Steven Harper
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2nd Circuit, Billable Hours, Blog Wars, Blogging, Books, Citigroup, Holidays and Seasons, Judge of the Day, Law Schools, Non-Sequiturs, Securities Law, Sex, Sex Scandals, State Judges, State Judges Are Clowns, Wall Street
Non-Sequiturs: 03.29.13
* To those of you who celebrate it, Happy Easter! Welcome the holiday by voting in the ABA Journal’s fifth annual “Peeps in Law” contest. [ABA Journal] * If law firm brackets aren’t your thing, check out Professor Kyle Graham’s brackets for (1) law school classes and (2) law blogs. I’m thankful for ATL’s #1 seed but terrified by who we’re up against (because they’ve ripped me a new one before). [noncuratlex] * Sorry, Judge Steiner, you wuz robbed; you should have been our Judge of the Day. It’s tough to top “allegations of a sexual quid pro quo with a female lawyer and the eye-opening confiscation of carpet from [chambers] for forensic analysis.” [OC Weekly] William Shatner * “William Shatner’s Seductive Powers Don’t Create a Fiduciary Duty.” Robyn Hagan Cain explains why. [U.S. Second Circuit / FindLaw] * Citi settles securities cases for $730 million. Matt Levine is not impressed. [Dealbreaker] * And Ted Frank is incensed by Bernstein Litowitz’s nine-figure fee request. [Point of Law] * If you’re already depressed by public ignorance about the Supreme Court, don’t look at the responses to question 9 of this opinion poll. [Penn Schoen Berland] * Steven Harper — author of a new (and very good) book about the legal profession, The Lawyer Bubble (affiliate link) — offers thoughts on the billable hour in the wake of the DLA Piper overbilling allegations. [New York Times] -
Law Schools, Rankings, U.S. News
What Would a More Relevant Law School Ranking Look Like? You Tell Us
What would a more relevant law firm rankings methodology look like? - Sponsored
New Report - Are Small Firms Achieving Their Legal Tech Goals?
In this new report of more than 100 professionals at small and smaller midsize law firms, iManage and Above the Law shed new light on… -
Biglaw, Blogging, Media and Journalism, Partner Issues
Buying In: A Biglaw Blogroll
Which blogs should you be reading if you're a Biglaw partner? Some insights from our Anonymous Partner.
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Law Schools, Quote of the Day, Unemployment
Quote Of The Day: How Are Law Schools Like Bad Dates?
A riddle: How is law school like going on a bad date? -
Law Professors, Law Schools, Quote of the Day
Quote of the Day: They Paved Paradise, And Put Up A Parking Lot Law School
Should ASU Law build a new facility? At least one law professor doesn't think so. -
Books, General Counsel, In-House Counsel, Lawyerly Lairs, Money, Partner Issues, Real Estate, Susan Estrich
Lawyerly Lairs: Hie Thee to Iowa?
Want to escape to the heartland? Check out the lovely home of a former Biglaw partner and general counsel, which is now on the market -- for a very modest price.... -
Bankruptcy, Biglaw, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Dissolution, Headhunters / Recruiters, Lateral Moves, Money, Musical Chairs, Partner Issues
Dewey Plan To Give Retired Partners a Seat at the Bankruptcy Table?
What's the latest news in the Dewey & LeBoeuf bankruptcy? -
Accounting / Accountants, Biglaw, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Lateral Moves, Money, Musical Chairs, Partner Issues, Partner Profits, Tax Law
Dewey Know How To Do The Taxes?
