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Major Change Proposed for How Texas Judges Handle Cases
The Texas Supreme Court has proposed ending the central docket system in Bexar and Travis counties, where any available judge can currently hear a case. Instead, under the proposed new rules, cases would be randomly assigned to one judge who would handle the case from...
‘AI Is A Public Health Intervention’: Kara Peterson On Why Access To Law Is A Justice Issue, Not Just A Legal One
When Kara Peterson co-founded descrybe.ai, she wasn’t just launching a legal tech startup. She was applying the logic of public health to the legal system. She saw something lawyers often miss: that legal information, like clean water or vaccines, becomes...
Merger Madness To Continue In 2026 So Some Biglaw Firms Can ‘Survive’
Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day. I doubt that Cadwalader will be the last firm that needs to find a merger partner to survive. — A Biglaw senior partner, in anonymous comments given to Law.com, concerning Cadwalader’s recently announced merger...
Thomson Reuters White Paper: The Future Is Here — It’s Just Not Evenly Distributed
AI here, AI there, AI everywhere. That seems to be the trend. But are we willing to cede good lawyer skills to a bot? That seems to be a risk according to a white paper from Thomson Reuters. There’s a famous quote attributed to the science fiction writer William...
$1 Billion Pennsylvania Verdict Vacated, Remanded for New Trial
Pennsylvania's Superior Court judges ruled in Monday's opinion that a trial judge had previously instructed the jury with the wrong legal standard. Pennsylvania's Superior Court judges ruled in Monday's opinion that a trial judge had previously instructed the...
How Davis Polk Has Become Go-To Merger Counsel for Big Law
The Wall Street law firm and its chair, Neil Barr, have advised on at least five law firm mergers in the last couple of years. The Wall Street law firm and its chair, Neil Barr, have advised on at least five law firm mergers in the last couple of...
Government Appeals Judge’s Decision to Unfreeze Federal Funding to Harvard
Harvard University secured a court victory against the Trump administration in early September when District Court Judge Allison Burroughs blocked the government from enforcing past or future freeze orders. Harvard University secured a court victory against the...
Guess Which Biglaw Firm Just Hitched Onto The Bonus Money Train?
Few things brighten up the holiday season like lump sums hitting your bank account. Seward & Kissel is in the giving spirit and announced a round of bonuses and special bonuses for their hardworking employees. Here’s the bonus scale: The firm is taking a special...
Biglaw Firm’s Black-Box Bonuses Seem To Be A Market Match
As Biglaw firms jockey to position themselves as compensation leaders — or at least avoid being labeled as laggards — associates across the Am Law 100 continue to refresh their inboxes, hoping for a market match of the Cravath/Milbank scale for year-end and special...
Lindsey Halligan Resolves To Embarrass Herself At SCOTUS In 2026
On Friday, the Justice Department noticed its intent to appeal in US v. Comey and US v. James. The government will attempt to resuscitate the charges against Trump’s enemies — despite the many, obvious defects in both cases! — by arguing that it can, too let Lindsey...
Once A Real Estate Developer …
Imagine you’re a real estate developer. Imagine you’re trying to entice North Korea to come to the negotiating table over its nuclear weapons. What do you offer? You tell Kim Jung Un that North Korea has awesome economic potential if only it would give up its nukes....
An Inside Look At The Law Firm’s Law Firm
In this episode of the Jabot podcast, I chat with Sandra Cohen, co-managing partner at Cohen & Buckmann. Sandra shares her journey from HR to law, specializing in executive compensation and employee benefits. Discover the challenges and rewards of running a...
NY Governor Signs Consumer Litigation Funding Act
The legislation, which will set a 25% cap on a third-party consumer litigation financing company's gross recovery from a lawsuit, had been eight years in the works. The legislation, which will set a 25% cap on a third-party consumer litigation financing...
Anti-Zionism Is Antisemitism With A New Haircut
We were Jews before we were anything else, one Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice remarked at a Democratic Jewish event in Philadelphia on October 6, 2025. The justice, then a candidate for retention election, spoke about our moral obligation to condemn antisemitism,...
Guest Post: The Promise of AI in Legal Has Landed, But Not in the Way People Thought It Would
Augment or empower? The new split in AI for legal. There are still no “AI lawyers,” no bots running matters end to end or standing up in court. What we’re seeing instead is far more interesting: hundreds of focused solutions that chip away at specific problems. Taken...
