In-house Counsel

New Pay Package Keeps Time Warner GC in Third Place

Time Warner’s general counsel has signed a new contract that pays him $1.25 million a year, plus a possible bonus of $2.5 million. The pay package puts Paul Cappaccio third on Corporate Counsel’s list of the top paid- general counsel, THR, Esq. reports. It also puts him ahead of his…

Sep 8, 2010 12:20 PM CDT

Study: Associates, Southern Cities Had Highest Increases in Billing Rates

Billing rates charged to large companies have increased at a faster pace for associates than for partners, according to a billing-rate study being released today. Associate billing rates increased by 16.6 percent between 2007 and 2009, while partner rates rose 8.6 percent, according to a press release and the Am…

Sep 7, 2010 3:39 PM CDT

Corporate Clients Eager to do Pro Bono with Outside Counsel

Corporate law departments’ interest in pro bono has surged as they grow eager to establish their own legal volunteer legacies, and they’re looking to their outside counsel to become active partners in the effort. “It’s definitely a national trend,” Ellyn Haikin Josef, a staff attorney who coordinates Vinson & Elkins’…

Aug 27, 2010 3:53 PM CDT

Few Immigrants Change Their Names Nowadays, Lawyer Says

In the 19th and 20th centuries, immigrants often changed their names after arriving in America. No more. The New York Times checked out more than 500 applications for name changes filed in June at New York’s civil court, and only about a half dozen appeared to be an attempt to…

Aug 26, 2010 2:50 PM CDT

Bratz Maker MGA Accuses Mattel GC and Quinn Emanuel in Alleged RICO Toy-Spying Conspiracy

Toy maker MGA Entertainment, accused of stealing the idea for the Bratz doll by hiring Mattel workers, has turned the tables on its rival with a counterclaim that alleges a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act conspiracy to glean secret toy information by Mattel lawyers and other top executives. In…

Aug 18, 2010 12:28 PM CDT

HP’s Top Lawyer, a ‘Straight Shooter,’ Helped Topple the Man Who Hired Him

Michael Holston became Hewlett-Packard’s general counsel in 2007 after overseeing a probe into HP’s use of pretexting as part of a corporate effort to stop media leaks. Three years later, Holston oversaw an investigation into sexual harassment allegations against the man who hired him, CEO Mike Hurd. The probe ended…

Aug 13, 2010 1:35 PM CDT

In Fortune 500, About One in Five GCs Is a Woman

Women are gaining ground in the ranks of general counsel at the nation’s top 500 companies. Nearly one out of every five general counsel in the Fortune 500 is now a woman, according to a survey by the Minority Corporate Counsel Association. The number of GCs—94, up from 85 last…

Aug 13, 2010 11:51 AM CDT

Survey: US Firms Losing Biz Because In-House Counsel Prefer British Firms

In-house counsel are opting in surprising numbers to take their legal business to British firms rather than seek the counsel of U.S.-based firms. This according to Corporate Counsel, which reports that 88 percent of companies surveyed require international legal advice. That’s up from 70 percent last year. And in this…

Aug 12, 2010 10:30 PM CDT

7th Circuit Allows Fix of In-House Lawyer’s $1.67B Mistake

A former in-house lawyer who tried to make pension plan language more readable made a costly mistake that could have cost Verizon $1.67 billion. But thanks to a federal appeals court ruling Tuesday, Verizon is off the hook, Reuters reports. The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that…

Aug 11, 2010 12:35 PM CDT

Up in the Air

Caryn Carson admits that she tended to hoard airline frequent-flier miles. But a few months ago the Dallas lawyer won a million of them from American Airlines, and now she is happy to share.

Aug 1, 2010 5:14 AM CDT

Citing Public Policy, Wis. High Court Bars Reinstatement of Fired Menards Lawyer

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled 4-3 that the Menards home-improvement chain is not required to reinstate the company’s top in-house lawyer who was fired after complaining about her pay. The court ruled today that an arbitration decision requiring the company to reinstate Dawn Sands violates public policy, according to…

Jul 21, 2010 3:45 PM CDT

New SEC Disclosure Rules Take Toll on GC Bonuses; Average Drops Below $1M

The total average cash bonus for general counsel at Fortune 500 companies has dropped by 18 percent, to below $1 million, and new SEC disclosure rules may be partly to blame. The average cash bonus, a combination of traditional bonuses and nonequity incentive compensation, is $947,781, Corporate Counsel reports. Traditional…

Jul 20, 2010 1:36 PM CDT

Ex-White House Lawyer Accused of Murder Attempt Checks Out of Psychiatric Center

A former White House lawyer accused of attempted murder for allegedly beating his wife with a flashlight at their Connecticut home has checked himself out of a psychiatric facility. John Michael Farren finished the in-patient phase at the center and is staying with his sister and brother-in-law, his lawyer told…

Jul 20, 2010 1:00 PM CDT

Goldman Sachs General Counsel Got $38.3M in Midst of 2008 Crisis

As general counsel of Goldman Sachs, Gregory Palm clearly has a very good income. Nor, some who know him say, does the Harvard Law School graduate—who grew up the son the a union electrician in upstate New York—live high on the hog. But as a financial crisis hit the global…

Jul 19, 2010 9:37 PM CDT

Who Really Won? Record $550M SEC Fine No Big Deal to Goldman Sachs, Says NY Times

Goldman Sachs agreed to pay a record-breaking $550 million fine as part of a settlement announced last week with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission of charges that the bank misled investors when it offered mortgage-related securities that turned out to be toxic in a dismal real estate market. But…

Jul 19, 2010 8:53 PM CDT