“Big Law is stepping up efforts to recognize Juneteenth, which falls on Saturday, after last year’s protests and firms own diversity shortcomings put a spotlight on racial inequities in the U.S. Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld is hosting a Pulitzer Prize-winning author Friday for a talk, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius is helping to distribute food to the needy and Squire Patton Boggs is hosting what it describes as candid exchanges on race in offices globally. Those are just some of the activities firms have planned,” reports Elizabeth Olson in Bloomberg Law.

“Juneteenth, which commemorates the effective end of slavery in the U.S., is getting particular interest from firms after the killing of George Floyd while in police custody last year spurred protests throughout the U.S. Law firms stepped up their activism in response, providing legal help and donating to equal justice projects. There was a moral reckoning last year, said Tony Pierce, the partner in charge of Akin Gump’s Washington office. We are in a service business where our job is to look forward and figure things out.”

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“Another day, another announcement made in the 2021 race to raise associate salaries across the Biglaw landscape. There are just a few Am Law top 50 firms that have yet to match the new market salary scale, but one by one, slowly but surely, they’re making salary moves to remain viable as competition to attract and retain associates in this hot lateral market,” reports Staci Zaretsky in Above the Law.

“It’s Perkins Coie, a firm that brought in $1,001,498,000 gross revenue in 2020, which helped it to land at No. 42 in the most recent Am Law 100 ranking. The Seattle-based firm let associates and counsel know yesterday afternoon that salary increases would be coming in July.”

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“Campaign finance records show several Big Law leaders are backing Alvin Bragg, a former federal prosecutor and deputy New York attorney general, in Tuesday’s election for Manhattan’s next district attorney, a race that could reshape criminal justice in the largest U.S. city. Kim Koopersmith, chair of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer Feld, donated  to Bragg in May, a June campaign finance disclosure shows. Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison chair Brad Karp donated $1,000 to Bragg’s campaign in May,” reports Caroline Spiezio in Reuters.

“The lawyers did not immediately provide comment. A spokesperson for Bragg said the candidate has the most stringent self-restrictions on lawyers contributions of any candidate in the race, barring donations from any attorney who had a case appear before the DA’s office over the last four years and limiting contributions from active New York City lawyers “to under 10% of what is allowed by law.”

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“I’ve been writing about Big Law’s “innovation space” long enough to spot a cycle. A law firm announces new innovators or innovative ideas. These grab the attention of a cynical industry. The story becomes, “Big Law is finally changing!” The particular law firm becomes the proof,” reports Roy Strom in Bloomberg Law.

“But eventually, the firm’s grip on the prize—let’s call it the “Big Law Innovation Title”—slips, until a different firm comes along to grab it. There is no Big Law innovation dynasty, and this week showed proof of that. I reported Tuesday that David Cambria has left Baker McKenzie, where the long-time legal department change agent almost singlehandedly won the Big Law Innovation Title by taking on the chief services officer position at one of the world’s largest law firms.”

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“The U.S. Supreme Court is clucking like a chicken about affirmative action in higher education. It just requested that acting Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar weigh in on the highly-watched Harvard College admissions policy case—which means the high court can duck the issue of race as a consideration in college admissions until later this year,” reports Vivia Chen in Bloomberg Law.

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“While too many of us get overdosed with clownish depictions — from doctors, hospitals, insurers, and corporations, especially Big Pharma firms — of how the civil justice system operates, it’s always worth a reminder of the tremendous fortitude ordinary folks show in pursuing malpractice and other personal injury or liability claims,” reports Patrick Malone in JD Supra.

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“Salaries for junior lawyers are rising above $200,000 at many top law firms for the first time, following a year of record-breaking profits in the legal industry and competition to retain a workforce that has billed long hours at home during the pandemic,” reports Sara Randazzo in The Wall Street Journal

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“Firms have been busier than ever and this is one way to demonstrate an appreciation for their associates, but also to show more broadly the long-term financial strength of the firm. Compensation increases are a permanent change and I expect that the firms that see long-term financial growth will increase their salaries as well,” reports Staci Zaretsky in Above The Law

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“In September 2020, Cooley LLP, a Palo Alto-based law firm, announced it was handing out $2,500 to $7,500 in one-time payments to associates. The bonuses came as the firm — along with many others in the legal industry — realized it was both flush with cash and facing worker burnout during the pandemic,” report Meghan Tribe in Bloomberg Law’s Business & Practice.

“While most attorneys at larger firms expect to receive one annual bonus, Cooley’s move was quickly matched by others, including Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP and Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP. One payout was becoming two and now potentially three in a single year.”

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“Biglaw firms are doing everything they can to hire new associates in this super-competitive, post-COVID market, and to snatch top talent, some of them are expanding their searches outside of their traditional recruitment criteria,” reports Staci Zaretsky in Above the Law’s Biglaw.

“If you work in a sought-after corporate practice area but don’t have a degree from a top law school or have never worked at top Am Law firm, then it may be time to brush off your resume because opportunity apparently awaits”

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“Many of the attorneys making their way back to Perkins Coie’s Seattle office will reconnect with colleagues in person for the first time in a long time, with some sharing workspace more than ever before,” reports Rebekah Mintzer in Bloomberg Law’s Business & Practice.

“The firm, which is set to welcome lawyers back to offices by Oct. 1 in a hybrid arrangement that includes some remote work, is cutting more than 70,000 square feet of space—or around 25 tennis courts—across four of its offices. As part of the move, it’s getting rid of some assigned seating in certain offices, encouraging a ‘hoteling’ setup, where individuals book desks as needed, and implementing office sharing, in which lawyers with work schedules that don’t overlap use the same workspace.”

