Partners

Rainmakers Consider Lateral Moves in ‘Flight to Quality’

Rainmaking partners who lose confidence in their law firms are evaluating whether to jump to better locales in a “flight to quality.” Increased compensation isn’t the only consideration for these partners, writes Dan Binstock, managing director of the Washington, D.C., office of BCG Attorney Search, in an article for Legal…

Jan 29, 2009 2:40 PM CST

‘Accidental Laterals’ Spur Record Number of BigLaw Partner Moves

More than 2,500 partners jumped from one large law firm to another in the year ending Sept. 30, a number that doesn’t even include lawyers joining new firms as a result of the dissolutions of Heller Ehrman, Thelen and Thacher Profitt. The number—a 4 percent increase over the previous year—is…

Jan 29, 2009 2:04 PM CST

Linklaters’ New World Has Up to 270 Fewer Associates and Staffers

Up to 120 associates and 150 support staffers in Linklaters’ London office are facing the prospect of lost jobs in a program reportedly dubbed Linklaters New World. The law firm announced today it would begin a 90-day redundancy consultation, report the Associated Press and Bloomberg. The consultation is expected to…

Jan 29, 2009 1:23 PM CST

A Start of a Trend? Big Law Firms Ask Partners for More Cash

When Dewey & LeBoeuf announced last fall it was withholding some profit distributions to partners, it may have been something of a trendsetter. The idea was to build up the law firm’s capital base. Others followed Dewey’s lead, the Wall Street Journal reports (sub. req.). Clifford Chance asked partners to…

Jan 29, 2009 12:51 PM CST

Court-Appointed NY Lawyer Accused of Stealing $4M from Clients

A Brooklyn lawyer appointed by New York judges as a guardian overseeing the assets of elderly and incapacitated clients allegedly siphoned away $4 million for his own personal use from as much as $30 million in settlements and other funds. “Steven Rondos, 44, and his law firm, Raia & Rondos,…

Jan 28, 2009 10:28 PM CST

Obama Lawyer Nominees Giving Up Millions in Big-Firm Pay

Attorney General nominee Eric Holder earned the highest big-firm salary last year out of four lawyers nominated to posts in the Obama administration. Disclosure forms show Holder made $3.3 million in salary and deferred compensation at Covington & Burling last year, the Am Law Daily reports, with a hat tip…

Jan 28, 2009 7:01 PM CST

Ogletree Deakins Opens in Boston

A national labor and employment boutique has opened a new office in Boston with four partners and expects to expand it soon. To open its doors there, Ogletree Deakins Nash, Smoak & Stewart has brought in a three-partner team from Goulston & Storrs. Joshua Davis, Neil McKittrick and Deborah Hesford…

Jan 27, 2009 7:23 PM CST

Cadwalader Partner Recalls Hectic Four Days on Pfizer-Wyeth Deal

A mergers and acquisitions partner at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft describes a hectic four days working on pharmaceutical maker Pfizer’s $68 billion buyout of Wyeth. Dennis Block told the Am Law Daily he worked on and off on the deal for several months until he got a call on Thursday…

Jan 27, 2009 6:21 PM CST

Locke Lord Pursues Partners of Dwindling Morgan & Finnegan IP Boutique

Most of the remaining lawyers in a New York intellectual property boutique that has been dwindling for the past two years are at least thinking about joining Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell. On Friday, Locke Lord extended offers to “the bulk” of the partnership at Morgan & Finnegan, reports the…

Jan 26, 2009 9:24 PM CST

2 Fla. Lawyers Charged in Alleged $800M Ponzi Scheme; Colleagues Stunned

Local practitioners are still stunned over news earlier this month that two prominent Fort Lauderdale, Fla., lawyers, Michael McNerney and Anthony Livoti Jr., are now defendants in a federal criminal case. And not just any federal criminal case: The two were indicted in connection with their work for an alleged…

Jan 26, 2009 6:32 PM CST

Venable Partner on Downed Jet: ‘I Truly Thought I Was Going to Drown’

Although passengers on a US Airways jet that crash-landed on the Hudson River a week ago were remarkably calm about trying to escape from the plane, it didn’t look good to James Hanks Jr. As he headed from his business class seat near the rear of the plane to the…

Jan 22, 2009 9:10 PM CST

How to Start Your Own Law Firm: Just Do It, Successful Solo Says

It doesn’t necessarily take a lot of money to start your own law practice. But it does take determination. The one most critical factor in establishing a solo practice is deciding to do it, attorney Deborah Blommer tells the Wisconsin Law Journal. She has taught a course at Marquette University…

Jan 22, 2009 6:38 PM CST

It May Take SIPC 5 Years to Sort Out Madoff Mess & Pay Investors

Bernard Madoff’s alleged $50 billion Ponzi scheme run under the guise of a hedge fund is the most complex financial web the Securities Investor Protection Corp. has ever had to untangle in its 40-year history. So figuring out what, exactly, has been going on at Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities,…

Jan 21, 2009 6:39 PM CST

The Best D.C. Law Firms for Lateral Landing

Three Washington, D.C., law firms are in a good position to weather the economic downturn, making them good places for job-hopping lawyers as lateral recruiting season heats up. Legal Times identifies the three firms as Crowell & Moring, Arnold & Porter and Covington & Burling. The publication based its assessment…

Jan 21, 2009 2:24 PM CST

Jenner’s Chair, Anton Valukas, to Probe Lehman Bros. as New Examiner

The chairman of the Chicago-based Jenner & Block law firm has been nominated to serve as the court-appointed examiner in the record-breaking Lehman Brothers bankruptcy in progress in federal court in Manhattan. As examiner, Anton Valukas will have “the power to investigate a wide range of issues, including asset transfers…

Jan 20, 2009 8:24 PM CST