Top-Tier Law Schools Report an Increase in Summer Associate Hiring

Students at top-tier law schools are securing more summer associate positions, though the job numbers still fall short of levels before the recession. Reuters collected summer hiring statistics from top-tier law schools and found: • At New York University, about 70 percent of incoming third-year law students got summer associate…

Feb 8, 2012 2:58 PM CST

Federal Judge OKs Suit by Ex-Associate and Counterclaim by Mayer Brown

A federal judge has given a green light both to a race discrimination suit filed against Mayer Brown by a fired former associate and a counterclaim in which the law firm accuses her of improperly accessing documents while her termination was pending. Finding that it is a question of fact…

Jan 31, 2012 9:38 PM CST

Judge Tosses Suit by Associate Claiming He Was Fired for Rejecting PI Firm’s Unethical Demand

A federal judge has dismissed a suit by an associate who claims he was fired from his personal injury law firm for refusing to participate in an unethical referral scheme. An illegal discharge claim can’t be premised on a violation of legal ethics rules, according to the Dec. 29 opinion…

Jan 23, 2012 11:30 AM CST

Want to Trim Costs of Legal Education? Allow Undergrad Law Degrees, Law Prof Says

A law professor and a BigLaw lawyer have a solution to the high cost of legal education: Allow would-be lawyers to take the bar exam after obtaining an undergraduate law degree. Northwestern University law professor John McGinnis and Kirkland & Ellis associate Russell Mangas outline their proposal in an opinion…

Jan 18, 2012 1:53 PM CST

Judge Axes $77M Suit Filed Against Kasowitz by Ex-Associate with ‘Superior Legal Mind’

Ruling from the bench yesterday, a New York judge dismissed a $77 million lawsuit filed against Kasowitz Benson Torres & Friedman by a former first-year associate who said he was unfairly fired by the firm in 2011. Because Gregory Berry signed a valid release after reaching a $27,000 severance agreement…

Jan 11, 2012 11:21 PM CST

The Rules (for Women): Steps May Be Unspoken But They Are Necessary, Successful Partners Say

Jan 1, 2012 7:50 AM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: Criminal Lawyers, Illustrated; Juvenile Clients—and Their Mothers

Drawn Out Posts New York City solo Nathaniel Burney laments at the Criminal Lawyer that he hasn’t done a lot of substantive posting since being named to the ABA Journal’s Blawg 100. But he notes that instead, he’s been cranking posts at The Criminal Lawyer’s Guide to Criminal Law, which…

Dec 22, 2011 2:35 PM CST

ACLU Backs Young Defense Lawyer Jailed by Judge for Asserting Client’s 5th Amendment Rights

The American Civil Liberties Union is backing an appeal by a young Michigan attorney who was briefly jailed after asserting his client’s Fifth Amendment rights when a judge tried to ask about drug use during an arraignment early this month. Briefs are expected to be filed today by Miel &…

Dec 21, 2011 7:35 PM CST

Associate Who Worked at Four BigLaw Firms Pleads Guilty to Insider Trading

A one-time associate who worked at four different law firms pleaded guilty to insider trading on Wednesday. Matthew Kluger was accused of passing along information in a scheme that produced more than $37 million in profits over a 17-year-period, report the Washington Post, the Am Law Daily and Bloomberg News.…

Dec 15, 2011 1:01 PM CST

Law Firm to Complain About Judge Who Jailed Attorney for Contempt for Blocking Client Drug Queries

The law firm that employs a young Michigan attorney who was briefly jailed for telling his client at arraignment not to answer a judge’s questions about drug use is planning to file a complaint over the early December incident. Miel & Carr, which got another judge to grant an emergency…

Dec 13, 2011 7:15 PM CST

BigLaw Attorney Makes His Mark in Viral Metal Band Video Panned as Worst of 2011

Corrected: By day, Steven A. Delchin is a senior attorney at Squire Sanders & Dempsey specializing in litigation and appellate matters. But on his off hours he lets his imagination take him far from the corporate world, as a viral YouTube video demonstrates. Featuring Alternate Reality, a metal band in…

Dec 12, 2011 3:30 PM CST

Crowell & Moring Settles $5.5M Client Suit re Ex-Counsel Awaiting Extradition in Hong Kong

In its first public response to a $5.5 million lawsuit filed by client Regal Real Estate over millions of dollars allegedly stolen by a former Crowell & Moring attorney from an escrow account, the law firm has apologized and announced that a settlement has been reached. “We are pleased to…

Dec 12, 2011 3:17 PM CST

Stagnant Year-End Bonuses for BigLaw Associates Add Up to Smaller Percentage of Firm Profits

Perhaps it’s due to a perception by corporate clients that leading New York law firms, like Wall Street businesses, are raking in too much money in tough economic times. Perhaps it’s simply that greedy partners want to hog as much of their law firms’ profits as possible. But, whatever the…

Dec 9, 2011 3:25 PM CST

Transcript: Told to Sit Down, Be Quiet, Lawyer Blocked Judge’s Drug Queries, Was Jailed for Contempt

Updated: A transcript has been published of a Dec. 1 arraignment at which a Michigan attorney prevented his client from answering a judge’s questions about drug use and was jailed for contempt. It shows a young attorney politely sticking to his position as he is repeatedly and abruptly told to…

Dec 7, 2011 11:34 PM CST

Proskauer Will Pay Same Year-End Bonuses to Associates as Cravath

After news that Cravath Swaine & Moore will pay year-end bonuses of between $7,500 and $37,500 to its associates, Proskauer Rose has announced that the same range will apply to associates there. However, there’s one small difference: At Cravath, bonuses will be paid Dec. 9. At Proskauer, associates won’t get…

Dec 5, 2011 9:05 PM CST