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Ex-Mayor of Detroit Jailed, Loses $120K Job, for Living Lavishly Instead of Paying Restitution

An ex-lawyer and ex-mayor of Detroit is no longer an ex-inmate. Kwame Kilpatrick was sent back to jail today by a frustrated judge, for violating his probation by lying to the court and spending his money on a lavish lifestyle instead of putting it towards his $1 million restitution. The…

May 25, 2010 5:41 PM CDT

Coast Guard Suspends Search for Missing Irell & Manella Partner

Updated: The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended its search for an Irell & Manella partner whose sailboat ran aground Sunday at Venice Beach in California. The lawyer, Tom Kirschbaum, was sailing Sunday from Santa Catalina Island after a sailboat race at a time of high winds and surf, the Los…

May 25, 2010 11:47 AM CDT

Kagan Didn’t Have ‘Paradoxical Freedom’ Benefiting Ginsburg, O’Connor

Neither Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg nor Sandra Day O’Connor chose between career and children. O’Connor had three sons and a 56-year marriage before her husband’s death, while Ginsburg had two children and has also been married for 56 years. A New York Times magazine article wonders if the discrimination they…

May 25, 2010 11:00 AM CDT

NY Lawyer Now Plays With Legos for a Living

Updated: An after-work relaxation has turned into a New York lawyer’s main gig. Playing with Legos that he forms into sculptures evocative of human angst earns Nathan Sawaya as much as $14,000 or more per piece, reports a recent Daily Mail article featuring photos of his work. The New York…

May 24, 2010 11:37 PM CDT

Jailed 14 Months for Contempt, Ex-Beverly Hills Lawyer Calls Himself a Political Prisoner

Ordered to pay an opposing party’s legal fees and turn over financial documents, Richard Fine refused. Now the disbarred Beverly Hills lawyer once known for his dapper dress and bow ties routinely wears a bright orange jumpsuit. He has been held for 14 months in solitary confinement in the Los…

May 24, 2010 9:50 PM CDT

George Mason, Law Dean Win Bench Dismissal of Rotunda Sex-Harass Suit

Ruling from the bench, a federal judge in Virginia has dismissed all claims against George Mason University and its law school dean in a high-profile sexual harassment suit. Brought by Kyndra Rotunda, who is a former director of a law school legal clinic for members of the military and the…

May 24, 2010 6:39 PM CDT

Law Partner’s Success Secret: ‘Having a Plan and Being Very Dedicated to That Plan’

Unlike some attorneys, Jack Garson grew up without having a lot. But that helped him develop the drive to succeed in life, he tells the Washington Post. At age 5, he was earning 25 cents weekly polishing his dad’s shoes, taking pride both in the quality of his work and…

May 24, 2010 4:45 PM CDT

A Sense of Entitlement Can Cost You a Job at Jones Day

Job-hunting students with a sense of entitlement and a curiosity about classmate’s grades will have a hard time finding a summer associate job at Jones Day. The American Lawyer’s Careerist blog talked to Jones Day hiring partner Gregory Shumaker for his list of summer associate do’s and don’ts. Shumaker said…

May 24, 2010 1:36 PM CDT

A Few Law Firms Pay Lower Recruiter Fees for Laid-Off Associates

A handful of law firms are paying lower recruiter fees for laid-off associates, and one managing partner says it was the recruiters’ idea. The standard commission in major markets is still 25 percent to 30 percent of the associate’s starting pay, the Am Law Daily reports. But the publication spoke…

May 24, 2010 1:00 PM CDT

Bryan Cave Partner Picked for Deputy AG

Bryan Cave partner James Cole is President Obama’s nominee for deputy attorney general, the No. 2 job in the U.S. Department of Justice. Cole has previous Justice Department experience, according to the Washington Post and The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times. He was deputy chief of the department’s public…

May 24, 2010 12:10 PM CDT

Inspired by ‘Legal Rebel,’ Solo Opens Chicago Legal Café

Solo practitioner Mazie Harris was inspired to start her new business, the Chicago Legal Café, when she opened up the September issue of the ABA Journal. An article about “legal rebels” who are remaking the profession featured Jeffrey Hughes, a California lawyer who had opened up a combination coffeehouse and…

May 24, 2010 10:30 AM CDT

Chadbourne & Parke Continues Its In-House Hiring Spree

Chadbourne & Parke has hired two more in-house executives for its intellectual property division, the latest in a series of such hires. The National Law Journal and a press release identify the two hires as: • Stephen Manetta, an electrical engineer and lawyer who is the former head of the…

May 21, 2010 3:22 PM CDT

Ex-Baron & Budd Lawyer Awarded $8.8M for Firm’s Statements About Finances

A former lawyer at Baron & Budd has been awarded $8.8 million based on his claim that the law firm lured him to work there by misrepresenting its financial condition. A Dallas County jury found that Baron & Budd and firm founder Russell Budd had made negligent misrepresentations to the…

May 21, 2010 1:01 PM CDT

After a Blogger Questions ‘Rankings Malpractice,’ US News Makes a Secret Change

U.S. New & World Report is changing an automatic calculation for law schools that don’t report how many of their students are employed at graduation, but the magazine isn’t disclosing the details up-front. The idea, says U.S. News rankings czar Robert Morse, is to stop law schools from gaming the…

May 21, 2010 11:42 AM CDT

Kevin Costner & Trial Lawyer Partner Come to BP’s Aid With Oil Spill ‘Vacuum Cleaner’

Desperate for ideas about how to contain a record-breaking oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, BP has turned to a movie star and his trial attorney partner for help. The oil company is going to give six centrifuge machines developed and donated by Kevin Costner a whirl this week,…

May 20, 2010 9:05 PM CDT