New Trump Space Policy Sets 2028 Deadline For Moon Base, Golden Dome Prototype
The post New Trump Space Policy Sets 2028 Deadline For Moon Base, Golden Dome Prototype appeared first on Above the Law.The post New Trump Space Policy Sets 2028 Deadline For Moon Base, Golden Dome Prototype appeared first on Above the Law.
Morning Docket: 12.22.25
* The Trump administration broke the Epstein files disclosure statute, but can anyone do anything about it? [The Guardian] * One of the more comically inept breaches involved the Justice Department deleting one of the photos they’d already released once they realized...
How Big Law Is Viewing the Hogan Lovells-Cadwalader Plan
Some observers said the merger was a cautionary tale about the forces in the market. Others lauded the announcement. Some observers said the merger was a cautionary tale about the forces in the market. Others lauded the announcement.
The Week in Data Dec. 22: A Look at Legal Industry Trends by the Numbers
Catch up on the latest data from across the Law.com newsroom, including a reversal of a years-long trend in Big Law partner promotions. Catch up on the latest data from across the Law.com newsroom, including a reversal of a years-long trend in Big Law partner...
How I Made Office Managing Partner: ‘Be Patient With the Process of Building a Career,’ Says Monica Call of Foley & Lardner
"I would tell my younger self to be patient with the process of building a career and to recognize that success is as much about relationships as it is about skills. Early on, I was focused on technical excellence—which is critical—but I've since learned that...
Mega Merger Just In Time For The Holidays — See Generally
Cadwalader Joining Up With Hogan Lovells: After a few months of merger chatter, we have a new home for America’s oldest firm. ICE Accidentally Publishes Enemies List: The agency briefly posted what looked an awful lot like a watch list of immigration lawyers, in case...
Minnesota Jury Returns $65.5M Talc Verdict Against Johnson & Johnson
Friday's verdict, in the Second Judicial District in Ramsey County, Minnesota, is the latest talc verdict against Johnson & Johnson for Dallas-based plaintiffs' firm Dean Omar Branham Shirley. Friday's verdict, in the Second Judicial District in Ramsey...
Delaware Supreme Court Rejects Chancery’s Rescission of Elon Musk’s Tesla Pay Package, Substituting $1 in Nominal Damages as Remedy
The court stated rescinding the $56 billion pay package wasn't a proper remedy because it left Musk uncompensated for six years of work he'd already contributed to Tesla. The court stated rescinding the $56 billion pay package wasn't a proper remedy because it...
Law Firm Disrupted: Getting ‘Under the Hood’ of Law Firms at Merger Time More Art Than Science
Several Big Law mergers lately have had vastly different financial pictures. At the end of the day, that may not matter anymore. Several Big Law mergers lately have had vastly different financial pictures. At the end of the day, that may not matter...
Avast Ye Mateys! Republicans Introduce Bill To Bring Back Pirates To Fight Drug Cartels
Mike Lee is a United States Senator, a former Supreme Court clerk, and a deeply unserious clown. Lee’s new “Patriots of the Caribbean” initiative — which sounds like a militia group that got lost on January 6 searching for its lost shaker of salt — seeks to help the...
The ‘Severe’ Stress Of Leading An In-House Legal Department
Ed. Note: Welcome to our daily feature Trivia Question of the Day! According to a survey by the Association of Corporate Counsel, what percentage of surveyed in-house legal department leaders say they have “high or severe” levels of stress? Hint: The report warns,...
Fighting Firm Pays Its Associates Handsomely! — See Also
WilmerHale Is Paying Out Bonus!: Having a backbone pays the bills! Associates At Top 50 Firm Can Make Up To $218k In Bonuses!: MoFo is handing out the big bucks! King & Spalding Joins The Bonus Train: Love to see a match! Right Wing Piracy: Mike Lee wants to send...
Yale Law School Appoints Cristina Rodri guez as New Dean
Rodri guez is currently serving as deputy dean and will take over the role on Feb. 1, 2026. The school's prior dean, Heather Gerken, stepped down in August to run the Ford Foundation. Rodri guez is currently serving as deputy dean and will take over the role on...