Dewey know how to do the partnership's taxes? Some D&L partners are confused by the updated K-1 tax forms issued to them by the firm. And, speaking of Dewey partners, defections continue.... - Sponsored
How To Maximize Productivity With Westlaw Precision With CoCounsel
Westlaw Precision with CoCounsel helps legal professionals get a faster start to their research. Over time, that added productivity can lead to higher-quality research and… -
Admin, Announcements, Blogging, Job Searches, Media and Journalism
Above the Law Seeks Additional Writers
Interested in writing for Above the Law? Please read on.... -
Asians, Biglaw, Blogging, Law Schools, Lindsay Lohan, Morning Docket, Old People
Morning Docket: 04.02.12
* Thinking of going to law school and leading a stereotypical Biglaw life of luxury? Perhaps you should consider taking ex-K&E partner Steven Harper’s class at Northwestern. You might just change your mind. [Chicago Tribune]
* The HuffPo’s unpaid bloggers are going to stay that way for now, because Jonathan Tasini’s $105M class action suit has been dismissed. Perhaps he’ll get another SCOTUS case under his belt. [Thomson Reuters News & Insight]
* Parts of Junie Hoang’s lawsuit against IMDb have survived dismissal, but she can kiss her $1M damages claim goodbye. Too bad, because at her age, she could really use the retirement money. [Hollywood Reporter]
* Hofstra’s going to Havana, but it’s not to get career advice from Fidel. Instead, students will learn about U.S. export law. Sigh. You don’t need to go to Cuba to find out you can’t bring back cigars. [National Law Journal]
* Who’s the latest lady love in Lindsay Lohan’s life? Shawn Holley. LiLo reportedly whispered sweet nothings into her lawyer’s ear after she was freed from the bonds of supervised probation. [Los Angeles Times]
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Biglaw, Dissolution, Money, Partner Issues, Partner Profits
Make It Rain or Make Way
If you think that making partner is like winning the Biglaw race, you haven’t actually been paying attention to what’s been happening to partners over the past few years. Sure, Biglaw partnerships overall are enjoying higher profits now than they were during the darkest days of the recession (while associate salaries remain stagnant, of course). […] -
American Bar Association / ABA, Associate Bonus Watch 2011, Bloomberg, Bonuses, Job Searches, Law Schools, Partner Issues, Partner Profits, Unemployment, Videos, YouTube
Is the Legal Recession Finally Ending?
At the start of this new year, what is the outlook like for legal employment? There's certainly a fair amount of bad news out there, particularly for recent law school graduates. But what about for denizens of Biglaw, the lawyers fortunate (or unfortunate) enough to work at the nation's largest law firms? What does 2012 hold for them? Earlier this month, Elie made some predictions for the legal profession. Lat will follow in his footsteps and venture some prophecies of his own for the year.... -
Akin Gump, Associate Bonus Watch 2011, Associate Salaries, Bonuses, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Ho-Love, Money, Partner Profits
Keeping Up With the Cravathians: The Ten Most Generous (or Foolish?) Law Firms
Cravath is among the most profitable firms in the world. We thought it would be interesting to see what the implications of matching Cravath are for those firms with much lower profit margins. Which firms’ partners willingly take the biggest hit by keeping up? Are these firms arguably more “generous”? After the jump, check out those firms that pay the largest percentage of PPP in bonuses....
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Attention Buyer: Not All Legal AI Models Are Created Equal
Mitigating M&A Cyber Risk: Pre- & Post-Acquisition Due Diligence
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New Report - Are Small Firms Achieving Their Legal Tech Goals?
The Ethical use of Generative AI
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LSAT, Minority Issues, Small Law Firms
Size Matters: Diversity in Small Firms
There are a lot of unhappy lawyers. We all know that. Part of their discontent is due to the fact that many young people go to law school who may not want to be lawyers, or do not take the time during law school to figure out what type of practice best fits their personality and goals. But what about those individuals who actually want to be lawyers, but due to certain biases are not able to pursue their dreams? -
Biglaw, Books, Job Searches, Small Law Firms
Size Matters: Seriously, Size Matters
We are almost three months into my one-woman quest to convince the world (or at least ATL readers) that bigger is not always better. Isn’t that why Jamie Oliver is moonlighting as a lunch lady? Unfortunately, some people still are not convinced. So I called in an expert, Steven Harper (previously featured here). Harper, a […] -
Biglaw, Job Searches, Small Law Firms
Size Matters: Advice From A Real Expert on Choosing a Small Firm
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Size Matters, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. As discussed previously, Steven Harper threw down the gauntlet when it comes to top law schools focusing all their recruiting efforts on Biglaw placements. And the woman who reads my tea leaves said that small […] -
Biglaw, Job Searches, Law Schools, Small Law Firms
Size Matters: Forget You, Biglaw (oo, oo, ooo)
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Size Matters, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. Like many unhappy lawyers, I find Cee Lo Green’s F**k You — which has been picked up by radio stations in a more family-friendly version, Forget You — to be a personal theme song (a […] -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 01.17.11
* Lawsuit lending, i.e., investing in lawsuits, is a booming business — but are plaintiffs getting screwed (again)? [New York Times] * The “state secrets” doctrine goes before the Supreme Court tomorrow. [USA Today via How Appealing] * Elsewhere in SCOTUS news, Justice Breyer gets a shout-out in the title of a new study: “‘People […]
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Biglaw, In-House Counsel, Money, Partner Issues
Inside Straight: A Tangent on Merit-Based Compensation
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Inside Straight, Above the Law’s new column for in-house counsel, written by Mark Herrmann. I like what Steven Harper’s doing these days. After 30 years at Kirkland & Ellis, he retired from the fray, and he now comments on big law firms from an outsider’s perspective, at […]