What Can the Real Rate Report Tell Us About the Value of Entry-Level Lawyers?

ABA Journal reporter Rachel M. Zahorsky talks with Craig Raeburn, managing director of TyMetrix Legal Analytic, co-producer of the Real Rate Report, and Stuart Dodds, director of global pricing at Baker & McKenzie, as they discuss the impact of the study’s findings on law firm-client relationships, best practices for efficient case management, and how firms can ensure the proper investment in entry-level lawyers to serve clients now and in the future.

Jul 17, 2012 1:30 PM CDT

Sticky Wages Depress Associate Hiring; BigLaw on Track to Become ‘Older and Dumber’

Salary figures released last week are bad news for large law firms that pay high starting salaries as well as for new lawyers seeking high paying jobs, according to two new reports analyzing the statistics. Law grads from the class of 2011 are earning median pay of $60,000, a 5…

Jul 17, 2012 12:09 PM CDT

Lawyer Offices Shrink and Group Space Expands; Paul Hastings Considers Permanent Home Offices

Wood paneling and large offices are going by the wayside at some law firms. The idea is to cut office expenses and encourage cooperation, the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) reports. Firms embracing this 21st century design are “shrinking private offices, swapping out walls for glass, and installing high-tech meeting…

Jul 17, 2012 11:00 AM CDT

Median Starting Pay for Associates Is No Longer in the Six Figures; Figure Drops 35% in Two Years

Updated: New law grads in private practice are no longer taking home median paychecks in the six figures. The erosion in BigLaw jobs is depressing the salaries for all class of 2011 law graduates, according to new statistics from NALP–The Association for Legal Career Professionals. Law grads from the class…

Jul 12, 2012 11:56 AM CDT

‘Entry’ Fee: Surprise–Inexperienced Associates Cost More

Jul 1, 2012 6:49 AM CDT

Law Firm Settles Feds’ Civil Rights Suit re Client’s Service Dog; Will Pay $25K, Post Welcome Sign

Without admitting wrongdoing, an upstate New York law firm has settled a civil rights lawsuit brought by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York over claimed discrimination against a disabled client. Larkin Axelrod Ingrassia & Tetenbaum will pay $20,000 to the personal injury client, Lauren Klejmont, who…

Jun 28, 2012 11:10 PM CDT

Around the Blawgosphere: Crowdsourcing Performance Evaluations? Pros and Cons of ‘Client Contact’

Perfecting Performance Reviews At The Delaware Employment Law Blog, Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor associate Molly DiBianca noted an HBR Blog Network post by Globoforce CEO Eric Mosley suggesting that employees’ annual performance reviews be “crowdsourced” by staff, not just managers. “In other words, solicit regular feedback from everyone who…

Jun 22, 2012 1:30 PM CDT

Suspended Attorney Faces 10 Malpractice Claims; Ex-Clients Say He Said He Filed Suit, But Didn’t

Ten malpractice suits have been filed against a suspended Alabama attorney and the law firm for which he formerly worked. Byron House is accused by multiple clients of claiming to have filed litigation on their behalf when he in fact had not done so, the Tuscaloosa News reported. As a…

Jun 11, 2012 7:59 PM CDT

More Than 50 Would-Be Associates Have Now Applied for $10,000-a-Year Boston Law Firm Job

Partner Larry O’Bryan understands that the $10,000 a year his small Boston law firm wants to pay a new associate isn’t a big enough salary for most new law graduates to live on, since many have hefty student loans. In fact, he may well understand that better than most, since…

Jun 11, 2012 5:35 PM CDT

Illinois Attorney Is Accused of Overbilling Client for Document Review

An Illinois attorney is facing disciplinary action for allegedly overbilling a client for document review. Ronald Jay McDermott is accused of submitting billing materials to his law firm for up to 250 or more hours of document review that he claimed to have done in July and August of 2011…

Jun 8, 2012 7:51 PM CDT

Former BigLaw Associate Gets Record Sentence in Insider Trading Case

A former associate who admitted giving confidential deal information to a stock trader has been sentenced to 12 years in prison, the longest-ever sentence in an insider trading case. Matthew Kluger, 51, was sentenced Monday, report the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.), the Am Law Daily and the Associated Press.…

Jun 5, 2012 11:33 AM CDT

Small Associate Classes Partly Account for Smaller Growth in Partner Profits at Second Hundred Firms

The nation’s “second hundred” law firms weren’t as successful as their top 100 counterparts at translating revenue growth into partner profits last year. Second hundred law firms had a 5.3 percent growth in revenue per lawyer, compared to just 1.9 percent for top 100 firms, according to the American Lawyer…

May 31, 2012 1:47 PM CDT

BigLaw Associate Wrote Novel in Early Mornings Before Law Practice

A lawyer’s BigLaw workload can be daunting, but it didn’t stop Cristina Alger from tackling a second project. When she was an associate at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, Alger worked on a novel at the same time, the Careerist reports. She tells the blog she woke up early…

May 16, 2012 1:24 PM CDT

433 New York Layoffs and Three Lawsuits in Dewey Saga

Tuesday was the last day for associates at the rapidly shrinking law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf. Associates learned in a termination letter last week that they would receive health benefits through the end of May and malpractice coverage through the end of the year, New York Law Journal reports. Their…

May 16, 2012 12:36 PM CDT

Dewey’s Demise Is Bad News for Job-Hunting Lawyers

As lawyers from Dewey & LeBoeuf flood the job market, there are fewer positions available for others in the job hunt. The New York Law Journal interviewed recruiters about the impact. One spoke of a “massive disruption” in the lawyer job market in New York. Firms sorting through Dewey lawyers…

May 15, 2012 11:59 AM CDT