As 7th year associates at Half-Skadden and Skadden-Mart come to grips with the fact that they will be getting a smaller bonus than 1st years at Skadden, let's take a look at a curious article that came out on November 20th. The same day Cravath announced their reduced bonuses (and threatened their people about 2009) Chairman Chesler spoke to American Lawyer:

Evan Chesler, the presiding partner of Cravath Swaine & Moore, stresses that firms do not need lots of offices to be diversified. "It is too easy to confuse geography with geographic reach," he says. "It is not the same thing." ...

Although Cravath has just one small outpost in London, the firm is highly diversified, Chesler maintains. "We certainly do Wall Street work, but we always have done work for companies not on Wall Street, companies that make things and are located all around the world, and will continue to do so."

Apparently, for Chesler "it is too easy to confuse" words with deeds. Either the firm is diversified and is in a good position to weather this economic storm, or it is not. I'm sure that Chesler's employees do not really appreciate Chesler running around publicly talking about the health of the firm, on the same day he sends around internal memos warning:

[A]ssociates should be prepared for the likelihood that the economy and the Firm's financial performance next year will not show a significant improvement over this year and they may receive significantly reduced or no year-end bonuses next year.

If you want to criticize Cravath associates, don't call them "greedy and entitled," instead call them "foolish" for believing their own management. Believing their own firm is a mistake I'm sure most Cravath associates will not make again.

After the jump, guess who else was talking.

"Not God Bless America, God-damn America."

We are now able to report that Simpson Thacher Bartlett has matched bonuses with Half-Skadden:

On behalf of the partners of the Firm, I would like to announce that year-end bonuses for associates in good standing will be as follows:

Class of 2008: $17,500 (pro-rated)

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

Cravath has doomed us all.

After the jump, more analysis and the full STB memo.

The latest bailout news is making Simpson Thacher's $300,000 contract to advise the Treasury Department on the $700 billion bailout plan look even more like chump change.

We wrote before about firms that were offered bailout love. Well, Reuters reports that Hughes Hubbard and Squire Sanders are going to get mad bailout love, in the form of $11 million:

Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP and Squire Sanders & Dempsey LLP have each been awarded a contract for roughly $5.5 million to help shepherd about 2,000 financial firms through the program that would see the government buy company shares, the Treasury Department said on Monday.

Looks like Hughes Hubbard's strategerizing with the acquisition of boutique bankruptcy firm Luskin, Stern & Eisler may have paid off.

Two law firms to help U.S. Treasury dole out aid [Reuters]
The End of Bailout Transparency Already? [BailoutSleuth via WSJ Law Blog]

Earlier: The Firms That Were Offered Bailout Love
Musical Chairs: Hughes Hubbard Is Ready For Some Action

Given all the horrible news yesterday, we wanted to post something positive about the legal job market.

Luckily, last week Simpson Thacher & Bartlett felt the exact same way. Taking a cue from Cleary, STB decided to send around an "aren't you glad you received an offer from Simpson Thacher" email to last summer's offerees:

There have been many exciting recent developments here since you left and I wanted to send news of what is going on. The firm is at the very center of the developments that are reshaping the financial world and when you return there should be some fascinating work awaiting.

For those of you who just want to know what deals are in the works, also included is news of a couple of major new engagements. For a more complete list, including some recent litigation successes, check out the Spotlight News on our web page: http://www.stblaw.com

Sounds like a flight to quality to me.

Check out the full memo after the jump.

We mentioned yesterday that Simpson Thacher has been chosen to advise the government on the massive $700 billion bailout plan. They were chosen on Friday and are already racking up billable hours on it.

Six other firms were approached by the Treasury, but only two expressed interest. Zach Lowe at the American Lawyer reports:

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton confirmed Tuesday that it was one of the six firms the Treasury Department considered as candidates for a role as lead adviser on the $700 billion bailout plan.

Only two of those six firms pursued the work that eventually went to Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.

Four of the six law firms have confirmed that the Treasury reached out to them: Simpson, Cleary, Davis, Polk & Wardwell, and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. The two others, including the firm the Treasury turned down, remain unidentified. Two of the most likely candidates -- Sullivan & Cromwell and Latham & Watkins -- would not comment on the matter. A third, Shearman & Sterling, has not responded to messages.

Lowe tracked down a lawyer at one of the firms that rebuffed the Treasury. The lawyer admitted it was "prime work," but that they feared not being able to represent "regular clients on the program." In the cost-benefit analysis, the potential billable hours to financial services companies clamoring for bailout money must outweigh the government possibilities.

