Axing Mandatory Retirement Brings ‘Economic Opportunity Cost’

Law firms eliminating mandatory retirement have their work cut out for them. Several big firms have announced they are abandoning their forced retirement policies in favor of more flexible systems. They include Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft, and Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman.…

Nov 28, 2007 4:19 PM CST

Bus Accidents Lucrative for Conn. Lawyer

A Connecticut lawyer has found that bus accidents are a thriving practice area with guaranteed wins. Edward Jazlowiecki of Bristol has practiced in the area for 20 years and recovered millions of dollars in settlements, the Connecticut Law Tribune reports. Jazlowiecki gets many of his cases through referrals. He also…

Nov 27, 2007 3:57 PM CST

Outsourcing Firms Bring in the Engineers to Advise, Write Patents

Much like American law firms have beefed up their IP practices by hiring lawyers with engineering and scientific backgrounds, so too are legal process outsourcing companies in India. The Hindu Business Line reports that outsourcing firms are hiring experienced engineers to analyze new technologies and to write patents. One company…

Nov 26, 2007 9:17 PM CST

Who Are the Lawyers Behind the Presidential Bids?

The leading presidential candidates didn’t want to reveal their LSAT scores, but many, especially Republicans, were eager to share the names of their legal advisers.

Slate.com’s Emily Bazelon tried to see who did best on the LSAT, Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton. She struck out.

On the question of lawyers for the teams, however, she reported the following lineups.

Nov 26, 2007 7:14 PM CST

U.K. Lawyers Long for Offices in India

Attorneys at major law firms in the United Kingdom are notably unhappy about their inability to open offices in India, and will continue to press for permission to establish a presence there, a London newspaper says. Eager to work on cross-border deals, London lawyers at big firms long for offices…

Nov 21, 2007 8:39 PM CST

Assoc. Math Problem: Same Bonus, But Different Amount

A “credit crisis” over associate bonuses reportedly is brewing at a recently merged megafirm, because the two have differing formulas about how they should be calculated. Associates who joined the newly formed Dewey & LeBoeuf from Dewey Ballantine get billable hours credit for client development, reports New York Lawyer (reg.…

Nov 21, 2007 6:20 PM CST

‘This Isn’t Working Out’: How Lawyers Are Really Fired

For every high-profile, publicized axing of a well-known partner or abrupt, behind-the-scenes removal of an BigLaw associate from his or her office, there are far more “quiet firings.” Most often given by the bigwigs conducting a lawyer’s annual review, the break-up speech is commonly a “subtle, general disengagement”—so low-key, in…

Nov 21, 2007 5:59 PM CST

Pillsbury Hires Director of Corporate Social Responsibility

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman has created a new position that so far has been mostly confined to European law firms: Director of corporate social responsibility. The lawyer appointed to the position is Tania Shah, the former executive director of the California Minority Counsel Program, the Recorder reports. The new position…

Nov 21, 2007 1:29 PM CST

‘Harvard Lawyer’ Now Has New Title: Inmate

Young, attractive and clean-cut, Charles Brady certainly looked the part of the Harvard-trained land use and zoning attorney police say he claimed to be. Even a number of fellow practitioners reportedly were fooled by the 26-year-old stepson of a former Florida legislator. However, Brady, despite regularly practicing law and collecting…

Nov 20, 2007 11:23 PM CST

Non-Lawyer Now at Helm of 1,000-Attorney Law Firm

At the forefront of a law firm management trend, Morrison & Foerster has brought in a non-attorney as its chief operating officer. Pat Cavaney, who was formerly Hewlett-Packard Co.’s vice president of business operations for the company’s worldwide services group, has been named as the law firm’s new chief operating…

Nov 20, 2007 8:36 PM CST

Worth Mag. Lists Top Lawyers for the Wealthy

CORRECTED: A magazine for the well-to-do is coming out with its annual list of the top 100 lawyers for the well-to-do. Texas lawyer John Bergner announced in a press release this week that he’s been named in the list again, along with two other lawyers from Texas. Lawyers from Schiff…

Nov 20, 2007 5:54 PM CST

Ex-ABA Membership Chair Dies

A Shreveport, La., lawyer who served as ABA membership chairman has died. Robert G.Pugh, a former president of the Shreveport Bar Association, died at the age of 83, the Shreveport Times reports. ABA membership tripled during his tenure from 1977 to 1984, the newspaper reports. Pugh’s listing on Lawyers.com shows…

Nov 20, 2007 3:45 PM CST

Leftist Lawyer Victor Rabinowitz Dies

Leftist lawyer Victor Rabinowitz has died at the age of 96. Rabinowitz was one of the founding members of the National Lawyers Guild and served as its president in 1967, the New York Times reports. Among his clients were labor unions, civil rights figures, Cuba and Chile. Rabinowitz’s law firm…

Nov 20, 2007 3:27 PM CST

La. Criminal Defense Bar Draft Not a Hot Ticket for Lawyers

An attempt by a Louisiana judge to draft criminal defense lawyers to help out, on a pro bono basis, with a backlog of indigent cases was not an overwhelming success. Only 17 of the 33 lawyers notified last month that they should appear Friday in the courtroom of Orleans Parish…

Nov 19, 2007 7:52 PM CST

India Says Yes to Foreign Legal Work, But No to Foreign Lawyers

A charm offensive by the British bar has failed to win immediate permission from the Indian government for foreign lawyers to practice in what many consider the world capital of legal outsourcing work. “The Bar Council of India (BCI) has released a joint resolution with the country’s state Bar councils…

Nov 19, 2007 6:50 PM CST