Latest Stories

Law Student of the Day: Playmate of the Month?
(Plus: An aspiring law student in Playboy’s pages.)

By

Stephanie Haney 3 Stephanie Shimek Stephanie Christine Playboy magazine.JPGSome of you, especially the straight males, may recall Stephanie Shimek (née Stephanie Haney). She’s the University of North Carolina law student who tried out for Playboy, to wit, the “Girls of the ACC” issue. We wrote about her in a post entitled “Career Alternatives for Law Students: Playboy Bunny.”
Multiple ATL readers — who read Playboy just for the articles, we’re sure — have alerted us to the good news: Stephanie made it into the magazine! WCHL reports:

A UNC student has had her dreams of being featured in Playboy magazine come true in the 2009 October ‘Girls of ACC” issue.

Twenty-four year old Stephanie Christine says ever since she first picked up a copy of the magazine at her aunt’s house, she wanted to be like one of the Bunnies.

That’s one open-minded aunt! (Based on an interview with Stephanie on the WCHL website, however, it seems that the issues belonged to her uncle — no lesbianic aunt here.)
Stephanie is a 3L, and as we’ve discussed, 3L recruiting is a nightmare this year. But don’t worry about Steph; she has backup options. According to WCHL, she aspires to work in entertainment law — but if that doesn’t work out, “[f]uture involvement with Playboy has been extended to her.” In addition, “her parents and family have been really supportive.”
As diligent journalists, we went out to a local newsstand and picked up a copy of Playboy’s “Sex on Campus 2009″ issue. After showing photo ID — we got carded (yesss!!!) — and plunking down $5.99, we took the plastic-wrapped periodical back to the office, where Elie gave us a brief tutorial in female anatomy. (We’ve never seen a woman’s private parts in real life, except this one time we went to a nude beach in France.)
After the jump, we present you with pictures of Stephanie, plus one other young woman who aspires to a legal career. We have carefully redacted the photos — drawing on skills honed during document review years ago, before online doc review became commonplace — so they are safe for work. Enjoy.

double red triangle arrows Continue reading “Law Student of the Day: Playmate of the Month?
(Plus: An aspiring law student in Playboy’s pages.)”

94 Comments

Nationwide Salary Cut Watch: Don’t Forget About Faegre & Benson

By

Salary Cuts.jpgWe’ve been doing a lot of coverage on Dorsey & Whitney. The firm canceled its 2010 summer program and only had a 56% offer rate to its 2009 summers.
But we don’t want to forget about another Minneapolis powerhouse firm, Faegre & Benson. Earlier this month, we learned that the firm had decided to cut the starting salaries for its new associates. Faegre & Benson has confirmed to Above the Law that the new starting salary for its Minneapolis associates will be $110,000. That’s down a little less than ten percent from the firm’s previous starting salary of $120K.
One upper Midwestern tipster had hoped Faegre was taking advantage of the troubles at Dorsey & Whitney to surge past them in the Minneapolis market:

Faegre is the largest law firm in Minneapolis, and the general vibe is that it has surpassed Dorsey & Whitney in this market in terms of prestige and quality. So it’s sad to see Faegre take a step back. Especially since Faegre claimed that its layoffs earlier this year solved all its financial troubles. Will other Minneapolis firms follow suit to $110K???

I’m not sure that Dorsey & Whitney people would agree with the tipster’s “general vibe.” Regardless, rolling back to $110K for 2010 is something no offered Dorsey & Whitney summers would take in a heartbeat.
Read the full Faegre & Benson memo about its salary cuts, after the jump.

double red triangle arrows Continue reading “Nationwide Salary Cut Watch: Don’t Forget About Faegre & Benson”

111 Comments

Thanks to This Week’s Advertisers

By

thank you post it note.JPGA quick word of thanks to this week’s advertisers on Above the Law:

  • Harvard Business School – Business Strategy for Partners in Law Firms
  • Kinney Recruiting
  • Lateral Link
  • LexisNexis
  • Quimbee: The case brief database
    If you’re interested in advertising on Above the Law or any other site in the Breaking Media network, download our media kits, or email advertising@breakingmedia.com. Thanks!