But Simpson Thacher is not sweating it:

Richard Beattie, chairman of Simpson Thacher, says the Treasury did not put any pressure on the firm to drop clients and that the firm is not concerned about losing business.

"They did not say that," Beattie says. "It's ridiculous. We represent JPMorgan Chase and would not give up a client like that."

AmLaw reports that Simpson's other financial clients include Washington Mutual (now part of JPMorgan Chase), Lehman Brothers, and AIG. Given that list, we can see why the government is the more attractive client at the moment.

Cleary Confirms It Rejected Lead Adviser Role on Federal Bailout Plan [American Lawyer]
Simpson Thacher Wins Treasury Sweepstakes, Four Firms Decline [American Lawyer]

We're back with the next installment of open threads on the Vault 100 law firms.

A particularly insightful comment from the last post on the top five firms:

[Davis Polk & Wardwell] and [Sullivan & Cromwell] do very similar work. DPW has a stronger underwriters' practice, Sullivan is marginally better on the issuer side. DPW is much stronger than anyone at converts. Sullivan does more edgy contested M&A while DPW excels at deals with cutting edge securities components.

Sullivan is a slightly better place to work than its reputation. DPW generally lives up to its strong rep as a good place to work.

Now on to the next five from Vault, with their prestige scores in parentheses:

6. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP (7.985)
7. Latham & Watkins LLP (7.784)
8. Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton LLP (7.754)
9. Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP (7.623)
10. Kirkland & Ellis LLP (7.473)

The most notable of "notable perks" in this batch is at Kirkland, where NYC associates get a "$350 office art budget" (previously reported here). Can associates use the money to commission work from their toddlers?

Please compare and contrast the firms in the comments. We'll continue to work our way down the Vault list in future threads.

The Top 100 Most Prestigious Law Firms [Vault]

Earlier: Fall Recruiting Open Thread: Vault 1-5 (2009)

Earlier today, the New York outpost of TheLawyer.com, a British publication, reported on personnel reductions at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. The report was of keen interest to us because we've been hearing rumors -- generally vague and unsubstantiated, but persistent -- of "stealth layoffs" at STB.

The folks over at The Lawyer seem to be hearing similar gossip, some of which appears in their report:

[Simpson Thacher ] has taken the unusual step of introducing a mid-year performance review for its associates. It is understood that the benchmark for associates to reach in order to keep their jobs is significantly higher than in previous appraisals.

Market sources have ­suggested that up to 30 associates have been asked to consider their positions as a result of the review. Simpson Thacher chairman Pete Ruegger denied the firm was making credit crunch-related layoffs.

This report appears to be erroneous, at least in a few respects. We spoke with Simpson partner James D. Cross, co-chair of the firm's Personnel Committee, who described it as "wildly inaccurate":

It's business as usual here as far as reviews. We have not changed our standards, and we have not changed our process. We've always had a midyear review process. I don't know where someone came up with the number of 30 [affected associates].

A second STB source echoed Cross's statement, telling us that "no new mid-year process was introduced." The firm has long conducted midyear reviews for (1) first-year associates and (2) more senior lawyers who received negative annual reviews. According to this source, "if a more senior lawyer gets a negative annual review, that person will often be slated for a midyear review so that progress can be checked after six months, not just annually, and so that the firm makes sure it is doing all it can in terms of additional training and mentoring."

Additional discussion, after the jump.

We interrupt the spirited smackdown of ATL Idol to bring you a couple of LEWW-related announcements. First, as expected, Team Ho-Glover scored a decisive win in June's Couple of the Month voting. LEWW salutes this glorious SCOTUS - WGWAG - Friend-of-Lat juggernaut!

In other news, two notable grooms didn't make our list of finalists this week. The first is Lee Bollinger, son of current Columbia University president (and former University of Michigan president) Lee Bollinger. And the second is Paul Lieberstein, who looks a lot like that guy who plays Toby in The Office. Because he is that guy.

On to this week's contestants:

1. Sue-Yun Ahn and Charles Kitcher

2. Jennifer Hare and Jaron Shipp

3. Gena Hatcher and David Lenzi

4. Athena Theodoro and Daniel Adamson

Click on the link below to read more about these impressive legal matches.

A picture is worth a thousand words, so we'll keep this brief. From a tipster: "Look at this place. The estate of a Simpson Thatcher partner:"

For extensive photos of "Eastfair" -- the McGraths' baronial mansion and grounds, which hosted their daughter's recent NYT-featured wedding -- check out New York Social Diary.

Although the parents of the bride, Diahn Williams McGrath and retired Simpson partner Thomas McGrath, are both lawyers -- and very successful ones, judging from that pile o' bricks -- their daughter and her husband are not attorneys. So the newlyweds weren't eligible for consideration in Legal Eagle Wedding Watch, which has a one-lawyer-spouse minimum.

