Support Staff
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Airplanes / Aviation, Biglaw, Breasts, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Fashion, Law Schools, Military / Military Law, Morning Docket, Nina Totenberg, Partner Issues, Wall Street Journal, Women's Issues
Morning Docket: 03.19.12
* With 269 partners to go, Dewey need to start panicking yet? Twelve additional partners, including practice group leaders, have jumped ship, bringing the grand total of partner-level defectors to 31 since January. [DealBook / New York Times]
* Late-breaking news: law schools’ numbers still don’t add up. The New York Times has already said its piece on the problem with law schools, so the Wall Street Journal decided that it was time to chime in again. [Wall Street Journal]
* Army Staff Sergeant Robert Bales, the man accused of going on an Afghan killing spree, will be represented by Ted Bundy’s lawyer. In the court of public opinion, that’s equivalent to pleading guilty. [Bloomberg]
* “I have had it with these motherf**king snakes breastfeeding women on this motherf**king plane!” A mother has settled a lawsuit with her airline over being kicked off a plane for nursing her child. [Businessweek]
* Here’s a fashion tip for law firm staff: you wear orange shirts in prison, not at the office. Think twice next time before you wear that color to work, because you might get fired like these folks in Florida. [Sun-Sentinel]
* Let’s face it, there is no escape from the law, not even in your free time (if that even exists). That being said, here’s a lawyerly crossword puzzle, inspired by Nina Totenberg’s reporting on legal affairs. Have fun! [NPR]
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Biglaw, Layoffs, Partner Issues, Partner Profits, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants, Staff Layoffs
Staff Layoff Watch: Bingham McCutchen Makes Cuts
Are staff layoffs at large law firms on the upswing? Bingham McCutchen just announced some cuts. How many individuals were affected, and what was the rationale for the reductions? - Sponsored
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
If 2023 introduced legal professionals to generative AI, then 2024 will be when law firms start adapting to utilize it. Things are moving fast, so… -
Biglaw, Bonuses, Clerkships, Federal Government, Money, Paralegals, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants
A Shout-Out to All The Legal Types Getting a $0 Bonus This Holiday Season
Our bonus coverage only deals with those few, those happy few, who are lucky enough to receive any type of bonus whatsoever. For many in and around Biglaw, their bonus this year will be $0. We're talking about paralegals. We're talking about secretaries. We're talking about government lawyers and law clerks and a bunch of other people who worked really hard in 2011 and might get no bonus at all. We feel your pain....
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Bad Ideas, California, Cheapness, Holidays and Seasons, Money, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants, Shopping, Shopping For Others, Small Law Firms
California Firm Puts the 'Ghetto' Into 'Re-Gifting'
I’m much more likely to throw away a gift or give it to charity than to regift something I already have or don’t want. I think I’d live in fear of the original gift-giver meeting up with the regift recipient and talking about how I was a bad friend for orchestrating the whole mess. I’d […] -
Biglaw, Feminism, Gender, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants, Women's Issues
Why Legal Secretaries Hate Women Lawyers
Being a woman is a tough job, especially when you're working in a Biglaw atmosphere. Among the long list of things that Biglaw women have to worry about, being cordial to coworkers sometimes tends to fall by the wayside. So ladies, have you been wondering why your legal secretary avoids eye contact with you at all costs? Here, let me give you a clue: it's because your legal secretary secretly hates you.... -
Biglaw, Bonuses, California, Cheapness, Money, Paralegals, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants
Is the Staff Getting the Short End of the Stick at Baker & McKenzie?
Without paralegals, legal assistants, legal secretaries, clerks, and receptionists, the entire Biglaw model could come to a screeching halt. That being said, we were a little bit shocked when we learned about what is allegedly happening at one of the world's largest law firms, Baker & McKenzie. Apparently some members of the support staff aren't getting the kind of support they need.... -
Biglaw, Labor / Employment, Racism, Rudeness, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants, Sex, Sex Scandals
Nelson v. Jones Day: Case Dismissed
Jaki Nelson, an African-American woman who once worked as a legal secretary in the Los Angeles office of Jones Day, sued the firm last year. She made some explosive allegations -- but were they without merit? A California judge just dismissed her case. -
Education / Schools, Paralegals, pls hndle thx
Pls Hndle Thx: A Degree More Useless Than a J.D.?
