Midlevel associates give high rankings to their firms; is technology key?

Midlevel associates at the nation’s top law firms are even happier with their workplaces this year than in 2014, when surveyed associates reported the highest levels of satisfaction in a decade. The associates are likely giving their firms high grades in the American Lawyer survey because of supply and demand,…

Aug 31, 2015 8:02 AM CDT

Paul Hastings to put junior lawyers in cubicles in NYC office, but they will at least have windows

In an unusual move for a major law firm, Paul Hastings is planning to put first- and second-year associates in cubicles when it moves to a new midtown Manhattan office in New York City next year. The 12-cubicle pods in which the junior associates will work will be placed in…

Aug 27, 2015 2:45 PM CDT

Former Ropes associate loses bias and retaliation appeal that cited information passed to blog

A former Ropes & Gray associate who claimed the law firm discriminated and retaliated against him has lost his federal appeal. In a decision (PDF) on Tuesday, the Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against John Ray III, the National Law Journal (sub. req.) reports. The court upheld…

Aug 27, 2015 9:19 AM CDT

GC’s fix for ‘broken’ law firm profit structure: Cut associate billing rates

Paying top dollar for work done by leading partners at major law firms doesn’t bother Brian Brooks. But paying big bucks for associates and mid-level lawyers does, the Fannie Mae general counsel tells Bloomberg BNA in a lengthy interview. As billing rates for senior partners have escalated, “I’m perfectly willing…

Aug 11, 2015 3:00 PM CDT

Ex-associate settles lurid sex-harassment suit against law firm

A former associate’s lurid sexual harassment claims against a partner in a New York law firm have been resolved by a settlement on confidential terms. The case, described by Above the Law as a modern-day version of Thomas Hardy’s classic novel Tess of the D’Urbervilles. “Like the classic novel, her…

Aug 5, 2015 3:05 PM CDT

BigLaw firm’s alleged promises to client in hiring talks were puffery, judge says in tossing claims

A company that fired its law firm, then accepted a $4 million settlement from the U.S. Department of Defense, can’t sue the firm on the ground the settlement should have been $10 million, a federal judge has ruled. The decision (PDF) last week by U.S. District Judge Richard Leon of…

Aug 3, 2015 7:19 AM CDT

Have we reached the end of the partnership model?

Aug 1, 2015 5:45 AM CDT

Bankruptcy firm chief sues ex-associate for $1M over alleged software conspiracy

In the latest of a series of lawsuits linked to a claimed theft of proprietary software by a competitor, Chicago bankruptcy law firm chief Peter Francis Geraci is seeking $1 million in damages from a former associate. Filed Tuesday in Cook County Circuit Court, the suit alleges that Kevin Chern,…

Jul 24, 2015 10:15 AM CDT

We want to be the best, so we don’t hire Ivy League law grads, says small-firm chief

Adam Leitman Bailey wants his 15-lawyer real estate boutique to be one of the best in New York. So he doesn’t hire—or even interview—recent graduates of Ivy League and other top-tier law schools, he tells the Wall Street Journal Law Blog: ““Even if they were top of the class, I…

Jul 16, 2015 11:45 AM CDT

Homeless man was once a BigLaw lawyer and the chief justice’s Harvard Law classmate

Alfred Postell is a 1979 Harvard law graduate who once worked at accounting firm Lucas and Tucker and the BigLaw firm then known as Shaw Pittman Potts & Trowbridge. He has degrees in economics and accounting. His Harvard law classmates included Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and former Sen.…

Jul 14, 2015 7:20 AM CDT

China detains or queries 100 lawyers, activists and others in sweep targeting human rights law firms

An unprecedented crackdown focused on one of China’s most prominent human rights lawyers and her firm has resulted in the arrest and/or questioning of over 100 attorneys, activists and others during the past week. The lawyer, associate Wang Yu of the Fengrui Law Firm in Beijing, has been criminally detained,…

Jul 13, 2015 2:40 PM CDT

Paid $650K in bonuses, 2 lawyers formed new firm and ‘wiped out’ senior lawyer, suit says

When a Georgia boutique settled a False Claims Act case after 16 years of litigation last year, Bothwell Bracker’s sole shareholder had a plan. Mike Bothwell gave big bonuses to his non-equity partner, Julie Bracker, and associate Jason Marcus, who got $400,000 and $250,000 respectively. Paralegal Sheri Lang got $45,000,…

Jul 13, 2015 11:40 AM CDT

Summer associate perks proliferate; pay is $3,000 a week at some firms

Summer associates at the nation’s major law firms are earning $3,000 a week while being treated to special events such as chartered helicopter tours, disc jockey lessons, cooking classes, museum nights and baseball games. The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) spoke with associates and law firms to learn what they…

Jul 7, 2015 10:58 AM CDT

Lewis Brisbois opens Oregon office with a dozen Williams Kastner lawyers

Lewis Brisbois has opened an office in Portland, Oregon, with 12 lawyers from Williams Kastner. Seven of the lawyers making the leap to Lewis Brisbois are partners. All have strong backgrounds in litigation, including in the areas of health care, medical and professional liability, products liability, toxic torts, and insurance…

Jul 2, 2015 11:58 AM CDT

Latest employment numbers for 2014 law school graduates don’t add up to a clear trend

Jul 1, 2015 1:50 AM CDT