sic] case Lawyer needed
Need a good lawyer who is willing to get paid a little slower but also can have a logo done by me and a web page or High Definition commercial done as well. Very winnable case and high profile. Please help my brother who was entrapped. You can check out my art on my myspace page. My myspace page can be found at myspace.com/aphrodite1985.
Update / Warning: You really should know this by now, if you’ve ever visited a MySpace page, but mute your speakers before checking it out. Like 95 percent of MySpace pages, this one also features loud and irritating music.
Our tipster quips: “At least there’s still good work in Arkansas without Wal-Mart.”
Maybe the kindhearted sister should reach out to this fellow Craigslist poster. He’s not admitted to the Arkansas bar; but he could probably do some legal research, since it sounds like he has some time on his hands. Who says graduates of top-tier law schools don’t also suffer employment woes?
Winnable high profile ENTRAPPMENT case Lawyer needed [craigslist]
Seeking Law Clerk Position [craigslist]
- Chuck Schumer, Department of Justice, Dianne Feinstein, Federal Government, Michael Mukasey, Politics, Senate Judiciary Committee
Breaking: Michael Mukasey Nomination Voted Out of SJC
By David LatThe Senate Judiciary Committee just voted in favor of the nomination of Michael Mukasey to serve as attorney general. The tally was 11-8, with two Democrats — Sens. Chuck Schumer and Dianne Feinstein — joining all the Republicans in supporting him.
What had been looking like a nailbiter of a nomination should sail through the full Senate fairly easily. The floor vote on the nomination should take place by next week.
Congratulations, Judge Mukasey!
Nomination of Mukasey Sent to Full Senate [New York Times]
Panel Sends Mukasey Nomination to Senate [Washington Post]
Perhaps taking a page from ATL’s Biglaw Perk Watch, the Texas Lawyer recently published a survey of the perks offered to associates at some of the state’s biggest law firms. It’s not available online, sadly, but a tipster sums it up:
Most are either trivial or to be expected, but the one that stands out it the “automated electronic defibrillator” offered by Fulbright & Jaworski.
Aren’t they essentially saying to new associates, “We anticipate that you may be afflicted with cardiac arrest while working here”? Why on earth would this be touted as a “perk”?!
Indeed. Even if you do have defibrillators on the premises, which most large organizations probably should have, it seems odd to boast about them. It’s like telling your recruits that you offer fire extinguishers — nice to know, but not exactly a “perk.”
You can check out the full list of Fulbright perks after the jump.
These are interesting times for the world of Biglaw. Some large law firms are feeling so flush they’re giving out not one but two bonuses this year. Others are laying off associates. Sharing space in the pages of ATL are dueling features: Associate Bonus Watch and Nationwide Layoff Watch.
Before the next round of bonus news, it’s time for some layoff coverage. In the New York Law Journal, Anthony Lin has this report:
In one of the first clear signs that slumping credit markets are causing economic pain at law firms, Clifford Chance on Monday laid off a group of associates in the structured finance area.
John Christian, the partner in charge of the London-based firm’s U.S. personnel committee, said the firm had made a difficult “business decision” to lay off the six associates in a practice group that worked exclusively for credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s. The lawyers in the group had reviewed the documentation S&P used to rate mortgage-backed securities, the market for which has collapsed in recent months.
“We concluded this work just wasn’t coming back,” Christian said. He declined to discuss the severance packages offered to the associates, but one of those terminated said they were offered three months’ salary with no bonus. Indeed, the associate said the timing of the layoffs seemed designed to deprive the targeted associates, all of whom were relatively senior, of their bonuses.
Interesting. So are associate bonuses and layoffs just two sides of the same coin?
More after the jump.
* Lockdown of Pakistani legal system intensifies. [CNN]
* Reggie Bush investigated for receiving gifts while at USC. [Los Angeles Times]
* Keanu sued for Porschal assault. [MSNBC]
* Peter Lattman on the charms of the dormant Commerce Clause. [WSJ Law Blog]
Apologies for the delay. The bonus announcement of Sullivan & Cromwell was made by firm chairman H. Rodgin Cohen at 5:10 p.m. today, but it took us a few hours to get our hands on the memo.
For associates in the class of 2007 through the class of 2004, S&C is paying the standard year-end and special bonuses. But for more senior associates, it’s paying lump-sum bonuses — none of this “special” business — of $80,000 (2003), $95,000 (2002), and $110,000 (2001 and above).
These amounts reflect the new S&C senior associate bonuses — in part. More cash will be forthcoming in 2008. From Rodge Cohen’s memo:
As announced earlier this year, the Firm will pay senior associates compensation in addition to salary and bonus through our new Senior Associate Supplemental Bonus Plan (“the Plan”). We have decided to accelerate payments under this new Plan to result in the following amounts being paid on December 14 to our senior associates, with final supplemental payments to be made in the Spring of ’08.
Read the rest, after the jump.
Continue reading “Associate Bonus Watch: Sullivan & Cromwell Matches (and More)”
One of our favorite firms here at ATL, Quinn Emanuel, has announced bonuses. And in true QE fashion, they’re doing things a little differently (which is why we like them so much — they keep things interesting).