Ed. note: Have a question for next week? Send it in to advice@abovethelaw.com. Dear ATL, I just received my A.A. in Paralegal Studies. Will this be useful at all? How do attorneys view paralegals? I don’t need an attorney to like me. I just need one to pay me. — Wrong Kind of Associate Dear Wrong […] - Sponsored
Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The rise of remote work has dramatically reshaped the relationship between Lawyers and Law Firms, see how Scale LLP has taken the steps to get… -
Biglaw, Ho-Love, Layoffs, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants, Staff Layoffs
The Return of Staff Layoff Watch? Hogan Lovells Offers 'Voluntary' Separation Program
I feel like I’ve stepped into a time machine that has taken me all the way back to 2009. According to an internal memo obtained by Above the Law, the international law firm of Hogan Lovells is offering a voluntary separation program to U.S. staff. The memo, posted in full below, talks about needing to […] -
Biglaw, Musical Chairs, Partner Issues
Latham Officially Launches Its Boston Office
It’s about time. We’ve been writing about the new Boston office of Latham & Watkins for weeks now (here and here), revealing a number of their top lateral hires. On Wednesday, Latham made its official announcement — and confirmed the accuracy of our prior reporting. All of the partners we previously named as Latham-bound, taken […] -
Advertising, Biglaw, Career Center, Paralegals, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants, Shameless Plugs, This Is an Ad
How to Become an (Almost) Indispensable Junior Associate (Part 3)
In parts one and two of the Career Center “Tip of the Day” series, focused on how junior associates can become more indispensable to their law firms, we covered the importance of taking ownership of your work and becoming an expert in your field. Today, we’ll discuss effective management strategies you can use to not […] -
Biglaw, Layoffs, Staff Layoffs
Staff Layoff Watch: Hughes Hubbard & Reed (Los Angeles)
Law firm layoffs might be down, but they’re not out. Today we bring news of staff layoffs in the Los Angeles office of Hughes Hubbard & Reed. We heard reports that approximately 12 out of 18 support staff members have been or will be laid off. According to these reports, eleven were laid off earlier […] -
Associate Bonus Watch 2010, Biglaw, Bonuses, Money
Associate (and Staff) Bonus Watch: Vinson & Elkins Is Treating All of Its Employees
Associates bitch when partners won’t share the wealth, but nobody says a peep when legal support staff get shafted. The very concept of staff bonuses has gotten lost in the recession shuffle, despite the fact that the support staff who remain are being stretched so thin. Well, it looks like Vinson & Elkins remembers that […]
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The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
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Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
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Deaths, Law Schools, Non-Sequiturs, SCOTUS, Supreme Court, Tax Law
Non-Sequiturs: 12.28.10
* An impressive collection of legal humor — amusing motions, orders, opinions, and the like. [Law Law Land] * (Celebrity) Lawyer of the Day: Michael “Mickey” Sherman, a prominent criminal defense lawyer and the husband of a Fox News legal analyst, is going to prison Physician, heal thyself. [TaxProf Blog] * Elie isn’t feeling well […] -
Biglaw, Billable Hours, Partner Profits, Staff Layoffs
Staff Layoffs Could Happen as Firms Struggle to Pump Up Profits
Welcome back from your long weekend. I trust everybody is ready to put in a lot of hard work through the holiday season in order to finish the year off strong. Ah, what’s the point? Based on the early bonus news, it seems that Biglaw managers are going to go with stingy bonus payments for […] -
Secretaries / Administrative Assistants
Nationwide Staff Layoff Watch: DLA Piper
Yesterday we started receiving multiple reports of staff layoffs at DLA Piper. The reports related to various U.S. offices of the firm, including (but not limited to) Baltimore and Sacramento. They concerned support staff, including secretaries, but not lawyers. In terms of the scale of the layoffs, no hard numbers were available. One source expressed […] -
Biglaw, Labor / Employment, Lawsuit of the Day, Minority Issues, Rudeness, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants, Sex, Sex Scandals
Nelson v. Jones Day: Another Side to the Story
Earlier this week, we brought you the story of Nelson v. Jones Day — a discrimination lawsuit filed against Jones Day by Jaki Nelson, an African-American woman who worked at JD for almost 18 years. Some of the allegations in Nelson’s complaint — use of racial slurs by firm partners and administrators, sex scandals, and […] -
Biglaw, Labor / Employment, Lawsuit of the Day, Racism, Rudeness, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants, Sex, Sex Scandals
Lawsuit of the Day: Ex-Jones Day Secretary Alleges Racial Slurs, Sex Scandals, and More
UPDATE (7/25/2011): Please note that this case, making allegations that Jones Day describes as “baseless and inflammatory,” has been dismissed. Oh boy. Discrimination lawsuits filed by former employees against law firms can get pretty salacious. But we haven’t seen a complaint this juicy since Allgood v. Williams Mullen (aka the “cucumber incident”), or maybe Braude […] -
Associate Bonus Watch 2010, Biglaw, Bonuses, Money
Jones Day Prepares for Bonus Season By Telling Staff They'll Get Nothing
Until Cravath proves me wrong, I’m going to keep on believing that associate bonuses will be better this year than last. But this early indication from the notoriously secretive firm of Jones Day doesn’t bode well for my prediction. Today Jones Day communicated to its administrative staff that it wouldn’t be paying them a bonus […] -
Biglaw, Layoffs, Paralegals, Secretaries / Administrative Assistants, Staff Layoffs
Staff Layoff Watch: WilmerHale Lays Off 57 Staffers
We don’t have all of the details, but multiple sources report that WilmerHale is laying off 57 staffers today (secretaries and paralegals). We understand that the staff is being informed right now. We don’t have information about what (if any) severance package is being offered to the departed staff. Our sources report that the layoffs […]