In-House Counsel
Some Law Firm Clients Ban 1st-Years, Says Morgan Lewis Chair
Posted Apr 13, 2009, 04:49 pm CST
By Martha Neil
Litigation and labor and employment are busy right now at Morgan Lewis & Bockius. But an ongoing emphasis by corporate clients on value is making some significant changes in the profession, according to firm chairman Francis Milone.
Among the sea changes is a reluctance by a number of clients, or even an outright ban, as far having first-year associates work on their matters, says Milone in a wide-ranging interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer.
"It's a trend," he tells the newspaper. "We literally have some clients who are telling us they do not want us to put brand-new associates on their matters."
The problem is, at a starting salary of $160,000 a head for the firm's first-years, such client reluctance is making the new associates less useful to Morgan Lewis, he points out. "It's going to be harder to find things for new lawyers to do. "
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: "Morgan Lewis Chair is ‘Very Confident & Positive About the Future’"
ABAJournal.com: "731 Lawyers and Staff Laid Off Monday at Morgan Lewis, K&L Gates and White & Case"
ABAJournal.com: "DuPont Shifts From BigLaw Model, Hires More Smaller Firms"
ABAJournal.com: "In Brave New Post-Boom World, Corporate Clients Now Want Value"
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