Careers

Former Gonzales Chief of Staff Takes on Food & Drug Practice

The former chief of staff to former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has landed in the private sector. D. Kyle Sampson, a Utah native who resigned amid growing controversy over the firing of at least eight U.S. attorneys, will join the food and drug practice at Hunton & Williams, the Salt…

Oct 31, 2007 6:45 PM CDT

Embattled New Orleans DA Resigns

Embattled Orleans Parish District Attorney Eddie Jordan has resigned after facing years of criticism for not aggressively pursuing violent criminals, persistent staff turnover and most recently a ruling that plaintiffs could seize assets to collect a $3.7 million civil rights verdict against him. Jordan will be replaced by First Assistant…

Oct 30, 2007 8:37 PM CDT

Candidates’ Cases: A Hidden Rat, Passionate Arguments, Gutsy Moves

The legal backgrounds of the presidential candidates with law degrees may provide insights into their approaches to the presidency. Six candidates have law degrees, the New York Times reports. They are Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Rudolph Giuliani, Barack Obama, Mitt Romney and Fred Thompson. All but Romney have practiced law.…

Oct 29, 2007 11:11 AM CDT

Taxi Gig Drives Cabbie, 59, to Law School

Driving a taxi is what put a 59-year-old Hawaii man on the road to law school. John Parker often picked up fares at the police station, and drove people home who had just bailed out of jail, reports the Honolulu Advertiser. Along the way, many told him their problems, and…

Oct 26, 2007 8:48 PM CDT

Merger Mania: From Small to BigLaw, Then Goodbye Job

When Berg & Parker, a 13-lawyer California boutique with a significant real estate practice, merged into 400-attorney Preston Gates & Ellis about three years ago, its attorneys had high hopes for their future with the Seattle-based national firm. But after Preston Gates merged with Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham roughly…

Oct 25, 2007 6:47 PM CDT

Client Conflict Disrupts Partner’s Move

An IP litigator who decided to switch firms experienced a bumpy landing because of a client conflict issue. Baker Hostetler’s James Doroshow planned to move to Los Angeles’ Manatt, Phelps & Phillips. But, according to the Recorder (sub. req.), a client put a kibosh on Doroshow’s firm choice. After some…

Oct 24, 2007 5:58 PM CDT

Lawyers Embrace ‘Paid Volunteerism’ Trend

Retired Cravath partner Frederick A. O. Schwarz Jr. may have been at the leading edge of a trend when he went to work for the Brennan Center for Justice five years ago. More seniors are retiring and taking less stressful or more rewarding jobs for nonprofits that pay a salary,…

Oct 23, 2007 4:05 PM CDT

Dress Code for ‘Scruffy’ Law Profs

Is the standard of faculty attire so dire at law schools today that a dress code should be imposed? At least one law professor says yes. In an upcoming law review article, Erik Jensen of Case Western Reserve University calls for a dress code for his academic colleagues, in order…

Oct 19, 2007 6:24 PM CDT

A Roadmap for Associate Survival

The managing partner of Womble Carlyle’s Washington, D.C., office has some advice for associates, and it’s not “bill, bill, bill.” Pamela Rothenberg recalls that was the advice she got as a new associate in an article for Legal Times. She lists her top five rules: Always do good work, no…

Oct 18, 2007 1:09 PM CDT

Panel: Convictions Disqualify Temp Judge

Unless it is over 10 years old, a criminal record disqualifies a lawyer from serving as a judge, even on a temporary basis, in Seattle. This decision by the King County District Court’s executive committee—as well as a new policy of conducting criminal background checks on all applicants for temporary…

Oct 17, 2007 7:33 PM CDT

Diversity Expert: Change Legal Hiring System

It’s obvious that the current law firm system of hiring and training attorneys isn’t doing a very good job of providing opportunities for minorities. So the obvious answer is to change the system, one expert says. Although good mentoring programs, for instance, have been shown to be helpful, they aren’t…

Oct 17, 2007 6:48 PM CDT

Lawyers Less Depressed Than Many?

Despite all the complaints about how difficult it can be to practice law today, can it be that attorneys aren’t as depressed as a lot of other folks? A recent study suggests the answer to that question could be yes. Doctors, teachers and janitors may have a higher incidence of…

Oct 16, 2007 8:29 PM CDT

Chicago Firm Creates 2 Tiers of Associates

Law firms with two tiers of partners are commonplace. So it was perhaps foreseeable that some would respond to ever-increasing starting salaries for attorneys by creating two tiers of associates. Chicago-based Chapman and Cutler has done just that, giving associates a choice between working more hours for top dollar (the…

Oct 16, 2007 7:20 PM CDT

Female Partner: Learn How to Beat the Boys

Updated: Forget part-time hours, flexible schedules and work-life balance. Mercedes Meyer wants women lawyers to aim for the top and learn how to beat the boys at their own game. And a big part of that, she says, is learning the behavior patterns that male colleagues recognize as authoritative. Meyer,…

Oct 12, 2007 6:59 PM CDT

Al Gore Left Law, Won Nobel Peace Prize

Al Gore seems to have made the right career choice when he opted to leave Vanderbilt University Law School and pursue a life in politics in the 1970s. The former presidential candidate has now won the Nobel Peace Prize for his environmental work, along with a United Nations climate change…

Oct 12, 2007 6:07 PM CDT