Partners

Former BigLaw lawyer inflated hours because of perceived billing expectations, ethics complaint says

A lawyer concerned about meeting perceived billing expectations inflated work hours while working at two Chicago law firms, according to an Illinois ethics complaint. The lawyer, Christopher Craig Anderson, had worked as an associate at Kirkland & Ellis before joining Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg, where he was promoted to nonequity…

Jan 22, 2019 7:30 AM CST

Skadden to pay over $4.6M, register as Ukraine foreign agent to resolve allegations tied to Manafort case

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom has agreed to pay more than $4.6 million to the U.S. Treasury and register retroactively as a foreign agent of the Ukrainian government in a case tied to Paul Manafort, a former campaign manager for President Donald Trump. The civil settlement resolves allegations that…

Jan 18, 2019 12:23 PM CST

18 LeClairRyan lawyers jump to growing law firm to open office in Boston

Eighteen lawyers are leaving LeClairRyan to open a Boston office for Freeman Mathis & Gary, a law firm that began with three lawyers in Atlanta more than two decades ago. With the addition of the new lawyers, Freeman Mathis now has 150 lawyers in 15 offices in eight states, report…

Jan 11, 2019 7:15 AM CST

NAACP official slams lawyer’s ‘Ku Klux Coors’ Facebook photo; is it an ethics violation?

An NAACP official says a Connecticut lawyer’s Facebook post is racist and disgusting. The lawyer, on the other hand, says it was intended to test Facebook’s screening policies, which he thinks to cater to the “morbidly sensitive.” The New Haven lawyer who posted the material is Norm Pattis, who has…

Jan 9, 2019 11:08 AM CST

Reed Smith partner cites ‘Animal House’ and Tweety Bird, leading to scolding by federal judge

A Reed Smith partner who has filed briefs citing Animal House and Tweety Bird in his defense of a Russian company received a scolding on Monday from a federal judge who told him his latest brief was “unprofessional, inappropriate and ineffective.” U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich told the lawyer, Eric…

Jan 8, 2019 9:38 AM CST

Who owns the copyright to a crocheted bikini? Legal battle waged by Kiini maker takes a turn

The woman who took the fashion world by storm with a crocheted bikini called the Kiini fought retailers that sold different versions of the swimwear with lawsuits. She reportedly had $9 million in sales by 2015.

Jan 2, 2019 12:35 PM CST

Is ‘spoliation in droves’ defamatory? Comments by Kramer Levin and its partners are protected, court rules

A litigant who claimed he was defamed by Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel and two of its partners has failed to win reinstatement of his defamation suit. The New York Supreme Court’s First Judicial Department in the Appellate Division ruled on Dec. 13 that the some of the alleged defamatory…

Dec 20, 2018 9:33 AM CST

Partner promotion photo shows little diversity; law firm blames ‘idiosyncratic demographic pool’

Law firm partnership announcements are drawing scrutiny as critics question why women and minorities appear to be underrepresented. One law firm battered by LinkedIn commenters was Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, the New York Law Journal reports. Its online photo of 12 new partners showed just one woman. The…

Dec 20, 2018 8:30 AM CST

Law firms are having the best financial-growth year in about a decade, two reports conclude

Law firms increased revenues this year, posting gains during the first three quarters that are the best in about a decade, according to two new reports.

Dec 12, 2018 7:00 AM CST

Study finds male partners make an average of 53% more than female partners at top law firms

The difference in average compensation for male and female partners at top U.S. law firms amounts to a 53 percent pay gap, according to a survey released on Thursday.

Dec 6, 2018 3:40 PM CST

Overwhelmed with personal tasks? Kirkland & Ellis provides a solution

Kirkland & Ellis is providing concierge services to help lawyers and senior staff who are too busy to handle personal tasks and run errands. The service, called Kirkland Concierge, includes a full-time, on-site concierge staff along with off-site concierge services that can be reached with a phone call or email,…

Nov 15, 2018 7:30 AM CST

James Polsinelli to retire from the law firm that bears his name

James Polsinelli is retiring in January from the firm he founded with two other lawyers in 1972. Polsinelli was 28 years old when he founded the firm now known simply as Polsinelli, report the American Lawyer and a press release. They managed to launch the firm in Kansas City, Missouri,…

Nov 7, 2018 12:53 PM CST

Holland & Hart is ‘changing and adapting’ amid lawyer losses, managing partner says

Holland & Hart managing partner Thomas O’Donnell is attributing the loss of 72 lawyers this year to retirements and a more active lateral market for partners. The American Lawyer spoke with O’Donnell about the figures: The law firm has lost 23 partners, 31 associates and 18 of counsels. The office…

Nov 6, 2018 1:23 PM CST

Former partner sentenced to five years in prison for scheme to bribe Alabama lawmaker

A former partner at Balch & Bingham has been sentenced to five years in prison for a scheme to bribe an Alabama state legislator to oppose expansion of a site designated for an environmental cleanup. U.S. District Judge Abdul Kallon sentenced lawyer Joel Gilbert, 46, on Tuesday, report AL.com, WBRC…

Oct 26, 2018 6:30 AM CDT

Lawyer survey shows growing awareness and use of litigation finance

Litigation finance is gaining in popularity as more clients and law firms are figuring out how to use it. That is the takeaway from a survey commissioned by litigation financing company Burford Capital, according to Liz Bigham, chief marketing officer at Burford who spoke with Bloomberg Law about the results.…

Oct 23, 2018 12:28 PM CDT