Careers

People Who Are Less Agreeable Get Higher Paychecks, Study Finds

People who are less agreeable are more highly paid, a new study concludes. The pay difference is greater for men than women, according to the study. On average, disagreeable men earned about 18 percent more while disagreeable women earned about 5 percent more. The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) summarizes…

Aug 16, 2011 11:36 AM CDT

Former Lawyers Pursue Alternative Careers and Find the Work Grueling

Many lawyers may dream of careers outside the law, pursuing their passions and enjoying the good life. Two lawyers who tried it, however, found the work can be grueling, the New York Times reports. “Plan B, it turns out, is a lot harder than it seems,” the story says. The…

Aug 16, 2011 11:00 AM CDT

Northwestern Law Grad Was Part of Dartmouth Program to Educate Chicago Gang Members

A 1960s-era Dartmouth program to educate Chicago gang members with an aptitude for public speaking produced seven graduates, including one who went on to Northwestern Law School. A reporter writing for Chicago Magazine tracked down details of the program after learning about it from a legal aid lawyer who was…

Aug 16, 2011 10:30 AM CDT

Prominent Calif. Attorney Struck and Killed While Jogging; Police Seek Hit-and-Run Driver

A prominent San Francisco lawyer and avid runner was struck and killed yesterday by a pickup truck as he was jogging. Authorities are seeking the hit-and-run driver who struck Don Andrew Casper around 7 p.m. as he was running on River Road near Odd Fellows Park, reports the Press Democrat.…

Aug 15, 2011 9:32 PM CDT

Irell Says Hollywood Dreams, Rather than Bias, Spurred Former Partner to Leave

Irell & Manella is contradicting the claims of a former partner who claims in a lawsuit that the law firm cut her pay because of lost hours during maternity leave. Irell asserts that Juliette Youngblood left the firm in 2009 to pursue dreams of becoming a Hollywood producer, the Am…

Aug 15, 2011 1:53 PM CDT

Around the Blawgosphere: A Law Prof Scamblogger?; Trying Cases and Doing Triathlons

‘Inside the Law School Scam’ An anonymous tenured “LawProf” at a school “located within a good regional university with some nationally recognized departments” who asserts that he is tenured has gone into the confessional to author Inside the Law School Scam, which launched this week and is six posts strong…

Aug 12, 2011 2:57 PM CDT

Nebraska Attorney General Criticized for Comparing Welfare Recipients to Hungry Raccoons

Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning has issued an apology after comparing welfare recipients to hungry raccoons during a campaign speech. Bruning is seeking the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate. Speaking on Saturday, he told of an effort to protect endangered beetles found during a road construction project, report Fox…

Aug 12, 2011 12:18 PM CDT

Several Law Firms Plan to Increase Hiring; Law Schools Jockey for Placements

The hiring outlook may be slightly better for law students this year. Several large law firms are planning to increase hiring over the previous year, the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) reports. They include Bingham McCutchen, planning to increase summer associate hires by almost 29 percent, and Skadden, Arps, Slate,…

Aug 12, 2011 11:43 AM CDT

Some Corps Cut Costs By Hiring Law Grads to Work In-house Instead of Using BigLaw Associates

For years, corporations have complained about the high cost of using untrained recent law graduates hired to work as associates for BigLaw firms. Now some are trying an innovative cost-cutting technique, reports the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.). They are hiring BigLaw-qualified graduates themselves, straight out of law school, to…

Aug 12, 2011 12:03 AM CDT

Former Teen Sex Worker Who Won Admission to Prestigious Law School Found Dead at 32

As a child escaping from what she described as an abusive home situation, Wendy Babcock turned to prostitution at 15 to support herself. She quit in 2003, after a colleague was murdered by a client. Smart, personable and interested in fighting for the rights of sex workers and others, she’d…

Aug 11, 2011 8:39 PM CDT

Longtime 7th Circuit Judge Terence Evans Is Dead After Sudden Illness

Updated: A senior federal appeals court judge died overnight at a Chicago hospital after a sudden serious illness. Terence Evans, 71, was with his family at the University of Chicago Medical Center when he died of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and acute respiratory distress syndrome, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel…

Aug 11, 2011 5:27 PM CDT

Fenwick Hiring Partners Tout ‘Free Market’ Associate System

At Fenwick & West, associates have more control over their careers and billable-hour goals, according to the firm’s hiring partners. The Careerist blog interviewed hiring co-chairs William Hughes and Jay Pomeranz, who said Fenwick associates can work with any partner or type of client they choose under the firm’s “free…

Aug 11, 2011 12:29 PM CDT

Stroock Partner Who Jumped to Locke Lord Sues Former Firm for Retirement Benefits

A securities litigator who left a partnership at Stroock Stroock & Lavan to jump to Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell claims in a lawsuit that his former firm is withholding retirement benefits. The complaint filed on Aug. 5 by 64-year-old Michael Perlis in Los Angeles superior court has few details,…

Aug 11, 2011 11:20 AM CDT

Firm Honors Civil Rights Lawyer with Full Scholarship, Summer Associate Gig & Job Offer

Corrected: Louisville, Ky.-based Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs is honoring the legacy of civil rights lawyer Benjamin L. Hooks by establishing a full scholarship in his name for students bound for law school in Memphis. Every three years, the firm will provide full tuition, books, supplies and other fees, plus the…

Aug 10, 2011 8:27 PM CDT

9 Charged with Felony Murder and Robbery in Slaying of Kansas Lawyer Shot to Death at Her Home

Five adults and four juveniles have been charged with first-degree murder and other crimes in the killing last month of a Kansas attorney who was shot to death when she returned to her home after celebrating her 40th birthday. Natalie Gibson was killed and her female companion was injured July…

Aug 10, 2011 6:42 PM CDT