Law Firms

Akerman to Merge With WolfBlock?

Two well-known law firms based in Florida and Philadelphia are reportedly getting serious about a proposal to combine forces to create a national platform and join the BigLaw ranks. Akerman Senterfitt and WolfBlock are in advanced merger discussions, according to unnamed sources. And the talks have already resolved the issue…

May 16, 2008 6:17 PM CDT

Skadden Exec to Step Down; 1st Top Management Change Since 1994

Updated: After nearly 15 years at the helm of Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, Robert Sheehan has announced that he plans to step down as executive partner of the merger and acquisitions goliath when he completes his term in April 2009. He will be replaced by Eric Friedman, 43,…

May 16, 2008 4:51 PM CDT

White & Case Latest to Give Jr. UK Lawyers a Salary Boost

While some firms are freezing raises or scaling back, associates at White & Case in the U.K. are set to get a salary bump of 2.1 percent. Young lawyers will now get $152,000, up nearly $4,000 from the previous year’s pay, Legal Week reports. The New York-based firm’s U.K. salaries…

May 16, 2008 10:33 AM CDT

7th Circuit Upholds $30K Jones Day Sanction, Applies Rule 11

Saying that the sanction was on the lenient side, a federal appeals court has upheld a $30,000 penalty against Jones Day for filing a frivolous counterclaim and, in effect, recommended that federal judges feel free to apply Rule 11 more frequently. U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb did not abuse her…

May 15, 2008 7:02 PM CDT

Recent Law Grad Got $3M Bonus, Plus Porsche, in Fen-Phen Case

A recent law grad working on a massive diet drug case got a $3 million bonus and a Porsche when the civil fen-phen litigation settled for $200 million in 2001. David Helmers testified today about his lavish bonus in the Covington, Ky., federal fraud trial of three senior lawyers accused…

May 15, 2008 6:12 PM CDT

Major Canadian Law Firm Grows in NYC

As other Canadian law firms grow—or even shrink—their international offices by merging, one “stealth mode” competitor has established a full-fledged New York City office entirely through individual lateral hiring. Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt’s office there has grown from a few Canadian lawyers handling Canadian legal matters to some 30 lawyers,…

May 15, 2008 4:19 PM CDT

Why BigLaw Mergers Do—and Don’t—Work

Major law firms merge hoping that two plus two will equal five. But it can also equal four or even three—or higher numbers on the wrong side of the balance sheet, reports the American Lawyer in an article reprinted by New York Lawyer (reg. req.). The U.S. offices of Bingham…

May 14, 2008 5:38 PM CDT

Toronto Abuzz About Partner Fired From Local Dorsey & Whitney Office

Lawyers from Dorsey & Whitney will be scrambling to try to make up lost ground as the firm copes with an embarrassing situation in its small Toronto office, a Canadian publication predicts. The city’s legal community is still buzzing over Gil Cornblum, a partner fired by the firm last week…

May 14, 2008 4:39 PM CDT

Dreier Forms Sports Marketing Affiliate

Dreier is launching a sports marketing and consulting affiliate, in conjunction with the law firm’s sports practice. Dreier Sports Opportunities Group will be headed by attorney Don Gibson, a former major league baseball executive, the firm reports in a press release. The Santa Monica, Calif.-based affiliate “will assist athletes and…

May 14, 2008 3:30 PM CDT

Thumbs Up to Web Code of Conduct, Thumbs Down to Facebook Ban

Almost half of all Web users would support an Internet code of conduct for bloggers and other Internet commentators, according to a survey by an international megafirm. But a growing number of observers question whether employer attempts to ban workers from using social networking sites like Facebook make sense. “A…

May 13, 2008 10:02 PM CDT

Good News for Deal Lawyers: Carl Icahn Mulls Yahoo Proxy Fight

In a slow season for corporate deals, renowned activist investor Carl Icahn has provided some good news for mergers and acquisitions lawyers. He reportedly has purchased as many as 50 million shares of Yahoo Inc. stock and, in the wake of Microsoft Corp.’s failed bid for the Internet giant, is…

May 13, 2008 9:09 PM CDT

Lack of Work for Summer Associates?

Summer associate programs at BigLaw firms are famously a time for potential legal eagles to play as well as work. But work may occupy even less of their time this year because of a slowdown at a number of corporate law firm departments. Some firms are cutting the duration of…

May 13, 2008 6:01 PM CDT

Lawyer Who Fought Nuclear Waste Had Unusual Last Request

A lawyer who died at the age of 53 after a campaign to ban a nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain had an unusual request in the obituary he wrote for himself. Joseph Egan wrote in the obit, posted on his firm’s website, that he had arranged for his ashes…

May 13, 2008 3:58 PM CDT

Shearman Left Out of ‘Sweet Sixteen’

Sixteen law firms are part of an elite international group that has been highly successful both in New York and in London. But not among the “Sweet Sixteen” honored by the Lawyer is Shearman & Sterling, because of a series of missteps that have canceled out the benefit of the…

May 13, 2008 3:35 PM CDT

Court Says Law Protects Law Firm Sued for Obtaining Vehicle Records

A federal appeals court has ruled a Florida law firm researching litigation against car dealerships did not violate federal law when it bought registration information about thousands of vehicles. The owner of a Chevrolet Impala had sued the law firm for violating the privacy law when it acquired information about…

May 13, 2008 12:03 PM CDT