Their year-end bonuses are standard, but their “special” bonuses are, well, special. In some ways, the Quinn scheme is better: mo’ money. In some ways, it’s worse: half of the special bonus paid this month, half in June 2008.
For details, check out the memo, after the jump.
P.S. We’d like to do a little write-up of the QE Deer Valley recruiting trip. Can any of you help us? Please submit any info by email. Thanks.
Continue reading “Associate Bonus Watch: Quinn Emanuel Mixes It Up”
* Are you in DC and looking for something cool to do later tonight? Attend the talk and book signing for Professor Daniel Solove’s latest work, The Future of Reputation (previously discussed here). [Concurring Opinions]
* Are lawyers really a**holes? Or are they just doing their jobs? [WSJ Law Blog]
* Some thoughts on possibly increased bank regulation, from our colleague, John Carney: “Resistance to a new wave of banking regulation requiring bank breakups and dividing Wall Street according to regulatory fiats rather than market demand is likely to be weak in an era when many think the financial supermarket model has failed…. No one expends much time, money or energy defending a right to do something they don’t want to do anyway.” [DealBreaker]
* Don’t forget to vote for ATL! Even if you did so before, you can do so again — once every 24 hours, ending November 8th. [2007 Weblog Awards]
The firm of McKee Nelson — which has been having some issues, thanks to the credit crunch, but is making valiant efforts to deal with them — just announced its standard bonus scale. It is availing itself of the fig leaf provided by Cravath’s bifurcated bonus scheme: it’s not paying “special” bonuses, just regular year-end bonuses.
As explained in the memo:
[A]n individual associate’s bonus will be determined by the quality of such associate’s work, his or her overall contribution to the Firm, and the number of billable hours worked. [B]ased on these factors certain associates will receive more than, and others less than, the standard scale for their class.
Full memo from Bill Will Nelson, after the jump.
Continue reading “Associate Bonus Watch: McKee Nelson Matches Announces”
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Women Legal 2014 – New York
The evolution of relationships between the genders continues. Currently, in law firms, there is an interesting conundrum; balancing the desire for a gender-blind workplace where “the best lawyer gets the work and advances” and the reality of navigating the complicated maze created by the fact that, in general, men and women do possess differences in their work styles. These variations impact who they work with, how they work, how they build professional connections and how organizations ultimately leverage, reward and recognize the talents of all.
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How A Fictional Story Of Henry Ford Will Help You Stop Giving Business Away
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Henry Ford sat on his workbench and sighed. A year earlier, he had personally built 13,000 Model Ts with his own hands. Fashioning lugnuts and tie rods by hand, Ford was loath to ask for help. Sure, there were things about the car that he didn’t quite understand. This explains the lack of reliable navigation systems in the Model T. But Ford persevered because he knew that unless he did everything, he could not reliably call these cars his own.“Unless my own personal toil is responsible for it, it may as well be called a Hyundai,” Ford remarked at the time.
The preceding may sound unfamiliar because it is categorically untrue. And also monumentally stupid. Henry Ford didn’t build all those cars by hand. He had help and plenty of it. Almost exactly one hundred years ago, Henry Ford opened up the most technologically advanced assembly line the world had ever seen. Built on the premise that work can be chopped up into digestible pieces and completed by many men better than one, the line ushered in an age of unparalleled productivity.
Today, an attorney refers business because he can’t do everything the client asks of him.
There are three reasons why this is way dumber than a made-up Henry Ford story…
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Business Is Booming in Hong Kong and China and What It Means for U.S. Associate Lateral Hiring There
Presented by Kinney Recruiting
Ed. note: The Asia Chronicles column is authored by Kinney Recruiting. Kinney has made more placements of U.S. associates, counsels and partners in Asia than any other recruiting firm in each of the past six years. You can reach them by email: [email protected].
Since late last year, things have been booming in Hong Kong / China in cap markets, especially Hong Kong IPOs. M&A deal flow has recently been getting a bit stronger as well. Although one can’t predict such things with any certainty, all signs are pointing to a banner entire 2014 for the top end US corporate and cap markets practices in Hong Kong / China. This is not really new news, as its been the feeling most in the market have had for a few months now and things continue to look good.
The head of our Asia practice, Evan Jowers, has been in Hong Kong for about 10 days a month (with trips every other month to both Shanghai and Bejing) for the past 7 months, and spending most of his time there meeting with senior US hiring partners at just about all the major US and UK firms there, as well as prospective candidates at all associate levels and partner levels, and when in the US, Evan works Asia hours and is regularly on the phone with such persons, as our the other members of our Asia team. Our Yuliya Vinokurova is in Hong Kong every other month and Robert is there about 5 times a year as well. While we have a solid Asia team of recruiters, Evan Jowers will spend at least some time with all of our candidates for Asia position. We have had long standing relationships, and good friendships in some cases, with hiring partners and other senior US partners in Asia for 8 years now.
Keep reading »
