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Cravath to Pay Special Spring Bonuses, Above Sullivan & Cromwell Scale at Top End

Supplementing the end-of year bonuses announced in November, one of New York’s top corporate law firms is upping the ante with special spring bonuses. Ranging from $2,500 to $20,000, the moolah from Cravath Swaine & Moore matches what is being paid by Sullivan & Cromwell in special bonuses announced earlier…

Jan 31, 2011 11:01 PM CST

Greenberg Traurig Ousts Partner Accused of Altering Offering Documents in SEC Probe

Greenberg Traurig has ousted a Los Angeles partner accused of altering offering documents requested in an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The law firm terminated partner David Tamman on Friday, according to the Am Law Daily and a Reuters Legal article published by Westlaw News & Insights. A…

Jan 31, 2011 2:44 PM CST

Dewey Provides a Home for Another BigLaw Partner Nearing Retirement

Sullivan & Cromwell partner James Carter was facing the prospect of being forced out of his law firm when he reached its mandatory retirement age of 67, but he wasn’t ready to give up law practice. Carter, an international arbitration and dispute resolution expert, jumped to Dewey & LeBoeuf, one…

Jan 31, 2011 11:30 AM CST

Firms Need to Offer Incentives for Trying Value Pricing—Or Lawyers Won’t Do It

While Pat Lamb and I are joined at the hip as “rebels,” co-bloggers and by the burden of my “advice”—I’m on his firm’s advisory board—I don’t always agree with him. But my friend Pat has certainly nailed it when he cites the Hildebrandt report (PDF) saying shifting one’s management paradigm…

Jan 28, 2011 9:03 PM CST

NFL’s Top Lawyer Will Give Up Multimillion-Dollar Paycheck in Event of Lockout

The NFL’s chief lawyer made about $4.9 million in 2009, but he will kiss his multimillion-dollar paycheck goodbye if there is a lockout. Jeff Pash, the league’s general counsel and chief labor negotiator, has joined Commissioner Roger Goodell in pledging to take a $1 annual salary if there is a…

Jan 27, 2011 12:35 PM CST

After Legal Services Layoffs, Ex-Staffers Form Nonprofit Firm to Offer Sliding-Scale Options

When South Jersey Legal Services had to lay off 30 employees last year due to funding cuts, four former workers there saw an opportunity to “bridge the justice gap.” They have hung out a new shingle as the nonprofit Community Law Offices Inc. It will offer consumer-oriented representation in New…

Jan 27, 2011 2:50 AM CST

Top Cop Denies Making BigLaw Partner the ‘Fall Guy’ in Auto Arson

A senior British police officer reportedly admitted having an affair with a BigLaw partner’s wife. But Chief Superintendent Jim Trotman, 45, insisted he didn’t torch his own car and then try to set up Eversheds litigation head Ian Gray as the “fall guy” in the arson, reports the BBC News…

Jan 26, 2011 10:47 PM CST

Law Grad Passes NH Bar on 8th Try, Then Is Denied License on Character & Fitness Grounds

The eighth time was the charm for an applicant who failed the New Hampshire bar seven times from 1991 to 2007 before finally passing in 2008. But when it came time for the character and fitness interview, G.W. was found wanting, reports the Legal Profession Blog. In addition to concerns…

Jan 26, 2011 6:32 PM CST

Gloria Allred Will Be on TV Even More in New Courtroom Show

High-profile lawyer Gloria Allred is joining the bench—in a new television show called “We the People with Gloria Allred.” A press release calls Allred “the most famous attorney practicing law in the nation” and says she will continue to practice. The syndicated show will be produced by Entertainment Studios Inc.,…

Jan 26, 2011 12:05 PM CST

After Missing Some Red Flags, McKenna Long Uses 30-Minute Test to Find Team Players

Lawyers who would like to work at McKenna Long & Aldridge will have to devote about 30 minutes of their time to an online psychological test. Recruiting director Jennifer Queen tells the Careerist that the firm decided to require the test after missing some “red flags” in individuals hired over…

Jan 26, 2011 11:30 AM CST

Citing Client Conflict, Yoss Litigation Chair Announces Plan to Lead 3-Lawyer Team to GrayRobinson

Neil Linden, who heads the business and commercial litigation practice group at Yoss is leading a three-attorney team to another law firm. Linden, partner Phillippe Deve and associate David Levin will join GrayRobinson’s office in Miami at an undetermined date, reports the Daily Business Review in an article reprinted in…

Jan 25, 2011 7:37 PM CST

Louise Raggio Dies, Fought Laws Requiring Husband’s OK for Wife’s Legal Transactions

A trailblazing Dallas lawyer who helped change discriminatory Texas laws has died. Louise Raggio died Sunday at the age of 91, the Dallas Morning News reports. She was instrumental in repealing Texas laws requiring a woman to get her husband’s signature before filing legal documents, borrowing money or transferring land.…

Jan 25, 2011 3:40 PM CST

2010 Sees a Huge Dropoff in BigLaw Layoffs; Fewer than 800 Job Losses Chronicled

BigLaw layoffs slowed considerably last year. A blog that tracks layoffs at major law firms chronicled only 745 job losses in 2010, a huge drop compared to 2009 when 12,259 were laid off. According to the tally by Law Shucks, 234 lawyers and 511 staffers were laid off. “With all…

Jan 25, 2011 2:00 PM CST

WilmerHale Is Hiring in Ohio, Looking for Recent Law Grads to Do Document Review Work

A cutting-edge approach to back office legal functions at a well-known law firm is created a steady stream of work for recent graduates of Ohio law schools. As WilmerHale continues to gear up its new business services center in Dayton, it has begun hiring 40 new attorneys to do document…

Jan 25, 2011 2:02 AM CST

Unemployed Editor-in-Chief of Chicago-Kent Law Review Blames Book Author, Gets Job-Hunt Help

Updated: In the latest sign of the dismal legal market for new law graduates, the editor-in-chief of the Chicago-Kent Law Review for 2009-2010 is still looking for work. Interviewing, volunteering, applying for clerkships and surfing the Internet for job listings has so far failed to put him in an entry-level…

Jan 24, 2011 11:11 PM CST