Midsize Firm

Afternoon Briefs: Law firm settles age bias suit; SCOTUS reviews Oracle’s $9B copyright claim

Pryor Cashman settles associate’s age bias suit Pryor Cashman has settled a lawsuit by an associate who said the firm violated the Age Discrimination in Employment Act when it fired him after 18 years on the job. The associate, Alan Laufer, was 61 when he was fired. The law firm…

Nov 15, 2019 4:37 PM CST

2 Midwestern law firms will combine to form new nearly 400-lawyer firm

Midwestern firms Lathrop Gage and Gray Plant Mooty have agreed to merge into a law firm that will have nearly 400 lawyers and 14 offices across nine states and the District of Columbia.

Oct 31, 2019 11:32 AM CDT

A second former managing partner leaves Irell & Manella as firm shrinks

Irell & Manella has lost two former managing partners in two months.

Oct 22, 2019 11:07 AM CDT

Did Buckley Sandler co-founder leave voluntarily? Question is at center of insurance dispute

A lawsuit filed last week maintains an insurer has no obligation to pay Buckley Sandler’s claim in connection with the departure of one of its founders because he did not leave voluntarily.

Oct 16, 2019 11:58 AM CDT

Dentons announces two ‘dual-partnership’ mergers in bid to become ‘first truly national law firm’

Dentons has announced a first step in a plan to become the nation’s “first truly national law firm” through a dual-partnership model. In the first step, Dentons is adding more than 300 lawyers by merging with regional law firms Bingham Greenebaum Doll and Cohen & Grigsby, according to press releases…

Oct 8, 2019 11:30 AM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Lawyer found hiding in parents’ closet; ‘fearsome foursome’ law firms named

Bounty hunter helps track down lawyer on the lam A Connecticut lawyer on the lam was found hiding in a closet in his parents’ home with the help of bounty hunter Willie “Ghost Dog” Gonzalez. The lawyer, 62-year-old Alfred Cali, disappeared after he pleaded guilty in May to second-degree larceny…

Sep 19, 2019 4:21 PM CDT

More law firms may close if recession hits; recruiter: ‘Once this party ends, it’s going to end very quickly’

A recession could be the final nail in the coffin for struggling law firms. The prior recession was an aggravating factor in the dissolution of several law firms, Bloomberg Law reports. They included Heller Ehrman; Thelen; Thacher Proffitt & Wood; Howrey; Dewey & LeBoeuf; Bingham McCutchen; and Dickstein Shapiro. Law…

Sep 4, 2019 3:11 PM CDT

LeClairRyan closing amid budget shortfalls, partner exits

LeClairRyan’s partners have voted to dissolve the law firm after a 31-year run. The Richmond, Virginia-based firm announced its dissolution in a press release Thursday, report Bloomberg Law, the American Lawyer, Law360 and the Richmond Times-Dispatch. LeClairRyan began as a legal boutique for startups in 1988 and later became one…

Aug 8, 2019 11:09 AM CDT

BigLaw firms are taking ‘two steps forward, one step back,’ new Thomson Reuters report says

Law firm productivity is dropping, driven by accelerated hiring that is driving the supply of lawyers higher than demand for their services, according to a report released this week. Productivity decreased 1.2% during the second quarter of 2019 and is down 1.5% from the beginning of the year, according to…

Aug 6, 2019 2:55 PM CDT

Struggling LeClairRyan faces suits over closed office, alleged gender bias

Updated: As LeClairRyan deals with a string of departures, the firm faces lawsuits from a landlord seeking payments and a former marketing professional who alleges gender bias. The dissolution process is already beginning, anonymous sources tell Law.com. Lawyers at the firm have been told a dissolution committee is being formed,…

Jul 31, 2019 10:47 AM CDT

After a string of departures, LeClairRyan considers the next steps

Leaders of LeClairRyan say the law firm is considering its options after a string of departures that included the exit of firm co-founder and name partner Gary LeClair. No vote has been held yet, and right now it’s “business as usual,” CEO Erik Gustafson told Richmond BizSense. American Lawyer, Above…

Jul 26, 2019 11:59 AM CDT

Greenspoon Marder settles bias suit of former partner who’s Korean American

Greenspoon Marder has settled a lawsuit filed by a Korean American lawyer who alleged he was ousted from the partnership because of racial and national origin discrimination. In a June 17 order, U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan dismissed the case because of the settlement, the Daily Business Review reports. Terms…

Jun 19, 2019 3:18 PM CDT

For law firms, the ampersand is a character worth saving

For more than two centuries, the ampersand flourished in its preferred environment: BigLaw titles. No one can dispute that the ampersand served BigLaw well, adorning the titles of virtually all the most prestigious members, says lawyer Norm Tabler.

May 9, 2019 6:00 AM CDT

15 lawyers have left this law firm, whose head count is shrinking

Fifteen real estate lawyers have left Kasowitz Benson Torres to join the New York office of Vinson & Elkins.

Apr 11, 2019 7:30 AM CDT

BigLaw firm criticized for lack of diversity is now No. 1 for black lawyers, new report says

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison took a hit on social media in December when a partnership promotion photo appeared to show just one woman and 11 white men. Now, the firm is finding vindication in a recent report by the nonprofit Lawyers of Color.

Apr 2, 2019 1:14 PM CDT