More Novice Lawyers Should Volunteer At Legal Aid Clinics
Pro bono matters can be an invaluable experience for rookie lawyers. Depending on the law firm, many new attorneys might not have the chance to work on substantive tasks related to the regular matters a law firm handles, since partners may not want novice lawyers...
Biglaw’s New Recruiting Style Is Forcing First-Year Law Students To Make Decisions They’re ‘Not Ready’ For
Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day. It’s putting students in a position to make choices and present themselves in a way they’re just not ready to. — Anna DiSalvo Konschak, director of career services at Temple University Beasley School of Law, in...
CMS’ ACCESS Model: A New Push To Rewire Medicare Around Outcomes?
The post CMS’ ACCESS Model: A New Push To Rewire Medicare Around Outcomes? appeared first on Above the Law.The post CMS’ ACCESS Model: A New Push To Rewire Medicare Around Outcomes? appeared first on Above the Law.
Litigation Trends to Watch: Lawsuits Center on Marketing Emails, Pollution in Minnesota and Force Majeure Provisions
Welcome to the Trend Detection Weekly Scan from Law.com Radar. This weekly article highlights shifts and patterns in case filings that are surfaced by Law.com Radar's award-winning Trend Detection system. Welcome to the Trend Detection Weekly Scan from Law.com...
The Future Of Legal Services: It May Not Be What We Think
But I am Omus. Emperor of Delta Three. I don’t want to hear any more. I don’t think I even know you; you’re some sentimental old fool who doesn’t understand anything. I, I am the world of the future, you’re back in some dark past. People are no longer necessary. —...
Judge in Depo-Provera MDL Orders Additional Briefing on FDA’s Brain Tumor Warning
At a Friday hearing, U.S. District Judge M. Casey Rodgers, of the Northern District of Florida, ordered supplemental briefs to Pfizer's summary judgment motion on federal preemption in light of the FDA's warning label added this month to Depo-Provera. At a...
How Filevine’s New DraftAI Cuts Out Hours Of Writing Work
After years of being a market leader in case management software, Filevine has built a reputation for making lawyers’ jobs easier. From data entry to document management, the software applies AI to every layer of your case to save countless billable hours. Now, with...
Top 25 Biglaw Firm Announces Bonuses
You know why you’re here. King & Spalding just hitched onto the bonus train! They’ve been raking in the cash, $2,373,034,000 gross revenue in 2024 according to the Am Law 100, and they’re divvying up the coffers this holiday season. Here’s the scale: To the...
From Pilot To Playbook: How One Nonprofit Reaped The Benefits Of AI
What happens when a nonprofit embraces AI not for the hype, but for the help? In the latest episode of the UpLevel View podcast, Brandi Pack and Ken Callander of UpLevel Ops sit down with Cristal Cardenas Sanchez and Marissa La Brecque of the nonprofit Hanna Center to...
How Appealing Weekly Roundup
Ed. Note: A weekly roundup of just a few items from Howard Bashman’s How Appealing blog, the Web’s first blog devoted to appellate litigation. Check out these stories and more at How Appealing. “DC Circuit likely to reject Peter Navarro’s contempt appeal on broad...
Botched No Bill For Tish James Reveals Halligan’s Case Is Bullshit
On Wednesday, Politico was first to report that cosplay US Attorney Lindsey Halligan got no-billed again in her pursuit of Letitia James. Since Judge Cameron Currie dismissed the original indictment of the New York Attorney General along with charges against Jim...
Call for Nominations: The Recorder and Law.com’s California Legal Awards 2026
The California Legal Awards 2026 are now open for nominations. The California Legal Awards 2026 are now open for nominations.
Law School Applicant Boom to Benefit Lower Tier Schools
At least a half dozen law schools had their highest enrollment for the 2024-25 academic year in five years according to American Bar Association 509 reports. At least a half dozen law schools had their highest enrollment for the 2024-25 academic year in five...
5 Reasons Law Firms Keep Undervaluing Their Administrative Backbone and How to Fix It
The firms investing in administrative strategy — and in the people who embody it — continue to be the ones turning innovation into true competitive advantage. The firms investing in administrative strategy — and in the people who embody it — continue to be the...
Biglaw Firm Targeted By Trump Delights With Associate Bonuses
This year, WilmerHale ponied up to fight the good fight against the Trumpian Executive Order designed to break the major law firm and have them bend a knee to Trump or extract a tremendous financial penalty. WilmerHale’s strategy in standing up for the rule of law has...
