A Bumpy Start for New Firm of Laid-Off Lawyers
A boutique law firm formed by laid-off lawyers didn’t last for long.
Lawyers Scott Jaffe, Paul Roberts and Ross Schiller planned the new law firm this winter, but by July the boutique was dead, the American Lawyer reports.
All of the lawyers had a background in structured finance. Jaffe was of counsel at DLA Piper, Roberts was special counsel at Alston & Bird, and Schiller was a credit analyst on collateralized debt obligations for Standard & Poor’s. Their new Manhattan law firm, they decided, would be a boutique focusing on finance, commercial law and bankruptcies.
The lawyers bought computers, created marketing materials touting their low rates, and rented 450-square-feet of office space at the low rent of $1,500 a month.
But work was slow, and the lawyers handled a lot of pro bono work, the story says. Jaffe went on a monthlong trip to Italy that had been planned before his layoff, and Roberts also took a planned vacation.
Schiller left the firm before Jaffe’s trip, and is looking for a new job. “I thought there would be more transactions to be done, especially with the government money,” he told the American Lawyer. “It’s not really the case right now.”
Now Jaffe and Roberts are planning to join another new law firm, Bryant & Partners, formed by DLA Piper lawyer B. Seth Bryant. Jaffe will be a name partner at the 14-lawyer firm.
