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When Tim Ryan joined Mayer Brown in July, it didn't take him long to learn his way around. He'd been a new hire at the law firm before -- three times before. Although Ryan's situation may be extreme, many attorneys are returning to the fold after seeking opportunities elsewhere. While it is typical for lawyers to rejoin a firm after a political appointment comes to an end, increased lateral shuffling in the current legal market has some attorneys heading back home after a stint with the competition.
We all know there's a problem. Women represent only 18 percent of partners in the nation's largest law firms, 16 percent of equity partners and fewer than 10 percent of managing partners. At every level of firm practice, including partnership, women are leaving at a much higher rate than their male counterparts. Firms have enacted various measures to address the problem, yet little has changed. Consultant Melissa McClenaghan Martin describes the new angles several firms are taking.
The House on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed legislation that for the
first time would subject the tobacco industry to regulation by federal
health authorities charged with promoting public well-being. The bill
would further tighten restrictions on tobacco advertising and impose new
federal penalties for selling to minors. But its most far-reaching
provisions would give the Food and Drug Administration the power to
regulate tobacco, from cigarettes to new kinds of smokeless products.
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld's chairman says that while some recent partner departures have been unexpected, the firm is committed to a restructuring plan aimed at increasing profits and giving its New York office more clout in deciding the firm's direction. In an interview with , firm Chairman R. Bruce McLean said the firm has overhauled and shrunk its executive committee and will focus on higher-end practices, including intellectual property litigation and climate change work.
Just last year, Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft was riding high, having reached economic heights previously scaled only by the Cravaths and Wachtells of the profession. In an interview at the time, the firm's then-chairman predicted there'd be no problem sustaining that success "short of some cataclysmic event." Cadwalader is now facing just that kind of event, announcing it is laying off 96 lawyers due to slowness in core practices. It's the second round of layoffs for the firm, which cut 35 lawyers in January.
In the heart of Red Sox Nation, you don't become a sports fan, you're born one. That's why Dan Fitzgerald, an associate at Updike, Kelly & Spellacy in Hartford, Conn., launched the Connecticut Sports Law blog. The Web site "covers the intersection between sports and the law."
Kilpatrick Stockton's IT team takes a multipronged approach to a greener law firm, with Web and videoconferencing to reduce travel; a software-based cost recovery system; systems to manage copiers, printers and scanners and other hardware; server virtualization; and e-billing.
When it comes to data management and data security, many companies miss the importance of protecting personal information. And with new laws on the books, corporate counsel must be attuned to legal obligations of safeguarding not only customers' information but employees' as well.
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