P.S. This is just their country place. They also have an apartment on Fifth Avenue.

Update: Via a commenter, see here for more details about Eastfair Castle. "The castle sat on 66 acres, had two tennis courts, one indoor and one outdoor. There was a beautiful inground pool with a view to Connecticut. I believe it was 1972 when he died, the house was sold to his close friend, Diane [sic] Williams."

Wedding Bells are Ringing [New York Social Diary / David Patrick Columbia]
Courtney McGrath, Thomas Spangler III [New York Times]
Thomas J. McGrath: Retired Partner [Simpson Thacher & Bartlett]
Diahn Williams McGrath [Avvo]

Superhero movies aren't really our cup of tea. We much prefer films like Sex and the City.

But even if Carrie's Vivienne Westwood wedding gown does more for us than the Batsuit, we are impressed by the trailer for the new Batman film, The Dark Knight. And Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker, his final complete performance, is generating Oscar buzz.

So the summer associates at Simpson Thacher in New York, who will get to see the film a day before its theatrical release on Friday, July 18, are a lucky bunch.

If you'd like to draw our attention to a particularly interesting or unique summer associate event -- the standard-issue Broadway shows, fancy dinners, casino nights and cooking lessons don't count -- feel free to mention it in the comments, or email us (subject line: "Summer Associate Event Watch").

The Dark Knight [official website]

As promised, we're back with our second installment of LEWW this week. We think you'll agree that this one features some of our finest contestants of the season. A SCOTUS clerkship (finally!), a Rhodes, more YLS grads -- enjoy this special Independence Day edition of the Legal Eagle Wedding Watch!

Here are the names:

1. Stephanie Denton and Zeno Baucus

2. Mary Fan and Dean Kawamoto

3. Emma Terrell and Trevor Leitch

4. Courtenay Van Sciver and Peter Washkowitz

5. Maria Glover and Derek Ho

Click on the "continue reading" link below to see these couples' photos and sparkly credentials.

Last summer, we wrote about the stinging benchslap that Judge Loretta Preska (S.D.N.Y.; pictured), the highly regarded Manhattan trial judge, administered to Cleary Gottlieb, the highly regarded Manhattan law firm. Judge Preska sanctioned the firm for what she viewed as the improper attempt by one partner to dissuade a witness from attending a deposition. At the time, Cleary announced its intent to appeal.

And appeal it has. Writes Anthony Lin, in the New York Law Journal:

It was a matter of honor that brought Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Wednesday morning. Several lawyers from the firm, led by managing partner Mark Walker, were present in the ceremonial courtroom of the Daniel Patrick Moynihan U.S. Courthouse.

A matter of honor. Will there be a duel? Guns all around, says SCOTUS.

Well, maybe not a literal duel. But Cleary's counsel, the distinguished Roy Reardon of Simpson Thacher, did mix it up with opposing counsel, Kevin Reed of Quinn Emanuel. As did the Second Circuit panel:

The 2nd Circuit judges asked [Reed] whether Kensington had been unreasonable in insisting that the deposition be held on Feb. 4 in Washington when a Paris deposition seemed a reasonable compromise.

"Everything would grind to a halt if lawyers couldn't accommodate each other," said Judge Miner.

"Everything would grind to a halt if everyone resorted to self-help as Cleary did here," Reed replied. He later added: "You don't go to the witness and say the sort of things [Cleary partner Jean-Pierre] Vignaud said, which can only have the effect of intimidating a witness and shaping his testimony."

So the alleged attempt by Cleary to dissuade a witness from attending a deposition arose out of a familiar dispute over depo location. Perhaps the parties should have taken a page from Judge James Nowlin's playbook, and taken it to midfield. Anyone up for a depo on a north Atlantic cruise ship?

Update: As noted over in the Community section, the sanctions against Clery Gottlieb were upheld by the Second Circuit. For more, see the New York Law Journal and the WSJ Law Blog.

Cleary Seeks Vindication in Appeal on Sanctions [New York Law Journal]

Earlier: Benchslap of the Day: Judge Preska Reprimands (Wait for It)... Cleary Gottlieb?

Despite the tales of misery, you can't keep law school graduates away from Biglaw. And the same appears to be true of celebrities.

Famous entertainers are drawn to large law firms like moths to the proverbial flame. See, e.g., Cameron Diaz at Cadwalader; Michael Jackson at Venable. And now we bring you this celebrity sighting:

Last week, Justin Timberlake was in the offices of Simpson Thacher [at 425 Lexington Avenue, New York]. I heard it was for a deposition.

