Townsend and Townsend and Crew

Bankruptcy

Morning Docket: 08.21.13

* According to Justice Elena Kagan, the rest of her colleagues are Supreme technophobes. Because “[t]he court hasn’t really ‘gotten to’ email,” they still pass handwritten memos to each other. [Associated Press] * “[I]f we don’t get some relief we might as well close our doors.” Thanks to sequestration, budget cuts to the federal judiciary have resulted in layoffs in the Southern District of New York. Sad. [New York Law Journal] * Kodak’s Chapter 11 reorganization was approved by Judge Allan Gropper, who called the affair “a tragedy of American economic life.” He must’ve had fond memories of getting other people’s pictures. [Bloomberg] * Bankruptcy lawyers for corporate debtors are going to have to crack down on churning their bills. Starting in November, they will be subject to additional rules, and even (gasp!) fee examiners. [WSJ Law Blog] * Guardian reporter Glenn Greenwald’s partner, David Miranda (because of course his surname is Miranda), has lawyered up after his unusual nine-hour detainment at Heathrow airport this weekend. [Am Law Daily] * So long, Nuts and Boalts: Christopher Edley, dean of Boalt Hall, is taking a medical leave and cutting short his term as the school’s leader at the end of the year. [Bottom Line / San Francisco Chronicle] * “We’ll take him.” Indiana Tech Law School opens today, and its founding dean is very excited to add a 33rd student — one who was admitted yesterday — to the school’s inaugural class. [National Law Journal] * Eugene Crew, co-founder of the firm once known as Townsend and Townsend and Crew, RIP. [Recorder]

Biglaw

Which Law Firms Are Most Diverse? Let’s Look at the Rankings

Law firm diversity matters. It matters to corporate clients, many of them public companies that want to demonstrate their commitment to diversity through their selection of vendors and service providers — which is what law firms are, at the end of the day. It matters to the law students and lawyers that firms are trying […]

Deaths

Two Suicides and a Murder

We really don’t like writing about murders, suicides, and murder suicides here on Above the Law. They are always sad, the loss of human life is always tragic, and it’s really hard to be funny/snarky/edgy when people have died. That said, we have to go where the news takes us, and so we press on […]

Layoffs

Nationwide Layoff Watch: Townsend Lays Off 34 of Its Crew

Are we about to head into, or already in the midst of, a double-dip recession? The stock market has been taking a beating. Unemployment claims are on the upswing. And law firm layoffs continue. The Daily Journal reports: A month after the collapse of a proposed merger, San Francisco-based intellectual property boutique Townsend and Townsend […]

Biglaw

Law Firm Merger Mania: Townsend and Kilpatrick Kill Talks

Back in May, we reported on merger rumors involving Kilpatrick Stockton and Townsend and Townsend and Crew. As it turns out, the firms were in talks — but now those talks have fallen apart. As the two firms told the Daily Journal, the talks were called off because of a familiar reason: potential client conflicts. […]