Law Firms

Biovail Suit Turns Into Big-Firm Fight

Biovail Corp.’s “well-lawyered strategy” in a case that contends short sellers drove down the price of its stock went awry when a federal judge inquired into violation of a protective order. U.S. District Judge Richard Owen of Manhattan held nine days of hearings this spring and summer to learn more,…

Sep 13, 2007 2:49 PM CDT

Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell Is Born

The deal has been formally approved: Texas-based Locke Liddell & Sapp will merge with Lord, Bissell & Brook, a firm with headquarters in Chicago. The new 700-lawyer firm will be called Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell, Texas Lawyer reports. It will have 11 offices and gross revenues of about $400…

Sep 13, 2007 12:17 PM CDT

Foley Hoag Launches Creative Ads

Foley Hoag kicks off a marketing campaign this week that emphasizes its focus on clients’ businesses with eye-catching photos that are visual metaphors for the concept. The law firm, which has offices in Boston and Washington, D.C., settled on the idea based on client research, the New York Times reports.…

Sep 13, 2007 11:18 AM CDT

Lender Battles Could Cost Homeowners

As if struggling homeowners didn’t already have enough to worry about, insolvent lenders could saddle some with unexpected bills. In a bankruptcy court battle in Delaware between American Home Mortgage Investment Corp. and Freddie Mac, for instance, the U.S.-chartered housing financier says it has seized some $7 million in mortgage…

Sep 12, 2007 10:12 PM CDT

‘Justice’, Law Firm Mule Mascot, Stolen

A distinctive life-size mule mascot that has distinguished a Scranton, Pa., law firm for the past four years has been stolen from its front porch. Police are still looking for “Justice,” as the fiberglass mule is known, and the lawyers at Scartelli, Distasio & Kowalski feel a bit lost without…

Sep 12, 2007 7:48 PM CDT

Lawyer Sues Over Partner’s Alleged Groping

A former nonequity partner at a Washington, D.C., law firm is suing for sexual harassment stemming from an incident at a party. Elisa Eisenberg claims Robert Rider Jr., also a nonequity partner, became intoxicated and groped her at a June 2006 party, Legal Times reports. Her suit says her law…

Sep 12, 2007 11:33 AM CDT

Workouts Keep CA Real Estate Lawyers Busy

Fearful lenders are behind a slowdown in the San Francisco real estate market that has extended to high-end commercial transactions and affected the lawyers who handle them. Besides seeing an increasing number of failed real-estate deals, lawyers are finding that clients are seeking discounts of up to 15 percent if…

Sep 12, 2007 10:54 AM CDT

Chicago Coup Lures 8-Lawyer Group

In a hot-practice-area coup in Chicago, Bell, Boyd & Lloyd has lured eight bankruptcy lawyers, including a new practice group head, from rival Freeborn & Peters. The lateral group will help Bell, Boyd rev up its bankruptcy practice, which suffered a raid earlier this year by Baker & McKenzie, reports…

Sep 11, 2007 10:18 PM CDT

MBA Manages 250-Lawyer Practice Group

Until recently, Carolyn Summers would have been an odd duck at a major law firm. But her Ivy League MBA degree puts her at the forefront of a growing law firm trend—hiring business experts to manage a law practice, rather than putting a law firm partner in charge of administration.…

Sep 11, 2007 8:49 PM CDT

IRS Acts After Law Firms Seek Extension

A request by 92 large law firms has been answered. The law firms asked the Internal Revenue Service to extend the deadline for compliance with new deferred compensation rules under section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code. Weeks later, the IRS has extended the deadline by one year, giving companies…

Sep 11, 2007 12:03 PM CDT

Two Old Firms Struggle With New Paradigm

Two big law firms in the nation’s capital have dropped in Legal Times’ top-20 D.C. rankings, prompting the publication to conclude the firms “seem to be having trouble adjusting to Washington’s new paradigm.” The firms—Arnold & Porter and Covington & Burling—are slipping in the rankings at the same time that…

Sep 11, 2007 11:09 AM CDT

NJ Firms Raise Associate Salaries

While they’re not at the absolute top of the associate salary scale, a number of law firms in New Jersey are nonetheless raising starting pay for first-years significantly. Although some firms are holding the line, others say they are upping the associate ante by as much as 10 to 15…

Sep 10, 2007 10:52 PM CDT

‘TB Lawyer’ Fights to Regain Practice

Less than six months ago, life seemed good for Andrew H. Speaker, even though he’d been diagnosed with tuberculosis. The young personal injury lawyer was getting married, and about to start his own practice in Atlanta. Then he became the subject of international disapprobation for allegedly endangering others by taking…

Sep 10, 2007 10:17 PM CDT

Client’s YouTube Lawyer Video Banned

A disgruntled client can’t post video clips on YouTube complaining about his lawyer’s allegedly bad work and big bills, a Canadian judge has ruled. Superior Court Justice William Jenkins also said that client Stan Hall can’t post any further videos about lawyer Paul Ledroit without court permission, reports the London…

Sep 10, 2007 9:45 PM CDT

Philly Firm Splits; Drinker Biddle Benefits

Updated: Miller Alfano & Raspanti, a Philadelphia commercial litigation boutique, is splitting. Due to a growing divergence between practice groups, half the firm reportedly will join Philadelphia-based Drinker Biddle & Reath, and the other half is merging with Pittsburgh-based Pietragallo Bosick & Gordon. Gregory Miller, the firm’s founder and managing…

Sep 10, 2007 6:18 PM CDT