Associates

Legal Job Hunters Should Tune in to Interviewer’s Personality, Recruiting Directors Say

Law students interviewing for law jobs need to show—and practice—their emotional intelligence by providing good answers to hypothetical questions and connecting with interviewers. Law firm interviewers are looking for candidates with interpersonal skills that can be used to foster client relationships, according to Alison Bernard and Niki Kopsidas, recruiting directors…

Jul 20, 2010 2:54 PM CDT

Law Firms with 2 Tiers of Associates Pay 2nd Ranks Up to 50% Less

For years, a number of law firms have had two tiers of partners, often differentiating between equity and non-equity holders of the same job title. Now, in a new trend that is taking hold among some California law firms, there may be two ranks of associates. Paid as much as…

Jul 16, 2010 7:46 PM CDT

Accused of Partying Too Hearty at Law Firm Event, Partner Sues 2 Associates Who Complained for $2.3M

Accused of inappropriate conduct at an alcohol-fueled law firm event at a Toronto nightclub, a partner at a well-known labor and employment boutique has sued the two associates who complained internally at Mathews Dinsdale & Clarke but not the Canadian law firm itself. By filing suit for defamation and intentional…

Jul 15, 2010 5:07 PM CDT

Will Law School Credentials Bubble Burst? Law Prof Calls Trends ‘Unsustainable’

Tuition is rising at law schools even as lawyer jobs are disappearing, raising questions about whether there is a dangerous bubble that is about to burst. Even a degree from a top law school doesn’t guarantee a job, notes Indiana University law professor Bill Henderson. He spoke to U.S. News…

Jul 15, 2010 11:00 AM CDT

Summer Associate Faux Pas Include Chewing Gum, Checking Phones, Closing Eyes

Paul Hastings summer associates, beware. The hiring partner doesn’t like it when you chew gum or check your cell phone for text messages during client meetings. And don’t close your eyes during depositions and meetings or show up late, advises hiring partner Leigh Ryan. She spoke with the Careerist blog…

Jul 14, 2010 12:19 PM CDT

Are We Fashion Victims? Just Say So, Interns Urge Female Lawyers

As hot weather encourages everyone to shed some clothing, it’s easier than usual for young women in law offices to become fashion victims. (Men have the advantage of a customary business dress code, and hence are less likely to stray from accepted norms.) So what’s a senior woman lawyer to…

Jul 13, 2010 10:14 PM CDT

Recruiter Sees Uptick in Associate Hires at California Firms

Southern California legal recruiter Delia Swan is hearing from more law firms seeking to hire experienced associates. Swan told the Recorder that, at the beginning of the year, she might go a week without a job call from law firms. The market is getting better now, she said, particularly for…

Jul 13, 2010 1:31 PM CDT

King & Spalding Summer Associate Dies in Commuter Train Accident

A summer associate at King & Spalding with a seemingly bright future who was to start his third year of law school this fall died early Sunday in a Washington, D.C., commuter train accident. Joseph Doyle’s death was announced Monday in an online letter to the College of William &…

Jul 7, 2010 5:18 PM CDT

Would-Be Associates at Some East Coast Firms Face Longer Deferrals, Fewer Summer Jobs

There’s more bad news for some law grads and students who want to work for some East Coast law firms. Associates deferred in 2009 at Shearman & Sterling learned Friday that they won’t start work at the law firm until 2011, according to the New York Law Journal and Above…

Jul 7, 2010 12:43 PM CDT

Add ‘Lost in Wilderness’ to List of Good Excuses for Not Checking E-Mail

Being a summer associate at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan is no walk in the park. Last month, when more than 70 Quinn Emanuel attorneys and summers hiked Mount St. Helens in the Pacific Northwest, two summer associates were temporarily lost. They slid down the mountain in the wrong direction…

Jul 6, 2010 11:46 PM CDT

Mintz Levin Changes ‘Troubled’ Associate Review Process, Requires Essay Answers

Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo has ditched its multiple-choice associate rating questionnaire and is now requiring its partners to do their evaluations in essay form. The firm’s managing partner, Robert Bodian, told the National Law Journal that the firm changed the process because it was “fairly troubled.” Under…

Jul 2, 2010 1:51 PM CDT

Hospitality Industry Suffers as Law Firms Cut Parties for Summer Associates

Law students searching for summer associate positions aren’t the only ones feeling the pinch from tight law firm budgets. As law firms hire fewer summers and cut back on the parties, the hospitality industry is also suffering. Save The Date in New York City arranges events for summers at investment…

Jun 28, 2010 12:32 PM CDT

The Long Goodbye: Baker & McKenzie Bids Final Adieu to 11 Would-Be Associates in Class of ‘09

It’s official: Baker & McKenzie has told 11 would-be New York associates from the Class of 2009 that it still doesn’t have enough work to justify hiring them so they will have to look for jobs elsewhere. “We regret having to make this decision,” the megafirm tells Above the Law,…

Jun 22, 2010 10:58 PM CDT

Law Firms Express ‘Growing Enthusiasm’ for Contract Lawyers

There isn’t much good news for associates in a new survey of leaders of law firms with more than 50 lawyers. Forty-four percent of the firms laid off associates last year, 53 percent reduced or discontinued hiring first-year associates, and 64 percent shrunk their summer associate programs, according to the…

Jun 22, 2010 2:37 PM CDT

Up to 20-Lawyer Group Is Departing Nixon Peabody for Pillsbury Winthrop

A group of up to 20 corporate lawyers from Nixon Peabody has joined the New York office of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman. Led by Mats Carlston, the former global finance practice chief at Nixon Peabody, they are at least the second group of lawyers to leave the 800-attorney firm since…

Jun 18, 2010 7:50 PM CDT