Large Firm

Female lawyers describe ‘fraternity culture’ at Jones Day in $200M sex-bias lawsuit

A $200 million lawsuit filed Wednesday against Jones Day alleges that female associates are discriminated against based on gender, pregnancy and maternity.

Apr 4, 2019 7:00 AM CDT

Former federal prosecutor makes history as Chicago’s first black female and openly gay mayor

A former federal prosecutor who was an equity partner at Mayer Brown has been elected the new mayor of Chicago in a landslide victory against her runoff opponent. A “kickass trial lawyer,” in the words of former Illinois Attorney General Ty Fahner, Lori Lightfoot, a lesbian, is the first openly…

Apr 3, 2019 3:07 PM CDT

BigLaw firm criticized for lack of diversity is now No. 1 for black lawyers, new report says

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison took a hit on social media in December when a partnership promotion photo appeared to show just one woman and 11 white men. Now, the firm is finding vindication in a recent report by the nonprofit Lawyers of Color.

Apr 2, 2019 1:14 PM CDT

Are law firms invoking obscure contractual clauses to delay lateral moves? Or does it just seem that way?

In recent years, there have been reports of BigLaw firms that invoked various contractual clauses to delay lateral partners from moving to new firms. Such headlines may create an impression that it’s a growing trend for law firms to enforce their notice provisions. However, three experts told the ABA Journal that holds are not new.

Apr 1, 2019 1:05 AM CDT

Former BigLaw lawyer awarded $6.3M for brain injury caused by parking garage pipe

A former lawyer with Hunton & Williams has been awarded $6.3 million for a brain injury caused when she hit her head on a low-hanging pipe in the Atlanta parking garage used by people at the law firm. The lawyer, Aja Diamond McCoy, suffers “unpredictable and severe” pain from the…

Mar 28, 2019 7:30 AM CDT

Alleged socialite grifter stiffed 3 BigLaw firms, prosecutors say

Evidence of an accused socialite grifter’s alleged predilection to stiff BigLaw firms won’t be admitted during her New York trial, which got underway with jury selection last week. Prosecutors say Anna Sorokin, also known as Anna Delvey, owes $160,000 in fees to Perkins Coie, $65,000 to Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher,…

Mar 25, 2019 7:30 AM CDT

BigLaw firm ousts partner, cites ‘inappropriate personal conduct’

Mayer Brown has confirmed that it ousted a partner in a statement that cites “inappropriate personal conduct with a subordinate” as the reason. Mayer Brown said the conduct of the Chicago-based partner, Zac Barnett, was unrelated to client matters and was “contrary to the firm’s core values,” report the American…

Mar 25, 2019 7:00 AM CDT

Morgan Lewis hires first director of employee well-being

Morgan Lewis has launched a program called “ML Well” to promote the well-being of its lawyers and professional staff. Leading the program is Krista Logelin, Morgan Lewis’ first director of employee well-being, according to the American Lawyer and Bloomberg Big Law Business. A press release is here. The ML Well…

Mar 19, 2019 10:38 AM CDT

This BigLaw firm now allows jeans any day of the week

Lawyers and staff members can wear jeans any day of the week at Dechert, the law firm’s management announced Tuesday. The law firm is expanding its embrace of business casual to allow jeans, according to Dechert’s chief talent officer, Alison Bernard, who spoke with the Recorder. Previously, jeans were allowed…

Mar 14, 2019 6:45 AM CDT

BigLaw co-chair charged in college cheating scandal; wiretapped calls are evidence

Updated: Gordon Caplan, co-chairman of Willkie Farr & Gallagher in its New York City office, is among 50 people charged in an alleged bribery scheme to gain students’ admission into top universities.

Mar 12, 2019 2:25 PM CDT

This BigLaw firm is offering $10K reward for information on associate’s shooting

Ballard Spahr chairman Mark Stewart never expected that his role would include announcing a reward for information on the shooting of an associate. But now he’s telling the news media that his firm will pay $10,000 for information on the shooting of 37-year-old associate Spencer Hill, who was shot Monday…

Mar 8, 2019 12:10 PM CST

Law firms shouldn’t overlook value of soft skills

Soft skills do not get much attention in law firms. That was my experience when I was practicing in small, medium and larger firms, and it still is the case today.

Mar 7, 2019 6:30 AM CST

Law firms hiring CEOs without law degrees reignites debate about turning over the reins to business professionals

Nonlawyers in charge of law firms may lack experience building a book of legal business, and law firms in the United States can’t generally offer equity as a matter of ethics. Yet their business management and leadership training are skills that help law firms succeed.

Mar 1, 2019 1:05 AM CST

Jackson Lewis quietly reverts to billable hours totals as a tool for evaluating associates

Labor and employment firm Jackson Lewis reversed a policy that had eliminated the billable hour as a metric for gauging associates’ performance and awarding bonuses. Clients wanted lean, economical lawyering, but needed a key performance indicator.

Mar 1, 2019 1:00 AM CST

Thomson Reuters launches cloud-based tool ‘for lawyers by lawyers’ to assist firms in real time

Thomson Reuters has released Thomson Reuters Panoramic, a product geared toward large and midsize law firms to help them budget, plan for and manage matters in real time. On Wednesday, the company unveiled the cloud-based Panoramic, which joins together its productivity and content capabilities from its Practical Law product with…

Feb 27, 2019 7:00 AM CST