Top 50 Biglaw Firm Offers Associates Bonuses On Top Of Bonuses On Top Of Bonuses, Up To $218K!
Biglaw firms have largely fallen in line with the prevailing market rate (i.e., the Cravath/Milbank scale for year-end and special bonuses) this cycle, with match announcements rolling in one after another as firms play it safe and stick to the script. One Biglaw firm...
Rape Allegation Rocks Major Biglaw Firm
Proceeding under the name Jane Doe, a former associate at DLA Piper has filed suit alleging that Brian Biggs, then a partner at the firm, raped her and later escalated the violence by breaking into her home and strangling her. The complaint paints a grim picture of...
A Super-Competitive Admissions Cycle At Top Law Schools Will Be ‘Brutal’ For Would-Be Law Students
Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day. This is looking to be a brutal year for applicants and admissions outcomes [because schools] have more high-quality applicants. In the last several years medians for both LSAT and GPA have risen at almost all...
The ‘Koozie’ People Bullied A Wooden Drink Sleeve Product, ‘Woodzie’, Into A Name Change
I’ve said it roughly a zillion times: trademark bullying exists because it works. One of the unfortunate inequities of our system is that having a large legal warchest simply allows someone to push around others over trademark “concerns” that aren’t valid. The formula...
Morning Docket: 12.19.25
* Trump orders looser restrictions on marijuana… immediately after passing harsher new laws on hemp. Certainly no dementia at work here. [Law360] * Lawyer for the Joint Chiefs advised that officers should retire rather than follow unlawful order. No word on whether he...
Court Denies Alexi’s Emergency Motion to Restore Access to Fastcase Data
In an early win for legal research company Fastcase in its data-licensing lawsuit against AI legal research platform Alexi, a federal judge has denied Alexi’s emergency request for a temporary restraining order that would have compelled Fastcase to restore Alexi’s...
It’s the Legal Tech 2025 Year In Review, Live Today on Legaltech Week — Join Us!
What were the top stories and trends of 2025 in legal tech and legal innovation? Join us today on Legaltech Week as the leading legal tech journalists and bloggers wrap up the year’s top stories and trends — all live today at 3 p.m. Eastern time. The show is live on...
The Lands: Brothers On—And Off—the Bench
Supreme Court of Georgia Justice Benjamin A. Land and U.S. District Judge Clay D. Land sit down with Legal Speak podcast co-host Cedra Mayfield to discuss what it's like being brothers in law. Supreme Court of Georgia Justice Benjamin A. Land and U.S. District...
Meet the Lands: Brothers In Law—Literally
Supreme Court of Georgia Justice Benjamin A. Land and U.S. District Judge Clay D. Land sit down with Legal Speak podcast co-host Cedra Mayfield to discuss what it's like being brothers in law. Supreme Court of Georgia Justice Benjamin A. Land and U.S. District...
A $2B Roundup Verdict and a Talc Award Approaching $1B: A Look Back at 2025’s Biggest Mass Tort Trials
The first bellwether trials will take place in 2026 involving addiction claims against social media sites, like Instagram and TikTok, as well as allegations that the pesticide paraquat causes Parkinson's disease. The first bellwether trials will take place in...
Five Ways Attorneys Can Build, Nourish and Replenish This Winter
As we enter another year, we don’t need to create more pressure for ourselves. Jamie Spannhake has five ways to use this season to restore and build energy for the new year. The post Five Ways Attorneys Can Build, Nourish and Replenish This Winter appeared first on...
Unusual and Practical Places to Meet People with Client Potential
Lawyers are in the sales business, just like accountants, financial advisors and doctors. At one time, business walked through the door. Today, you need to raise your profile and be the first person they think of when they need a lawyer. Lawyers are in the sales...
Coinbase Takes States to Court Over Prediction Market Regulation
“We're right on the law and the facts, Paul Grewal, the chief legal officer for Coinbase, said on social media. “And we will prove it. “ “We're right on the law and the facts, Paul Grewal, the chief legal officer for Coinbase, said on social media. “And we will...
Three Mistrials to $48M Med-Mal Verdict: Attorneys Reflect on ‘Nuclear’ Outcome
In addition to avoiding a potential fourth mistrial, the plaintiffs' team had to grapple with the fact their client had multiple, unrelated cancer diagnoses, one of which ultimately killed him. However, Lloyd Bell said he stuck with the case because "the negligence...
