Careers

Clifford Chance Lays Off 20 Associates in N.Y. and D.C.

Despite expectations of more litigation work because of the global financial crisis, the work hasn’t yet materialized. So one of the world’s biggest law firms has laid off 20 U.S. litigation associates because of market conditions. The Clifford Chance associates, most of whom graduated from law school less than six…

Oct 14, 2008 9:56 PM CDT

‘Hero’ Administrative Assistant at Lieff Cabraser Used Safety Training Lessons

A longtime administrative assistant at Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein who managed to escort a bomb suspect into a conference room had received safety training just a week before that emphasized staying calm in a crisis. Today the administrative assistant is getting a massage along with some rest and relaxation,…

Oct 14, 2008 6:31 PM CDT

Firms Regroup to Aid Clients During Financial Crisis

Hays Ellisen is doing something in his practice he’s never been asked to do before: lead a multidisciplinary task force advising clients on the biggest federal intervention into private finance in his lifetime. The co-chair of Katten Muchin Rosenman’s structured finance and securitization practice, Ellisen heads the client advisory group…

Oct 14, 2008 6:00 PM CDT

Find Support Group First, Then Open Office, Solo Advises

After 20 years of practice, Jane Ann Landrum decided she was ready to go solo this year after her previous law firm dissolved. But a big part of what made it possible was the support network she had in place, the Kansas City, Mo., litigator tells the Kansas City Star.…

Oct 14, 2008 5:04 PM CDT

More In-House Counsel Predict Jump in Litigation, Spurring Lawyer Hiring

About a third of in-house counsel responding to a survey are projecting an increase in legal disputes involving their companies for the coming year—and nearly 20 percent predict the need to hire more in-house lawyers to manage the expected increase. The survey (PDF) of about 360 in-house counsel by the…

Oct 14, 2008 1:52 PM CDT

Law Students Pursue Securities Cases for Small Investors

With an expected surge in civil and criminal fraud cases on the horizon over questions about the conduct of those involved in making mortgage loans blamed for a worldwide credit crisis, several law schools will soon be graduating a new crop of students who already have trial experience in the…

Oct 13, 2008 7:04 PM CDT

At Least 100 Heller Employees Laid Off on Friday

Updated: Two e-mails were dispatched to Heller Ehrman employees last Friday. One informed the recipients they were being asked to continue working at the law firm, for now. The other had bad news for at least 100 staffers: It was their last day at the firm. Both the Recorder and…

Oct 13, 2008 10:56 AM CDT

Fla. School Board Lawyer May Get Nearly a Year of Paid Vacation

A Florida attorney who has contracted to provide legal services for the Miami-Dade School Board has already spent four months at home on unpaid leave. But now a divided board is hoping to give JulieAnn Rico another six months’ pay in a severance package that will conclude her contract, reports…

Oct 10, 2008 10:35 PM CDT

Summer Associate Gripes: No BlackBerrys, Too Much Food and Booze

Summer associates surveyed by American Lawyer were relatively happy with their experiences, giving their firms an average score of 4.541 on a 1-5 scale. They earned an average of about $3,000 a week and said, on the whole, that they were getting more interesting work. But that didn’t stop the…

Oct 9, 2008 2:00 PM CDT

Wall Street’s Go-To Lawyer Describes his ‘Five Weeks in Hell’

H. Rodgin Cohen has so many financial clients that he had to turn some away as Wall Street faltered. The Sullivan & Cromwell chairman in demand for his intricate knowledge of the banking system says his “five weeks in hell” began with a phone call. Cohen told the Wall Street…

Oct 9, 2008 1:13 PM CDT

How Heller’s Merger Talks Pushed the LA Managing Partner out the Door

The Los Angeles managing partner at Heller Ehrman began looking for jobs at other law firms this summer because of merger talks that would have ended her career at the law firm. The Daily Journal (sub. req.) questions whether the talks contributed to the law firm’s demise. “The initiation of…

Oct 9, 2008 11:53 AM CDT

Some Firms Still Seek Laterals—Including Orrick, Set to Hire 27 Heller Partners

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft may have laid off 131 lawyers earlier this year, but it is still hiring some lawyers away from other law firms in practice areas such as financial restructuring. The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) says Cadwalader is one of several firms still making lateral hires. Another…

Oct 9, 2008 11:15 AM CDT

Some Law Firms Tell Nervous Lawyers Jobs are Safe

Some law firms are holding meetings and dispatching e-mails to reassure lawyers who are nervous about the economic downturn. The National Law Journal chronicles some of the actions: • Chicago-based Jenner & Block told partners and associates in two meetings that layoffs are not in the cards. • Boston-based Ropes…

Oct 8, 2008 4:11 PM CDT

Baker, Winston Withdraw Proposals to Take on Heller Lawyers and Leases

Two large law firms that were once merger candidates for Heller Ehrman have withdrawn proposals to take on large groups of the dissolving firm’s lawyers and leases on offices that housed them. The two firms withdrawing the proposals are Baker & McKenzie and Winston & Strawn, the Recorder reports. Peter…

Oct 8, 2008 10:59 AM CDT

Lawyers Want More Time, Less Stress, Not More Money

Asked what one aspect of their law practice they would change, if they could, 31 percent of the 300 large law firm and corporate attorneys recently surveyed by Robert Half Legal said they wanted a less stressful work life. And another 30 percent wanted to work fewer hours or increase…

Oct 7, 2008 5:03 PM CDT