    Boston College Law Professor In Anti-Gay Marriage Ad

    By

    The gay marriage debate continues to rage in New England, and now a Boston College law professor wants to weigh in. The state of Maine has a ballot proposition about gay marriage this fall, and BC Law Professor Scott T. Fitzgibbon decided to shoot an anti-gay marriage ad.

    Just to be clear, this is not a Dr. Li-ann Thio situation. Thio was invited to teach at NYU Law this fall and later declined the invitation under a hail of student protests. But Thio seemed to go out of her way to disparage gays and lesbians and the very practice of homosexual sex.

    Fitzgibbon at least tries to stick to the legal issues surrounding the systematic denial of civil rights to gays and lesbians. After the jump, check out the ad for yourself.

    double red triangle arrows Continue reading “Boston College Law Professor In Anti-Gay Marriage Ad”

    180 Comments

    Morning Docket: 09.16.09

    By

    Raymond Clark Ray Clark Annie Le Annie Marie Le.jpg* The DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel has given President Obama the green light to ignore a law forbidding State Department officials from attending certain U.N. meetings. [New York Times]
    * Sir Allen Stanford gets a public defender. Let’s hope this is just a way station en route to his going pro se. [Dealbreaker; WSJ Law Blog]
    * An elegant explanation of why English defamation law sucks so much. [The Wild Side]
    * A 24-year-old Yale lab technician has been taken into custody in connection with the killing of Yale graduate student Annie Le. [New York Daily News]
    * The House voted, largely along party lines, to rebuke Rep. Joe “You lie!” Wilson (R-SC). [Washington Post]
    * Barring something unforeseen, Cyrus Vance Jr. will replace the legendary Robert Morgenthau as New York district attorney. [New York Times]
    * The FCC wants to take a second look at Janet Jackson’s breasts. [How Appealing]

    36 Comments

    No More Asian Angels For Loyal Lexis Users

    By

    Asian Angels withdrawn canceled.jpgLast week, we reported on a questionable offering in the Lexis-Nexis Rewards Program store: an “Asian Angels” calendar.
    Shortly after our post went up, the calendar came down. It seems that legal research companies respond well to media coverage.
    But the calendar, despite being quickly withdrawn from the Lexis swag offerings, still incurred the ire of the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association at UC Berkeley.
    Read their response, plus a statement from Lexis, below.

    double red triangle arrows Continue reading “No More Asian Angels For Loyal Lexis Users”

    65 Comments

    ATL Caption Contest Finalists: American Pie

    By

    Last Thursday, we posted a photo of VP Joe Biden enjoying some good ol’ blueberry pie at his alma mater, Syracuse University College of Law. It was up to you to come up with a caption for the picture, and now it’s time to choose the best one. Here’s the photo once again:
    Joe Biden Joseph Biden blueberry pie.jpg
    After the jump, check out the finalists.

    double red triangle arrows Continue reading “ATL Caption Contest Finalists: American Pie”

    58 Comments

    Non-Sequiturs: 09.15.09

    By

    Bodies having sex cadavers.JPG* What kind of world do we live in where you can’t get a tax deduction for prostitutes and porn? Socialist America certainly has a downside. [Tax Prof Blog]
    * The shoe-hurler has been set free. He’s been invited for tea over at Joe Wilson’s house. Just kidding. [MSNBC.com]
    * If you’re a girl who wants to succeed in the legal profession, you are better off with a masculine name. There is no profession where a man is better off with a girl’s name. Trust me on this. [Legal Blog Watch]
    * When keeping it real (online) goes real wrong. [Expert News]
    * I’ll admit it. Sometime when I am done with work for the day, I will log and spend hours judging other people’s problems on this website. And I won’t be sober. [Instant Jury]
    * I can’t quite put my finger on it. Maybe it’s the uncanny principle. But “Bodies” having sex is quite possibly the most monstrous thing I have ever seen. [Transracial]

    20 Comments

    Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia Hates Acronyms, Loves Marisa Tomei

    By

    Justice Antonin Scalia headshot.jpgThose law students at Fordham University have a new tidbit to add to their dossier on SCOTUS Justice Antonin Scalia. He made an appearance last night at the Friendship Heights Village Center in Chevy Chase, Maryland, to talk about his book, “Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges.”
    Politico reports that he gave out some pieces of advice, namely:

    • “Don’t beat a dead horse.”
    • “Be brief. And when your time expires, shut up and sit down.”
    • Avoid acronyms in brief writing and oral arguments.
    • Lawyers should study a judge’s background and likes and dislikes before they appear in court. “At the very least, these details will humanize the judge before you, so that you will be arguing to a human being instead of a chair.”