How I Made Practice Group Chair: ‘Leadership Is About Service, Not Title,’ Says Sunni Beville of Otterbourg
"Leadership is about service, not title. Approach it with curiosity, empathy, and a solutions-oriented mindset. Those qualities, combined with strong technical expertise, prepare you to step into a practice leadership role successfully." "Leadership is about...
Insurers Ask Court to Block $80.7 Million Verdict, Seeking New Trial
The insurers argued in their motion for a new trial that the jury's verdict "was against the clear weight of the evidence, was based upon false evidence, and will result in a miscarriage of justice." The insurers argued in their motion for a new trial that the...
The Biglaw Firm Trying To Figure Out What The Hell Has Gone Wrong With Michigan Football
Ed. Note: Welcome to our daily feature Trivia Question of the Day! Following the firing and arrest of Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore, stemming from an alleged relationship with a team employee, the university has hired what Biglaw firm to conduct an...
Firms Merge To Make The 5th Largest Firm By Revenue! — See Also
Hogan Lovells To Merge With Cadwalader: They’ll still be HoLove in our hearts. A Quiet Bonus Announcement: Morgan Lewis announced bonuses back in November, along with ‘extraordinary’ bonuses! Boutique Firm Wows With $355K Bonus!: Amazing time to work for Gjerset &...
North Korean Hackers Stole $2 Billion in Crypto in 2025, Chainalysis Finds
"This underscores that crypto theft is not merely a technological issue but a governance and risk-management problem that continues to outpace defensive controls," said Felix Shipkevich, a professor of law at Hofstra Law who teaches the business and policies of...
Dershowitz Tells Trump Constitution Is ‘Not Clear’ On Third Term, Continuing Transition From Scholar To MAGA Crank
Alan Dershowitz continues his late-in-life transition from esteemed Harvard Law School scholar to Temu Eli Cash with an upcoming book titled Could President Trump Constitutionally Serve a Third Term? Coming this March! Thrill as the professor emeritus spins out a...
Your 2026 Affirmations
I love those little calendars you put on your desk that have daily affirmations. In my last piece, I discussed my chatbot for young lawyers called Ask Frank on ChatGPT. Here is the link. I asked for daily affirmations based on my writings. It did just that. Enjoy. ...
ABA Task Force: AI Has Moved From Experiment To Infrastructure For The Legal Profession
The post ABA Task Force: AI Has Moved From Experiment To Infrastructure For The Legal Profession appeared first on Above the Law.Artificial intelligence is no longer an abstract or experimental technology for lawyers – it is rapidly becoming core infrastructure for...
Boutique Firm Obliterates The Market With Bonuses Up To $355K, With Specials Up To $160K On Top
Boutique firms continue to dominate when it comes to associate compensation this bonus season. Plenty of firms can match Cravath’s year-end bonuses and Milbank’s special bonuses, but these small but mighty boutiques are more than willing to blow the prevailing market...
Cadwalader To Merge With Hogan Lovells, Creating Historic Law Firm Powerhouse
Cadwalader, Wall Street’s oldest firm, has had a rough go of things this year. In the wake of the firm’s deal with Donald Trump, the firm started losing lawyers left and right, with key partner groups lateraling out at a rapid pace. Rumors of the firm’s interest in a...
4 Ways Your Firm Can Build Economic Resilience
Even during boom times, economic challenges may be lurking around the corner. That’s why it’s critical for law firms to position themselves for long-term success by building economic resilience. Doing so means strengthening your firm’s fundamentals while always...
Attorney Fee Dispute Hinges on Client Agreement and Work Completed, Judge Says
"When an attorney leaves a firm, there are rules in our profession, where every client that I was representing should have had an opportunity to pick Ken Nugent or Eric Sterling," Sterling said during a hearing this week. "When an attorney leaves a firm, there...
3 Ways Professional-Grade AI Differs From Consumer Solutions
The integration of AI into legal practice has reached a critical inflection point, and the risks of choosing the wrong solution extend far beyond simple inefficiency. For legal professionals, the stakes are uniquely high: accuracy concerns, ethical implications, and...
Holiday Parties: Yay Or Nay?
