Associates

Former judge loses suit claiming bias after disclosure of his affair with bailiff

A former New Jersey municipal court judge has lost his federal lawsuit claiming court officials discriminated against him because of his interracial affair with a bailiff. The former part-time judge, Wilson Campbell, who is black, had claimed court officials treated him more harshly than a white judge who sent amorous…

Dec 29, 2014 7:55 AM CST

After a career change, Blind Melon guitarist is a BigLaw lawyer

Blind Melon guitarist Rogers Stevens didn’t think he would follow in the footsteps of his father, a general practice lawyer in a small town. After high school, Stevens drove from Mississippi to Los Angeles to pursue a music career, forming Blind Melon with a couple friends and singer Shannon Hoon,…

Dec 18, 2014 6:15 AM CST

Susman Godfrey bonuses start at $40K for associates who have been at the firm at least a year

Add another law firm to the list of those that have topped the benchmark $15,000 to $100,000 end-of-year associate bonus schedule established by Simpson Thacher and Bartlett this year. Susman Godfrey has announced that bonuses started at $40,000 to $45,000 for associates who have been at the 110-attorney Houston-based litigation…

Dec 17, 2014 4:30 PM CST

Lawyer who survived leap into river disclosed ‘huge Ponzi scheme’ in suicide note, prosecutors say

A former BigLaw associate was arraigned on wire and securities fraud charges remotely from his hospital room on Friday. Charles Bennett, 56, is recovering from a collapsed lung suffered after he leapt into the Hudson River in New York on Nov. 3, report the New York Daily News, the New…

Dec 15, 2014 7:07 AM CST

Unemployment benefits can’t be collected by lawyer accused of drinking on job, appeals court says

A New Jersey lawyer fired for allegedly drinking at work is not entitled to unemployment benefits, a state appeals court has ruled. The court ruled in the case of Diannajean Giganti, the New Jersey Law Journal (sub. req.) reports. The appeals court said drinking on the job amounted to severe…

Dec 11, 2014 6:58 AM CST

Boies Schiller to pay as much as $350K to associates in end-of-year bonuses

Once again, litigation boutique Boies, Schiller & Flexner is paying top bonuses to associate attorneys. Many senior associates will get $125,000 to $150,000 in end-of-year payments reflecting their work and the firm’s success, and two will receive top bonuses of $350,000 each, the New York Times’ DealBook blog reports. David…

Dec 3, 2014 4:35 PM CST

Davis Polk ups bonus ante for midlevel associates by $10K as more firms follow Simpson’s lead

In another sign of an improved economy for BigLaw firms, an unlikely market leader has upped the ante for end-of-year bonuses paid to associate attorneys. Although the starting and end points of the latest bonus schedule matches the $15,000 to $100,000 Simpson Thacher & Bartlett benchmark, Davis Polk & Wardwell…

Dec 1, 2014 2:30 PM CST

More firms, including Cravath, jump on BigLaw bonus bandwagon; Skadden says some will get $110K

At least three more BigLaw firms have jumped on the year-end associate bonus bandwagon. Cravath, Swaine & Moore; Proskauer Rose; and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom have all announced in internal memos that they will follow the same $15,000 to $100,000 range as at least four other major law…

Nov 25, 2014 2:20 PM CST

More BigLaw firms match Simpson bonuses of $15K to $100K

An early start to the end-of-year bonus season was kicked off Friday by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. Its announcement of an associate bonus schedule of $15,000 (prorated for incoming first-years) to $100,000, depending on seniority, was quickly matched by two other BigLaw firms. Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and Paul…

Nov 24, 2014 10:15 AM CST

More than 750 Bingham partners, lawyers and staffers are going to Morgan Lewis

Morgan Lewis is acquiring 525 lawyers and staffers from Bingham McCutchen in addition to 226 partners from the law firm. Terms of the acquisition were finalized on Friday, the Am Law Daily reports. The acquisition gives Morgan Lewis about 2,000 lawyers in 28 offices. Morgan Lewis chair Jami McKeon said…

Nov 24, 2014 9:23 AM CST

Early announcement of big year-end bonuses stuns Simpson Thacher associates

It isn’t yet the season in which major law firms traditionally announce end-of-year salary supplements for their hardworking junior lawyers. So associates at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett were stunned Friday by an early announcement of big bonuses, Above the Law reports. The announcement also establishes a benchmark that associates at…

Nov 21, 2014 12:18 PM CST

Jones Day objects to blogger’s story on its ‘trim, perky and adorable’ hires

Jones Day registered its disapproval when an American Lawyer blogger described its new Supreme Court law clerk hires as “trim, perky and adorable.” Jones Day hired seven former Supreme Court clerks this year, bringing to bringing to 19 the firm’s total number of SCOTUS clerk hires in three years. The…

Nov 20, 2014 7:13 AM CST

Efficiency rather than billable hours will be used to evaluate associates at this large law firm

The nearly 300 associates at Jackson Lewis will no longer be evaluated based on billable hours. Beginning next year, the firm will instead evaluate associates based on efficiency, client service, responsiveness, team-orientation and pro-bono commitment, the Am Law Daily reports. A few years back, the law firm required associates to…

Nov 18, 2014 7:06 AM CST

Morgan Lewis OKs ‘mass lateral move’ of 227 Bingham partners, but not a merger

Despite earlier news that a Morgan Lewis & Bockius had approved a merger with struggling Bingham McCutchen, the firm has stopped short of doing so. In a Friday announcement, Morgan Lewis said its partners voted earlier in the day to admit 227 partners from Bingham into the Morgan Lewis partnership.…

Nov 14, 2014 3:05 PM CST

Seven SCOTUS clerks join Jones Day, snagging hefty hiring bonuses

Seven former U.S. Supreme Court clerks will join Jones Day as associates in what appears to be a trend at the law firm. Jones Day hired six Supreme Court clerks in 2012 and again in 2013, bringing to 19 the firm’s total number of SCOTUS clerk hires in three years,…

Nov 6, 2014 6:15 AM CST