Legal News

Hot Bankruptcy Round-Up: WaMu, Trib Reaching the End

Posted on July 27, 2010
But what, pray tell, is Merrill Lynch afraid of? 

Lawyers Emerge from WikiLeaks Shadows

Posted on July 26, 2010
The disclosure Sunday of 92,000 confidential documents about the war in Afghanistan is raising new First Amendment questions about the government's ability going forward to restrict the publication of privilegedinformation in an increasingly "WikiLeaks world...

Davis Polk, Kirkland Lead on Roper-iTradeNetwork Deal

Posted on July 26, 2010
Roper Industries's $525 million acquisition of iTradeNetwork, announced Monday, is on track to close this week.

The Churn: Lateral Moves and Promotions in The Am Law 200

Posted on July 26, 2010
Clifford Chance brings on a new partner to head up its Americas real estate group; Honigman Miller adds another lawyer to its corporate and securities department, the sixth new partner to join the group since January; and U.K. firm Norton Rose beefs up its technology and IP capabilities in Hong Kong...

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Winston, O'Melveny Newest Entrants in Icahn-Lions Gate Spat

Posted on July 26, 2010
This fight shall never end!

Score One for Reason? Jones Day, Northwestern Push Back OCI...Slightly

Posted on July 26, 2010
September is better than August, right? 

Judge Sentences Miami Attorney to Ten Years for Fraud

Posted on July 26, 2010
Lewis Freeman, a prominent attorney, accountant, and court-appointed receiver and trustee in Miami, has been sentenced to eight years in prison and 21 months house arrest for his role in a $2.6 million fraud.

Are FTC, DOJ Getting Harsher on Mergers?

Posted on July 26, 2010
They appear to be, and the bad economy may be the reason.

A $1 Million Coda in the Pequot Case

Posted on July 26, 2010
Or: the potential benefits of divorce.

IPOs Stay Hot for Am Law Firms, With Better Times on Horizon

Posted on July 23, 2010
Sidley Austin, Skadden Arps, Sheppard Mullin, and Fenwick & West are on the latest round of initial public offerings, and several large listings are expected later this year.

Retired NFL Players Sue Manatt, McKool Over Case They Won

Posted on July 23, 2010
The suit says the two firms blew the chance at even higher damages than the $21 million the retired players won from the NFL player's union.

BP Roundup: Bartlit Beck Hired by Spill Commission

Posted on July 23, 2010
A presidential panel probing the Gulf oil spill has hired Fred Bartlit, Jr., of top litigation boutique Bartlit Beck to lead the investigation into the disaster stemming from an April 20 explosion aboard the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform. Plus: a look at BP's U...

Steptoe and the Case of the Smelly Hamburgers

Posted on July 23, 2010
Yuck.

Lehman Legal Fees Approaching $400 Million

Posted on July 23, 2010
Just how much are bankruptcy lawyers and advisers making in the ongoing Lehman Brothers bankruptcy? Bloomberg reports that the $873.1 million in fees billed since the beginning of the case would quadruple the annual payroll of the New York Yankees. According to a Thursday filing by the SEC, 17 law firms collectively will take home at least half that amount.

Where Have All the Mentors Gone?

Posted on July 23, 2010
There's no metric for measuring the contribution of mentoring to, say, average profits per partner. Unfortunately, in law firms, what can't be measured gets ignored.

The Contract Chronicles: Lance, Sergei, Kovy, Babby, Reggie, and the Rangers

Posted on July 22, 2010
Several firms flock to yet another performance-enhancing drug probe; more on the lawyers investigating whether Reggie Bush should forfeit his Heisman Trophy; a Williams & Connolly partner flees for the NBA; a raucous hearing in the Texas Rangers bankruptcy; Sergei Fedorov's malpractice suit; and a canceled contract for a current NHL star.

Andrews Kurth, Hunton Lead on $3.5B GM, AmeriCredit Deal

Posted on July 22, 2010
The deal is GM?s first major acquisition since emerging from bankruptcy last July.

Breaking: Skadden, Wachtell on $100M Dell Settlement

Posted on July 22, 2010
It has been coming for a while.

The Careerist: Pessimism Can Be Useful

Posted on July 22, 2010
Dan Bowling, a labor lawyer, chats about happiness--and misery. A former law firm partner and head of human resources at Coca-Cola, this fall Bowling will teach a course on lawyer happiness and well-being at Duke Law School.

Huge Win for Orrick, MGA as Ninth Circuit Tosses Bratz Verdict

Posted on July 22, 2010
The long-running copyright fight between Mattel, Inc., and rival toymaker MGA Entertainment, Inc., over the fashion doll line took a dramatic turn Thursday when a three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit quashed an injunction that had prevented MGA from selling the dolls and said a new trial is likely because of flawed jury instructions at the original district court trial...

Sweet Smell of Success for Law-Lobby Shops

Posted on July 22, 2010
Health care and Wall Street reform bills have boosted the bottom lines of several Am Law 200 lobbying groups.

Skadden's Background Role in Bizarre Advertising Dispute

Posted on July 22, 2010
Why would it take 2-and-a-half years to rule on a motion to seal court records?

More NALP Numbers Show a Frozen Legal Market

Posted on July 22, 2010
Confirming what we already know: The class of 2009 has it rough.

Summer Hiring Survey: 44% Down in 2010

Posted on July 21, 2010
The 114 firms that responded to our survey hired an average of 31 summer associates this year, down from last year's average of 55 associates. Some of the biggest cuts came from the top of The A-List.

V&E Takes Lead on $1.7 Billion Energy Deal

Posted on July 21, 2010
BP wasn't the only company to sell its Permian basin holdings this week. Vinson & Elkins advised oil and gas company Concho Resources on its acquisition of privately held Marbob Energy for $1.66 billion in cash and securities. The deal was the third energy transaction the firm handled in recent days.

Simpson Thacher to Launch UK Private Funds Practice with Clifford Chance Hire

Posted on July 21, 2010
Jason Glover, the head of Clifford Chance's global private funds practice, has been hired  by Simpson Thacher & Bartlet to launch the firms U.K. private funds practice.

Another Law Firm Folds, This Time in Britain

Posted on July 21, 2010
Say "cheerio" to Halliwells, a British firm that has been on the ropes since warning of financial problems last month. Three U.K. competitors are picking up what remains of the now-defunct firm's assets.

Pro Bono 2010: Bridging the Divide

Posted on July 21, 2010
Baker & Daniels's pro bono work with EMBRACE, a program that provides holistic services to female cancer patients, is the latest initiative from the Medical-Legal Partnership, a project launched by the Indiana Health Advocacy Coalition. Lawyers, working out of a hospital clinic, help patients draw up guardianship and estate planning documents.

Seven Firms Advise on BP's $7 Billion Asset Sale to Apache

Posted on July 21, 2010
BP's woes are keeping more than just litigators busy. Sullivan & Cromwell, Bracewell & Giuliani, Gardere Wynne Sewell, Frasner Milner Casgrain, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt, Slaughter and May, and CMS Cameron McKenna have all snagged roles on the sale of BP assets in three countries to Houston-based Apache.

Appellate Court Revives Malpractice Claims Against Boies Schiller

Posted on July 21, 2010
A New York state appellate court ruled that a state judge went too far when it threw out a fashion model's entire case against the firm for allegedly bungling her case against modeling agencies.

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