The idea of Justin Timberlake submitting to deposition questioning is a bit surreal. But if a celebrity as big as Britney Spears can be deposed, then so can Justin Timberlake (her ex-boyfriend, back in happier times for the pop princess).

Update: Here's another possibility. One Simpson tipster reports hearing that Justin Timberlake was at STB for a consultation regarding a prenuptial agreement. According to recent rumors, he's planning to propose to girlfriend Jessica Biel.

(We don't view matrimonial law as a Simpson Thacher specialty. But we wouldn't be surprised to learn that the Personal Planning department of STB is willing to make time for JT.)

Yes, LEWW hears the howls of protest from our readers about the weeks we skipped recently. We'll do a makeup post soon, we promise. The weddings pages have been such a wasteland lately that it's been hard to pull together the kind of legal and nuptial excellence you've come to expect here. And it's crushing our spirit.

Take this week. The NYT featured just seven weddings total, with only two LEWW contenders and one Ivy degree (from U. Penn). Here are the two finalists:

1.) Robin Rosenthal and Richard Rothfeld

2.) Erin Conroy and Thomas Welling Jr.

More about these newlyweds, after the jump.

If we hadn't already named a Lawyer of the Day, the prize might have gone to Jeremy Pitcock of Morgan & Finnegan. From the American Lawyer:

The former head of intellectual property at Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman was fired in December for "extremely inappropriate personal conduct," according to the firm.

Not merely "inappropriate" conduct, but "extremely inappropriate" conduct. We're guessing it was strenuously objectionable.

Jeremy Pitcock, 35, joined Kasowitz in March 2006 after being wooed from Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, where he was a senior associate. Kasowitz named him head of IP not long after. But after less than two years, Pitcock left the 200-plus-lawyer firm for 52-lawyer New York IP boutique Morgan & Finnegan.

Morgan touted Pitcock's hiring as "an outstanding addition to our successful litigation practice" when it announced his move on January 8. But the Kasowitz firm says he was forced out following an unspecified incident.

"Mr. Pitcock was terminated for cause by Kasowitz, Benson in December 2007 because of extremely inappropriate personal conduct," name partner Daniel Benson said in a statement.

So what prompted the firm's statement?

Kasowitz's statement followed the publication of an article in trade publication IP Law 360 last week, which reported that Morgan had lured Pitcock from Kasowitz. In his statement, directed toward the publication, Benson said, "It was inaccurate to use 'nab' in your headline, or to use 'jump ship' in your opening paragraph."

"We were not looking to publicize this incident, but because of those incorrect news items, we felt compelled to set the record straight," Benson said in a press release that the firm distributed online.

We're intrigued -- and the full article in the American Lawyer doesn't offer much more. If you have details on the alleged conduct, please email us. Thanks.

Update (6/6/08): Jeremy Pitcock has filed a $90 million defamation lawsuit against Kasowitz Benson. See here.

Kasowitz Fired its ex-IP Chief for Inappropriate Conduct [The American Lawyer via Law.com]
Jeremy S. Pitcock bio [Morgan & Finnegan]

Sometimes we wish we had the breastses. Then we could enjoy the luxurious lactation room at Davis Polk & Wardwell.

Back in this post, we wrote about the lactation room at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. We're sure it's plenty nice. But we doubt it's as snazzy as what the competition on the other side of Lexington Avenue is offering.

Check out this Davis Polk email, which went out late last year (exclamation mark in the original):

From: **** On Behalf Of Associate Development
To: all.lawyers.ny
Subject: Nursing Room

We are pleased to announce that the firm now has a private nursing room!

Located on the 10th floor, this cozy room is equipped with brand-new furniture, including a comfortable chair and end table, refrigerator, and reading materials of interest to new mothers. Access to the secure room is available through the Security Desk. A small sign on the outside of the door indicates when the room is occupied.

We hope that this amenity will provide returning mothers who wish to continue nursing their babies additional support during this important transition. Your privacy and comfort are our priority.

Please do not hesitate to contact [xxxx] or any member of the Associate Development Department if you have any questions. Thank you and congratulations to all of our new DPW Parents.

We're curious about the "reading materials of interest to new mothers" at DPW. Draft asset purchase agreements? SEC proxy filings?

Meanwhile, in other happy news for parents, Arnold & Porter has jumped on the improved parental leave bandwagon. Following the recent trend, which we've been following in these pages, they've increased the paid leave they provide to women who give birth or primary caregivers of a newly adopted child. It used to be 12 weeks; now it's 18 weeks, which appears to be the "market" rate these days.

Transmittal email, plus A&P's full leave policy, after the jump.

