Biglaw hiring is picking up, but deferrals are not yet a thing of the past. Proskauer is deferring some of its new blood from 2010 to 2012 (don't worry, you're still on stipend), but letting the class of 2011 start on schedule. Foley & Lardner, on the other hand, is pushing its class of 2011 back to 2012 without a stipend -- harsh.
Way back in 2008, back when people were wondering just how bad the recession was going to be for Biglaw, Heller Ehrman collapsed. When the firm dissolved, there was a lot of fear that it would be the first of many to fold. While a few other firms also dissolved during the recession, we didn’t […]
A couple of weeks ago, we reported on the public interest stipend Georgetown Law offered its recent graduates. Georgetown University Law Center gave a three month stipend of $4,000 to its recent graduates who are working for a public interest organization. Today, we have news that GULC is extending the fellowship for an additional three […]
We’ve done a lot of coverage about deferral stipends, public interest stipends, and other direct payments to graduates who are not able to secure prime, private practice employment. If you think about it, these programs have popped up with shocking speed. In 2007, there was no such thing as a “deferral stipend” from firms, and […]
With apologies to Langston Hughes, we have to ask: What happens to an associate deferred? Does he dry up, like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore — and then run? Run, run — away from Biglaw. That seems to be what at least some deferred associates are doing, as reported last […]
This was bound to happen at some point. There have been countless associates who were promised jobs at law firms. They stopped looking for other jobs in reliance on that job offer. Then during the recession they were deferred, or their offers were rescinded. They are the leading citizens of the Lost Generation. Do they […]
Proper trust accounting and three-way reconciliation are essential for protecting client funds and avoiding serious compliance risks. In this guide, we break down these critical processes and show how legal-specific software can help your firm stay accurate, efficient, and audit-ready.
DLA Piper recently rejoined the ranks of Biglaw firms paying a $160,000 starting salary. Welcome back to the pack. Unfortunately, some incoming associates hoping to start at DLA will have to wait quite a bit before they are able to cash in on that $160K dream. A tipster reports: DLA Piper just told their incoming […]
A little over a year ago, law firms came up with a unique plan to deal with the problem of too many associates and not enough work to go around: the deferral. It did not apply just to incoming associates; it was also offered up to those already at the firm who were open to […]
Shearman & Sterling is setting off some fireworks at the start of this Fourth of July weekend. It sent out a memo this morning to its deferred associates from 2009. (Remember them? They got $65,000 last year if they volunteered to go away until September 2010.) The deferred associates expected a letter two months ago […]
Do you remember the scene in the Amityville Horror House movie where the toilet says to the family, “Get out”? That seems to be what firms are telling incoming associates when they defer first-years until 2012. Today, we’ve got another firm that has decided to put some of its incoming associates on the long march […]
Explore 5 expert-backed reasons law firms are rethinking the billable hour and how legal billing software is leading the way.
If your firm offered you a “voluntary” deferral option last year, they sure made a lot of promises. Chiefest among them was the understanding that the people who left voluntarily for a year would be able to come back to the firm and resume their Biglaw careers after the deferral. Well, that bond is about […]
When it comes to deferring incoming associates, what is the new normal? A couple of months ago, we reported that Mintz Levin was deferring its class of 2010 associates to 2012. At the time, Mintz Levin didn’t reveal any information about its deferral stipend. Today, tipsters are telling us about the Mintz Levin stipend. Let’s […]
The “pro bono year” is to Biglaw what a “study abroad program” is to most American universities: a time for reflection, exposure to new things, and a more relaxed pace. It was a necessity born of the recession. Firms did not have enough work to go around; they didn’t want to lose perfectly good employees, […]
We’ve received tips, texts, and phone calls about Blank Rome. As spring hurtles towards summer, the firm is letting incoming associates know that they won’t be starting any time soon. A tipster reports the firm is “rescinding” offers, but that’s not technically correct: I just heard from a friend that Blank Rome has rescinded offers […]
Congratulations to Mr. Chuck and his co-conspirators. It appears that their efforts to exert grassroots pressure on Mayer Brown, with the goal of getting the firm to inform them of the terms of their offers, have borne fruit. As first mentioned in the comments on our post from yesterday regarding Winston & Strawn, incoming associates […]
