Career & Practice

A Court and Army Officer: Retired General William Suter Salutes His 20th Year as Clerk

Ask someone about Elvis Presley and he is likely to recall the 1950s days of “Hound Dog” and “Heartbreak Hotel.” Ask about famed basketball star Elgin Baylor and he may remember cheering for the Los Angeles Lakers. But ask U.S. Supreme Court Clerk William K. Suter, and he will regale…

Mar 1, 2011 9:59 AM CST

Economics and Culture Both Put Their Stamp on Ethics Rules in Tribal Courts

One of the notable trends in the legal ethics field over the past several years has been a gradual movement toward more uniformity in the substance and application of professional conduct rules. There is little, if any, expectation that the states will fall into complete lockstep on how they apply…

Mar 1, 2011 9:43 AM CST

Policy Matter: Firm Plans Insurance Against Evidence Loss

For attorneys and clients who may be keeping physical property and fear damage or loss could give rise to sanctions for evidence spoliation, help—or at least protection—may be on the way. In December, Lexington Insurance Co. announced plans to offer extended policies to guard against spoliation tort claims against clients…

Mar 1, 2011 9:10 AM CST

Princely Prenup? U.S. Lawyers See Rise in Requests for Asset Protection

Prenuptial agreements are on the rise, U.S. lawyers say, and even Britain’s Prince William may be considering one. Queen Elizabeth’s grandson and his fiancée, Kate Middleton, plan the usual family and world-of-friends event in Westminster Abbey next month, and speculation has arisen that before the “I do’s,” the royal couple…

Mar 1, 2011 9:00 AM CST

Free Can Be Good: Add Open Source to Software Considerations

Lawyers looking to cut software costs have begun dipping their toes into a unique category of free software called open source. The combination of tight technology budgets, popularity of open source programs in the business world, and maturity and success of the category has made these programs worth a hard…

Mar 1, 2011 8:50 AM CST

Future Law: Rethink Client Needs, or Else

Law practice is changing so fast and so dramatically that wholesale groups of lawyers either need to change how they operate or face finding another line of business. That’s according to an American Bar Foundation-sponsored panel that gathered to discuss “The Future of Lawyering” at the midyear meeting in Atlanta.…

Mar 1, 2011 8:10 AM CST

Value Billing: Plunging In

When value billing comes up among lawyers, David Boies is reminded of the little boy standing at the edge of a swimming pool telling everyone he’s going to jump in. “He keeps saying, ‘I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it,’ and it’s the same thing with law…

Mar 1, 2011 8:00 AM CST

Letters: Before the BP Fund

“The Master of Disasters,” January, page 32, suggests that the BP settlement fund is the first attempt by a defendant or responsible parties, and their insurers, to confront a disaster directly by establishing an early settlement fund and attacking the need for unnecessarily high contingent fees to achieve the resolution…

Mar 1, 2011 6:05 AM CST

‘Delicate Dance’ for Winston: How to Hire Many Howrey Partners, Without Being Sued?

As observers wait to see what happens with Winston & Strawn’s reported offers to nearly 200 of Howrey’s remaining partners, another question is on many minds: How can the firm potentially hire so many Howrey lawyers without taking on successor liability? While Winston would likely have no problem executing this…

Mar 1, 2011 12:40 AM CST

Bar Survey Says Half of Responding Lawyers Saw Pay Cut, Nearly 20% Are Mulling Career Changes

Pay freezes, staff layoffs and reduced billing rates, as well as other signs of economic stress, are becoming commonplace in law practice, respondents to the latest Florida Bar survey say. And many are now mulling career changes ranging from a shift to another practice area or launching their own firm…

Mar 1, 2011 12:13 AM CST

Former Sonnenschein Partner Expects $2.1M Payday After Jury Says He Deserved More for Lockerbie Work

For a second time, a Superior Court jury in Washington, D.C., has ruled that a former partner of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal was undercompensated for his origination work concerning a case over the bombing of a Pan Am flight above Lockerbie, Scotland. And this time Douglas Rosenthal (no relation to…

Feb 28, 2011 10:15 PM CST

Law Firm Staff Rappel to Safety from 6th Floor After NZ Quake, But Face Uncertain Future

When an earthquake decimated the central business district of Christchurch, N.Z., last week, staff at Grant Cameron and Associates survived but were stuck in their sixth-floor offices in the Forsyth Barr building after all of the stairwells collapsed. Nearby, the pancaked shards of the Pyne Gould building served as a…

Feb 28, 2011 7:06 PM CST

Executive Director of Minority Corporate Counsel Group Jumps to ACC Presidency

Veta Richardson is taking on a new job as president and CEO of the Association of Corporate Counsel. Richardson comes from the Minority Corporate Counsel Association, where she served as executive director since 2001, according to a press release. She replaces Frederick Krebs, who was president of ACC for 20…

Feb 28, 2011 5:09 PM CST

Howrey VC Recounts Problems: Quick Growth, Lower Profits and Partners Who ‘Bailed on Us’

Corrected: A critical mass of Howrey lawyers has reportedly indicated an interest in joining Winston & Strawn, bringing the deal to acquire many of Howrey’s remaining lawyers closer to completion. This past weekend was crucial, according to the Recorder’s blog Legal Pad. Citing confidential sources, the blog says Winston partners…

Feb 28, 2011 11:30 AM CST

While Urging Prospective Clients to ‘Reject Convention,’ New Firm Is, In Some Ways, Very Traditional

Seven BigLaw refugees urge potential clients to “reject convention” and utilize the services of their new intellectual property boutique on Feinberg Day Alberti & Thompson’s website. Their Palo Alto, Calif., firm is unusual because it staffs every case with experienced patent litigation partners—Feinberg Day has no associates—and yet charges clients…

Feb 28, 2011 11:00 AM CST