    That last bit of advice can be taken too far, of course. Nino was annoyed when he found out about Fordham Law’s background research on him earlier this year.
    Justice Scalia was willing to add to the files, though, revealing his favorite legal movie. What is it?

    double red triangle arrows Continue reading “Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia Hates Acronyms, Loves Marisa Tomei”

    55 Comments

    Baker & McKenzie: For Some, Deferral Extensions Could Lead to Offer Revocation

    By

    baker-logo.gifWay back in June, Above the Law heard rumblings about issues regarding the incoming first-year class at Baker & McKenzie. The class had already been deferred until January 2010, but in June some tipsters reported that Baker was “rescinding” offers. Others claimed that the firm was simply “strongly encouraging” incoming associates to consider alternatives.
    Still, some associates poised to start at Baker hadn’t heard anything at all. At the time, we brought these reports to the attention of Baker & McKenzie management. In June, the firm said:

    As we’ve already communicated, we have had to make some difficult decisions in a difficult economy. But we haven’t taken the actions you suggest, and our start dates remain January (and, in some cases, earlier).

    But that was back in the heady days of early summer. Now, as autumn approaches, Baker seems to be preparing its incoming class for economic reality. This morning, tipsters reported that deferral extensions — or worse — were coming down on at least some members of Baker’s would-be incoming class:

    Last night at 10:30, we received an email from the [redacted] simpleton, asking to set up a phone call for this morning. Phone call from hiring partner was as follows:

    Economy blah blah blah limited amount of work blah blah blah majority of you will not be starting in January. Starting in January, 5k stipend plus benefits for up to six months. at ANY time during six months, MAY get a call from b&m, have 1-2 weeks to report to work, but absent a major bump in work, not likely to happen. If after June, no call from b&m, “the relationship will end.”

    Twelve of 18 incoming associates got this lovely treatment

    “The relationship will end” does not sound promising. After the jump, Baker responds to these reports.

    double red triangle arrows Continue reading “Baker & McKenzie: For Some, Deferral Extensions Could Lead to Offer Revocation”

    144 Comments

    Mr. Lat Goes to Washington

    By

    Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies logo Above the Law blog.jpgWe mentioned this in passing yesterday, but in case you missed it, please take note of this event in D.C. next week:

    On Wednesday, September 23, the Georgetown Federalist Society will be hosting a panel event on New Media & The Law at 7 PM in Hart Auditorium [at Georgetown University Law Center, 600 New Jersey Ave. N.W., Washington, DC].

    The panel will feature David Lat from Above the Law, Tony Mauro from the National Law Journal, and Matt Welch from Reason Magazine. Eileen O’Connor, adjunct professor at Georgetown and former reporter and bureau chief at CNN, will moderate.

    The event will be followed by a reception.

    The event is sponsored by the Georgetown Federalist Society. Hope to see you there!
    New Media & The Law Event at GULC [Georgetown Federalist Society Blog]

    Small Law Firm Open Thread: Trusts and Estates
    (Plus another Lavender Law panel write-up.)

    By

    will last will testament trusts estates.jpgWe continue our series of open threads about small law firms focused on different areas of practice. In light of the turmoil being experienced by Biglaw, as well as the many laid-off lawyers and job-hunting law students looking for other opportunities, now is an excellent time to look beyond large law firms.
    Today we turn our attention to TRUSTS AND ESTATES. What is it like to work at a small (or at least non-big) firm focused on T&E work? What are your hours like? Your compensation? What do you like the most — and the least — about your job?
    Please discuss, in the comments.
    Speaking of trusts and estates, at the recent Lavender Law conference we attended a workshop on advanced estate planning. The panelists offered advice that might be helpful to people who practice in, or aspire to practice in, trusts and estates.
    Read about it, after the jump.

    double red triangle arrows Continue reading “Small Law Firm Open Thread: Trusts and Estates
    (Plus another Lavender Law panel write-up.)”

    110 Comments
    Page 850 of 14471...846847848849850851852853854...1447