As we noted in yesterday’s Morning Docket, even the New York Times has taken note of the salary freeze trend at law firms. The Times reached out to Above The Law’s own David Lat for the story:

Although many associates are angry about the freezes, others are relieved, said David Lat, founding editor of AboveTheLaw.com, a blog about law firms and the profession.

“There is this sense that firms didn’t act prudently during the boom and now they are getting religion, and that it’s better late than never,” Mr. Lat said. “Many associates we have spoken to think the freeze probably saved jobs.”

At the beginning of the month, we did a round-up of firms that have frozen 2009 salary rates at 2008 levels. That list was 16 firms long. Since then, quite a few other firms have announced freezes. Due to frequent requests, we’re updating the round-up list since the number of firms with freezes (that we know of) has more than doubled, to 33 32. Check out the as-comprehensive-as-we-can-make-it list, after the jump.

Recently announced salary freezes include “solid ice freezes” at Blank Rome and Townsend and Townsend and Crew; and “Slurpee freezes” at Bingham McCutchen, Fish & Richardson, and Texan firm Andrews Kurth.

Memorandums, as well as a new list of all firms with “solid ice” and “Slurpee” freezes, after the jump.

The new year is shaping up to be a cold one. As we noted in our 2008 Year in Review series, one of the biggest stories heading into 2009 has been that of the salary freeze. Rather than instituting lock-step raises for associates entering a new class year, a number of firms have informed associates that their salaries will remain at 2008 levels.

There have been two types of freezes: the “Solid Ice freeze”—with salaries frozen through all of 2009—and the “Slurpee freeze”—where firms are sticking with 2008 levels for now, but promise to revisit the decision later in the year.

Many an ATL reader has requested a round-up, and we aim to please. So find your pleasure, after the jump. Some of the firms have been reported on before, and some are new.

If you know of other frozen firms, send us an e-mail at tips@abovethelaw.com with the subject, “Salary Freeze: FIRM NAME.” Also, if your firm has raised salaries as expected, feel free to send us the news, with the subject “Salary Raise: FIRM NAME.” While freezes are news, raises as expected aren’t, so we will not be covering firm by firm, but we may do a round-up.

Find the list of the sixteen firms that have frozen, after the jump.

In these uncertain economic times, lots of law firms are holding lots of meetings. Sometimes they bring good news, and sometimes not-so-good news. E.g., Covington & Burling (welcoming the Heller IP group); Jenner & Block (everything’s dandy); McKee Nelson (layoffs).

Earlier this week, Sutherland announced associate and counsel meetings would be held next week. What might they be about?

According to the email from managing partner Mark Wasserman that announced the meetings, they “are not planned to announce bad news of any sort.” One Sutherland source takes him at his word:

Ninety-nine percent sure it’s just a “calming fears” meeting, since we’ve already done our nasty round of layoffs six months ago. Wasserman’s a straight shooter (best I’ve ever seen), so if he says there is not “bad news of any sort,” there won’t be.

We reached out to Wasserman, who explained:

We are having a series of roundtable discussions next week with our associates and counsel to share information, answer questions and seek input on topics relating to the economy, our clients and our strategy for the firm. Sharing information and obtaining input from our lawyers is important and valuable to us.

And, as we noted in the email announcing the meetings, there will be no announcement of any bad news, including announcement of any layoffs.

Kudos to Sutherland for being proactive and involving associates and counsel in such discussions. Some firms have taken a decidedly top-down approach to dealing with the economic climate, but they might have been better served by soliciting input from their associates first.

Read more, including the full Sutherland memo, after the jump.

What did you miss if you didn’t peruse last Sunday’s NYT weddings section? The marriage of Theodore Roosevelt V, for starters. Also, a whole lot of gayness! We counted seven same-sex weddings on this week’s list, which we suspect is a an all-time high. (And how sociologically interesting that all seven were men marrying men!) None of this week’s same-sex weddings made it into the finals, but LEWW is delighted to reflect (in a rare moment of seriousness) on how much has changed since August 2002, when the paper announced that it would include same-sex weddings for the first time. Long live love!

Here are this week’s couples:

1. Tania Brief and Andrew Ehrlich

2. Jori Finkel and Michael Lubic

3. Laura Millendorf and Mark Yopp

Click on the link below to read all about these legal lovebirds.

Last week, we reported on rumors of layoffs in the Atlanta and D.C. offices of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan. The post has amassed over 400, um, informed comments.

The fact of layoffs has now been confirmed by the firm. Although Sutherland never responded to ATL’s inquiries, it did talk to Meredith Hobbs, who has this article in the Fulton County Daily Report. The number of firings was lower than rumored, with maybe 8 attorneys let go from the Atlanta office and maybe 7 from the D.C. office. (Managing partner Mark Wasserman uses a lot of modifiers: “fewer than,” “about,” etc.)

The legal tabloid AbovetheLaw.com sparked a firestorm of rumors when it reported Friday that Sutherland Asbill & Brennan was laying off 30 to 40 associates firmwide.

Sutherland’s managing partner, Mark D. Wasserman, acknowledged that the 480-lawyer firm has cut its associate ranks. But he said the firm has asked fewer than 15 associates to leave, with about eight associates affected in the Atlanta office.

Wasserman said the cuts were based on “several factors,” “including the slowing economy, plus associate and practice group performance.”

The firm says it still plans to bring in all of its summer associates and attorneys starting in the fall. But there’s this warning about the future from legal recruiter Melba Hughes:

“I think we’re going to see law firms tighten their belt throughout the region. It’s a natural course of events given the period we’ve just gone through,” she said.