Is there anything worse than a holiday office party? I can think of nothing less fun than spending several hours with colleagues at lunch or dinner or cocktails in settings outside of the office. For those like me, the whine is usually “Do I have to go?” Making an...
From Briefs To Blazers: How Jessica Markham Built Jurisdiction Clothing While Running A Law Firm
Jurisdiction isn’t just a legal concept. It’s a destination that exists in the form of an eponymous curated boutique, Jurisdiction Clothing in Potomac, Maryland, owned by family law attorney Jessica Markham, founder of the Markham Law Firm. If you’re interested in...
Admission to Top-Tier Law Schools More Competitive Than Ever
"This is looking to be a brutal year for applicants and admissions outcomes," because schools "have more high-quality applicants," and in the last several years "medians for both LSAT and GPA have risen at almost all schools," one expert said. "This is looking...
Boutique Trial Firm Announces Huge Bonuses With A Personal Touch
No one likes another call when they’re already swamped with work, but Hueston Hennigan just gave all of their associates a reason to be happy about the phone going off. The boutique trial firm saw some huge wins this year, allowing them to share the successes with...
Top 10 Biglaw Firm Offered Market Bonuses Early And Under The Radar
This bonus season has been a mad dash to match the Cravath/Milbank year-end and special bonuses that have become the market standard, and as it turns out, we’re just now hearing about one of the early adopters of the prevailing bonus scale. Back in November, one of...
Brand New Biglaw Firm Delights With Associate Bonuses
It was only earlier this year that the Biglaw world got its latest mega firm following the merger of Herbert Smith Freehills and Kramer Levin. The combined firm grosses more than $2 billion, and they’re putting all that cash to good use — associate bonuses. Earlier...
Step Up: Turning Reflection Into Momentum For The New Year
The turn of a new year always brings a certain energy: an invitation to pause, breathe, and take stock of where we’ve been. For solo practitioners juggling every role, small firm owners navigating growth, law students dreaming of their future practices, and managing...
Coker Law at 50: A Legacy of Courtroom Mastery
Coker Law at 50: A Legacy of Courtroom Mastery By Susan Cushing Just after sunrise in Jacksonville, when the streets are still settling into the day, the lights inside Coker Law glow with the familiar hum of purpose. It is the same energy that has defined the firm for...
Chris Johns: ‘Getting It Settled’
“My greatest asset as a mediator who gets cases settled is my ability to connect with the parties and attorneys personally as an equal by allowing them to express themselves fully, validate their emotions, genuinely listen to what they express factually, legally, and...
Sydney Schmidt: Top of Her Class
Sydney Schmidt is a judicial staff attorney at the Fourth Judicial Circuit Court. She graduated from Jacksonville University College of Law this past May, earning the Dean’s Award for Academic Excellence. We sat down with her to discuss her career aspirations. AALM:...
Student Spotlight: Morgan N. Miner
Morgan N. Miner is a Juris Doctor candidate at Jacksonville University College of Law. She is on track to graduate in May 2026. AALM: What first interested you in pursuing a legal career? Did you have any other career aspirations before law? MNM: Before law school, I...
Coalition Of Pharmacy Groups Urges Congress To Enact PBM Reform
The post Coalition Of Pharmacy Groups Urges Congress To Enact PBM Reform appeared first on Above the Law.The post Coalition Of Pharmacy Groups Urges Congress To Enact PBM Reform appeared first on Above the Law.
Morning Docket: 12.18.25
* As Trump administration braces for loss in tariff case, it’s time to take stock of how unbelievably bad this administration is at “lawyering.” [Politico] * United Airlines pilots claim company lost their 401(k) funds like they were luggage. [Corporate Counsel] *...
Questel Integrates AI-Powered Patent Translation Services with Equinox IP Management Platform
Questel, a Paris-based global provider of intellectual property software and services, has integrated its patent translation services with its Equinox IP management software and other third-party IP systems through newly created connectors, the company said today. The...
Cadwalader, Hogan Lovells Intend to Create $3.6B Merged Firm
Partner votes will be held in spring 2026, with the firms aiming to complete their combination and launch on July 1, 2026. Partner votes will be held in spring 2026, with the firms aiming to complete their combination and launch on July 1,...