Earlier: Biglaw Perk Watch: Lactation Rooms

Almost one year ago, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett announced a major associate pay raise, unveiling a new pay scale with a starting salary of $160,000. The move sent tremors throughout Biglaw. Firms in New York quickly followed suit; firms in markets outside New York took longer, but eventually matched (for the most part).

But if you're looking to STB to lead the market higher still, you'll be disappointed. Yesterday the firm sent around this memo:

SIMPSON THACHER & BARTLETT LLP

MEMORANDUM TO ALL ASSOCIATES AND COUNSEL

Effective as of January 1, 2008, the annual base salary for each class year will be as follows

Class of 2007 - $160,000
Class of 2006 - $170,000
Class of 2005 - $185,000
Class of 2004 - $210,000
Class of 2003 - $230,000
Class of 2002 - $250,000
Class of 2001 - $265,000
Class of 2000 - $280,000
Class of 1999 - $290,000

Salaries for counsel and classes senior to 1999 will be addressed on an individual basis and discussed with those individuals during the Annual Review process. Increases will be reflected in the January 30, 2008 paycheck.

January 14, 2008

Earlier: Breaking: Simpson Thacher Raises Associate Base Salaries!!!

We're a week or so into 2008, which raises the question: a new year, a new associate pay raise?

One might expect pay raises to be announced around fall recruiting time, to entice the 2Ls. Historically, however, the last two base salary increases were announced in January (perhaps in an effort to reduce the post-bonus exodus of associates). In January 2007, Simpson Thacher announced its new pay scale, with a $160,000 starting salary. The prior raise, by Sullivan & Cromwell to $145,000, was announced in January 2006.

But don't expect more of the same in January 2008. From the National Law Journal:

As law firms wrapped up operations for 2007, the associate compensation picture looked eerily similar to the boom before the bust seven years ago.

The ratio of bonuses to base salaries for first-year associates at the nation's top law firms in 2007 was on par with the figures in 2000, a year that precipitated a dramatic plunge in those annual perks that help to make the punishing associate hours more tolerable.

For 2007, beginning associates made as much as $45,000 in bonuses in addition to the $160,000 in base pay at top firms in New York and on the West Coast, with some shops doling out "special bonuses" and getting bragging rights ahead of competitors.

But all that cheer in 2007 may become a distant memory as 2008 is looking increasingly leaner.

"There's more concern out there now than there was in the summer," said James Cotterman, an attorney-compensation consultant with Altman Weil. "There's more talk about a recession."

Indeed. If we're not already in a recession, we're about to enter one. Sure, some firms have strong countercyclical practices. But litigation and bankruptcy never make as much as transactional work and M&A in boom times.

More doom and gloom, plus the promised digression on billables, after the jump.

We have a lunch meeting today, so we're going to be offline for a while. We'll leave you with a food-related post to chew over while we're gone. Hopefully it won't cause you to lose your appetite.

Over at Keeping Up With Jonas, Jonas Karp has filed a great investigative report: a look at how various law firm cafeterias fared in unannounced annual inspections by the New York City Department of Health. If you're hoping for a healthy dose of schadenfreude, you might be disappointed. As Karp writes, "All of the firms surveyed passed their inspections, and none had Serendipity 3-like 100 live cockroach violations."

Darn. But as Jonas notes, "some firms did a lot better than others."

Which ones? Read the full post to find out. As you review the results, consider this question: Is cafeteria cleanliness inversely proportional to law firm prestige? Simpson Thacher and Cravath came within a few points of failing inspection, while a perfect score was earned by... Greenberg Traurig!

Maybe GT associates won't be getting a pay raise anytime soon. But at least their New York office has an immaculate cafeteria.

Feel free to opine on the quality of your law firm's cafeteria, or any other Biglaw canteen that you have personally sampled, in the comments.

Law Firm Cafeterias: Inspection Results [Keeping Up With Jonas]

As the old adage goes, "A lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client." And there is some anecdotal evidence in support of that proposition. See, e.g., Elana Glatt / Elana Elbogen (depending upon how you view the merits of her case against her wedding florist).

Here's another example of what can happen when Biglaw litigators represent themselves. From TaxProf Blog:

The Tax Court today decided Hynes v. Commissioner, T.C. Summ. Op. 2008-1 (1/2/08), a case involving Shawn T. Hynes, a fifth year securities litigation associate in Cleary Gottlieb's New York City office. The taxable year at issue was 2003, when Hynes was a Penn 3L (he tranferred to Penn after completing his first year at Oregon).

More about the facts of Shawn Hynes's case, and how he got benchslapped by the Tax Court, after the jump.