That could mean law firms reduce head count through layoffs, attrition, more cautious hiring and “by looking for new and creative ways to manage their workloads,” said Hughes, which could mean using more contract and staff attorneys instead of partnership-track associates.

The firm did not comment on the herpes rumors.

In The Trenches: Sutherland trims associate ranks [Fulton County Daily Report]

Earlier: Nationwide Layoff Watch: Sutherland Asbill & Brennan

Rumors are circulating about layoffs in the D.C. and Atlanta offices of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan. We reached out to the firm for comment, but they have not responded yet. This is what we have heard.

One ATL tipster says:

Just curious about whether ATL had heard that Sutherland, Asbill, and Brennan had laid off a bunch of folks (expected to be between 32 and 40, when it’s all said and done) in the Atlanta and DC offices. Apparently it’s been handled pretty poorly and has obviously left a lot of associates in the lurch, both those fired and the remaining people who are waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Another tipster says:

I’ve heard a few rumors (well, verified facts rather) about massive layoffs in Sutherland’s DC and Atlanta offices recently. Rumors put the number at over 30 attorneys, including very junior attorneys. Put out the call and reveal the mystery that is the Sutherland Slaughter!

If you have any info to share, please email us. Thanks.

We broke the news of the Kilpatrick Stockton pay raise earlier this month. Today’s Fulton County Daily Report has an article about it here.

The Kilpatrick move is old news — it was actually announced before Labor Day — but Meredith Hobbs’s piece does contain a helpful summary of where the big Atlanta firms stand:

Alston & Bird sparked this round of Atlanta pay raises on Aug. 1 when it increased associate pay across the board, starting at $145,000 for first-years and rising to $190,000 for seventh years—the same scale that Hunton & Williams instituted in February during the year’s first round of associate salary increases. At that time, most of the city’s big firms increased first-year pay from $115,000 to $130,000. That followed a similar $15,000 pay increase at the beginning of 2006, also sparked by Alston.

Other firms that have announced they will raise local first-year pay to $145,000 in January include Troutman Sanders, Sutherland Asbill & Brennan and Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker. Jones Day will raise first-year pay to $150,000 at that time.

Kilpatrick first-years join the $145K club [Fulton County Daily Report]

Earlier: Nationwide Pay Raise Watch: Kilpatrick Stockton

The devoted readership of ATL down in ATL will appreciate this update. From an article by Meredith Hobbs in yesterday’s Fulton County Daily Report:

More law firms have capitulated in Atlanta’s second round of pay raises this year.

Jones Day will raise starting pay to $150,000, and Sutherland Asbill & Brennan and Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker will go to $145,000 — an increase of $15,000 at each firm.

The raises are effective Jan. 1, 2008, when pay raises go into effect at several other Atlanta firms, including Alston & Bird, King & Spalding and Troutman Sanders.

The rest of the article, which contains discussion of salaries for more senior associates (compression!!! aargh!!!), is available here.

Three Law Firms Pump Up Pay for First-Years [Fulton County Daily Report]

The person maintaining this Atlanta List of Shame needs to update it. The starting salary in the Atlanta office of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan is now $145,000 (effective January 1, 2008). The firm has also raised first-year salaries to $160,000 in Houston and Washington, DC (effective September 1, 2007).

For more senior associates, things are a little trickier. The firm will be using a “deferred salary” model, a la Vinson & Elkins.

For details, consult the memo, which appears after the jump.

The day that many of you have been waiting for has arrived. Today ATL goes to ATL: the fair city of Atlanta!

Based on NALP forms and prior news articles, it seems that starting salaries in the Big Peach generally range from $130,000 and $145,000 (similar to Philadelphia).

At $130K: Alston & Bird; Arnall Golden Gregory; King & Spalding; Kilpatrick Stockton; McKenna Long & Aldridge; Morris, Manning & Martin; Paul Hastings; Powell Goldstein; Smith Gambrell & Russell; Sutherland Asbill & Brennan; Troutman Sanders; Womble Carlyle.

At $135K: Jones Day

At $145K.: Dow Lohnes; Hunton & Williams; McGuireWoods; Schiff Hardin.

At $160K: Fish & Richardson (IP work).

Feel free to discuss associate compensation, or any other hot issues in Hotlanta, in the comments. Thanks.

New lawyers’ pay puts public sector to shame [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]
Alston & Bird Raises First-Year Pay Yet Again [Fulton County Daily Report]
Hunton raises first-year salaries to $145,000 [Fulton County Daily Report]

Related: Open threads focused on Denver, Hartford, Philadelphia, Seattle, New Jersey, Phoenix, Charlotte.

The only noteworthy moves today come from Texas. Oh well, at least yesterday was busy.

Lateral Moves:

* Corporate lawyers Paul Bishop, T. Alan Harris, Annette Trip, and Don Wood, to Sutherland Asbill & Brennan (Houston), from Locke Liddell & Sapp.

* A pair of Geralds — Gerald Pels, and Gerald Higdon — to Sutherland Asbill (energy and environmental), from Locke Liddell & Sapp.

New Partners/Principals:

* Dechert (Austin): Intellectual property lawyer Steven Daniels.

* Baker & McKenzie (Dallas): Litigator Elizabeth Yingling.

Lone Star Lawyers On the Move [NYLawyer.com]
Women on the Move [Dallas Business Journal]