Judicial Panel Declines Coordination of Salesforce Data Breach Suits But Transfers TransUnion Cases
The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation declined Tuesday to create multidistrict litigation over Salesforce's data breach, but coordinated cases brought specifically against one of its clients, TransUnion. The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict...
Small Firm, Big Money: Boutique Firm Hands Out Biglaw Market Bonuses
Here we go again: Yet another boutique law firm is stepping up to the plate to offer its associates Biglaw bonus money. The latest boutique to meet the market in terms of matching the Cravath/Milbank year-end and special bonus scale is Glenn Agre Bergman &...
We Could Not Have A Less Christmassy President If Ebenezer Scrooge Sat In The Oval Office
I wish I could write something positive given the time of year. I really do. Normally I’m downright cheerful around the holiday season. This is often apparent in my writing; I can prove it. Sorry, though. For 2025, I just can’t. We have a president who is a worse...
Elite IP Boutique Is Showering Associates With More Money Than Biglaw
Whoever said bigger is better did not know about elite boutique law firms. While Biglaw might be the standard bearer for associate compensation, time and again we see small but mighty firms blowing that standard out of the water. The latest firm to do just that is...
Returning To The Firm After Parental Leave: Why It Feels So Hard — And How To Do It Well
Ed. note: This article is part of Parental Leave & The Legal Profession, a special series for Above the Law that explores the realities of parental leave and return-to-work in law firms. From planning leave to reintegration, from the role of managers to the mental...
Biglaw Firm Rewards Extra Work With Above Market Bonuses!
Sometimes extra money comes with extra work. Foley & Lardner is paying their associates handsomely — $25k above market in some cases — but you’ve got to hit the 2200 hour mark for that extra compensation. 2100 gets you market value and 2000 or below gets you a...
In 2025, Trump’s Justice Department Was Fodder For An Endless Parade Of Legal Blunders And Public Embarrassment
Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day. They shoot first, they aim later, and even then, they miss. Because there is no wall between the White House and the Justice Department in terms of interaction and political process, this is what happens. —...
Nick Reiner’s Attorney Is Used To The Spotlight
Ed. Note: Welcome to our daily feature Trivia Question of the Day! Nick Reiner hired what Los Angeles criminal defense attorney to represent him on charges he murdered his parents, director and actor Rob Reiner and photographer and film producer Michele Singer Reiner?...
$770K In Bonuses?! — See Also
Boutique Firm Blows The Market Out Of The Water!: Never a better time to work at Bursor & Fisher! They Aren’t The Only Ones!: Groombridge, Wu, Baughman & Stone, Glenn Agre, Selendy Gay, Irell & Manella, HSF, and Hueston Hennigan! Some Make You Go Above And...
SEC Alleges $48.5M Crypto-Mining Fraud by Philadelphia Man
“Chairman Atkins has signaled a laser-like focus on those who lie, cheat or steal—and this complaint alleges a trifecta where the defendant managed to do all three, said Jason Spitalnick, who previously served as enforcement counsel for the U.S. Securities and...
Lawsuit Revives Uncertainty Over OSHA’s Future
“Regardless of how this challenge unfolds, it has the potential to reshape the future of workplace safety regulation and test ... the outer limits of congressional delegation to administrative agencies, Morgan Lewis & Bockius attorneys wrote in a recent client...
There Are Limits to Congress’s Investigatory Powers
Businesses across all sectors of the economy should be knowledgeable about how best to respond to a Congressional investigation, and ultimately, if the investigatory Committee is not satisfied with voluntary compliance efforts, the options available to them for...
Big Law, Bitcoin and Conflicts: Dickinson Wright Hit With Malpractice Suit
The malpractice lawsuit arises from an underlying case in which Dickinson Wright was disqualified for alleged conflicts of interest. The malpractice lawsuit arises from an underlying case in which Dickinson Wright was disqualified for alleged conflicts of...
Unanimous Panel Lets Trump’s National Guard Deployment in D.C. Continue
The federal government showed that the D.C. Code likely gives the president—as the D.C. Guard's commander-in-chief—the power to mobilize the troops within the District of Columbia, stated the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The federal government...
Fed. Judge Sanctions Healthcare Companies Nearly $600K for 7-Year Discovery Delay
"There is no real way at this point for defendants to cure the failure, because the damage in unnecessarily prolonging the case has already occurred," said U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman for the Northern District of Illinois. "There is no real way at...