We’re barely a week into the new year, and you know what that means: almost 12 whole months without a raise for New York’s most beleaguered six-figurines, Big Law associates. Yet despite the jump to $160,000 a year for first-year grunts (and don’t forget those bonuses, kids!), a culture of complaint—and, sometimes, litigation—was the Big Read More
Law firm holiday parties aren’t what they used to be. In bygone days, the booze-fueled blasts yielded up tales of M&A lawyers making out with each other in darkened corners, partners dancing drunkenly with paralegals young enough to be their daughters and similarly dubious behavior.
In recent years, however, stories of scandal have become Read More
First things first: Who’s getting what? Well, it seems you don’t have to be a Supreme Court clerk anymore to leave those black robes in the dust. At top firms such as Cravath, Swaine & Moore, first-year associates—those who graduated from law school in 2006—are getting year-end bonuses of $35,000 and one-time “special” bonuses (about Read More
So exactly how much did it cost Sullivan & Cromwell to make Aaron Charney go away? That’s the parlor game New York lawyers have been playing since late last month, when a settlement was reached between the white-shoe law firm and its former associate, who had sued S&C for sexual-orientation discrimination. Most memorably, Charney said Read More
Founded in 1792, Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft is “the oldest continuing Wall Street law practice in the United States,” as its website proudly notes. Name partner George Wickersham was attorney general under President Taft, and name partner Henry Taft was the president’s brother. In addition to being one of New York’s oldest firms, Cadwalader is Read More
“Who is this guy?”
That’s what an icy general counsel (Tilda Swinton) wants to know about George Clooney—of all people—in the new legal thriller Michael Clayton. At the prestigious New York law firm of Kenner, Bach & Ledeen, Mr. Clooney’s title character has the nifty-sounding job of “Special Counsel,” as well as a snazzy Read More
Are you a young, or even not-so-young, New York lawyer? If so, the odds are good that you’re on Facebook. If not, you’ve probably ignored a dozen invitations from friends urging you to join.
Trust me: You will succumb. Maybe you resisted getting a cellphone 10 years ago, or a Blackberry five years ago, Read More
Michael Mukasey isn’t the only New Yorker hoping to move down to the nation’s capital. The 66-year-old retired federal judge from the South Bronx, nominated this week by President Bush to serve as attorney general, is merely the latest. But how long a lease should he should sign?
Mr. Mukasey swore in Rudolph Giuliani Read More
I was waiting for the downtown train when I spotted him. It was a warm August day, and most of us were keeping still to stay cool. But he was pacing back and forth on the subway platform, awkwardly clutching a leather portfolio. He looked prematurely professional, like the high-school debater he probably once was. Read More
Then: Associate, employee benefits, Chadbourne & Parke (two years) and Fried Frank (two and a half years).
Now: Owner of The Farmer’s Daughter, a Brooklyn bakery. Also does legal research for a publishing company.
On law firm life: “I was a great associate because I was stressed out all the Read More
