Peter Sacripanti

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 06.17.16

* Happy Friday! Let's start by giving props to the firms that announced pay raises yesterday: Morgan Lewis, Andrews Kurth, Ashurst, Crowell & Moring, Orrick, and Dechert. [Above the Law / 2016 Salary Increase] * Speaking of the Great Pay Raise of 2016, law firm leaders want to reassure irate in-house counsel: don't worry, you won't see this (directly) reflected in your rates. [Big Law Business] * Biglaw Game of Thrones: who are the leading contenders to succeed Jeffrey Stone and Peter Sacripanti as co-chairs of McDermott? [American Lawyer] * The Second Circuit plays a sad song for record companies in a closely watched copyright case. [How Appealing] * And in other copyright news, SCOTUS (sorta) clarifies the standards for awarding attorneys' fees in copyright cases. [New York Times] * Look for indictments to issue from the grand jury in the Dan Markel murder case. [News4Jax] * Noam Scheiber of the Times takes a close look at struggling Valparaiso Law -- and it's not a pretty picture. (Expect more on this later.) [New York Times] * Ex-prosecutor gone bad: a Cleveland criminal defense attorney just got convicted after agreeing to launder thousands of dollars for someone he thought was a cocaine dealer. [Cleveland Plain Dealer]

Biglaw

What’s Going on at McDermott Will & Emery?

Last week, the American Lawyer shined a spotlight on extensive partner departures from McDermott Will & Emery. According to Brian Baxter of Am Law Daily, a whopping 38 partners have left MWE in 2011 so far. Let's look at some of the departures, explore possible implications for the firm, and discuss what might be motivating the movement toward the exits....