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“McDermott Will & Emery is picking up six transactional partners as builds out across the U.S. amid record levels of corporate and transactional activity for law firms in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic,” reports Meghan Tribe in Bloomberg Law’s US Law Week.

“The six new partners are joining from Kirkland & Ellis, Goodwin Procter, DLA Piper, Foley & Lardner, Hunton Andrews Kurth and Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner. They are joining McDermott’s Chicago, Washington, Atlanta, Dallas, New York, and Los Angeles offices, respectively.”

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“Kirkland & Ellis LLP is pleased to announce that John Kaercher has joined the Firm as a partner in the Corporate Practice Group to help launch its Austin office,” posted Kirkland & Ellis in their Press Releases.

“Mr. Kaercher counsels clients on complex transactions, including domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, SPACs, private equity and public and private securities offerings, with a particular focus on the technology, media, telecommunications and energy sectors.”

“Mr. Kaercher was co-chair of his prior firm’s private equity pillar and was recognized as a Texas Super Lawyers – Rising Star in 2018, 2019 and 2020.”

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“This year’s Chambers USA 2021 features over 8,000 firm and almost 22,000 individual rankings in more than 2,000 practice areas, across all 50 states and nationally. Leading the charge, having amassed the most firm and individual rankings in the Guide for the second year in a row, is industry titan Latham & Watkins. With 351 ranked attorneys and 131 ranked practices, Latham continues to showcase its credentials as one of the United States’, and indeed the world’s, most successful and well-rounded full service firms,” reports Kushraj Cheema in Chambers and Partners.

“Latham’s position comes as little surprise, with its 11 US offices consistently attracting praise from clients and fellow practitioners alike in Chambers USA research. An elite pedigree, full service capabilities and extensive geographic coverage are common features of top performing firms in the Chambers USA 2021 Guide, as the chart above shows. Firms which accrue the most rankings in the latest edition of the USA Guide are united in the breadth of their expertise, their bicoastal office networks and their sizeable contingent of partners.”

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“Slone Partners, a nationwide executive search firm for life science, biotechnology, and diagnostics companies, has announced the placement of Stephana Patton, Ph.D., J.D. as Chief Legal Officer (CLO) at InterVenn Biosciences,” posted Slone Partners on their Latest News.

“Patton brings more than 20 years of legal experience to InterVenn. She most recently served as General Counsel, Corporate Secretary, and Chief Compliance Officer at Eiger Biopharmaceuticals, where she was responsible for all legal and compliance matters. Previously, Patton served as General Counsel, Corporate Secretary, and Chief Compliance Officer at BioTime, Inc., and as Vice President, General Counsel, and Commercial Compliance Officer at BioDelivery Sciences International, Inc. Patton began her pharmaceutical industry career at Salix Pharmaceuticals, Inc., where she was Vice President of Intellectual Property and Licensing until the company was acquired by Valeant, Inc. in 2015.

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“A deluge of corporate work without enough associates to staff it has sent cash flush Big Law hunting for hires in smaller markets, a dynamic that could threaten regional law firms in the long run,” reports Meghan Tribe in Bloomberg Law’s Business & Practice.

“The nation’s largest law firms have thrived in spite of Covid-19, especially corporate practices, like M&A, where demand surged 7.8% in the first quarter of 2021 over the same period last year, according to a recently released report by Thomson Reuters. All that work has made this year’s hiring market for corporate associates the hottest in recent memory.”

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“Cooley has launched in Chicago, uniting an array of preeminent Chicago-based lawyers from three major law firms. For the first time, an elite Silicon Valley law firm is opening an office to serve the thriving Midwest ecosystem, home to high-growth, disruptive companies, a burgeoning venture capital community, and some of the largest and most sophisticated companies, including many of the most recognizable tech and life sciences brands in the nation. The addition of this group of top legal talent to Cooley’s unique platform, which is widely recognized as a leader in venture capital financings, M&A, IPOs and fund formations in the new economy, brings an unmatched combination of prowess and scale to the market,” posted Cooley in their News.

“The 10-partner launch team – including nine lateral partner arrivals from DLA Piper, Latham & Watkins and Winston & Strawn – creates Cooley’s 17th office worldwide and allows Cooley to attract additional prestigious legal talent in building a full-service Chicago office, including a bench of elite litigators expected to join in the next few months. This high-profile group embodies Cooley’s entrepreneurial brand and ethos, which is focused on providing deep counsel to companies and investors from startup to IPO and beyond. By partnering with market leaders and visionaries, Cooley will continue to foster innovation and exceptional growth of new-economy companies in Chicago and the Midwest.”

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“Associate compensation is once again a hot topic in the highest echelons of the legal profession, and young lawyers at some firms are finally reaping the benefits of the 2018 salary hike that brought starting salaries to $190,000. By the time this wave of salary increases is over, we may finally see a somewhat uniform salary scale across the majority of large law firms, all across the country,” reports Staci Zaretsky in Above the Law’s Biglaw.

“The firm announcing salary increases this time around is Holland & Knight, ranked 38th on the Am Law 100 with $1,044,337,000 in 2020 gross revenue. The firm has been in the news recently for its potential merger with Thompson & Knight, but now, the firm is making news by offering lockstep salaries in each and every one of its U.S. offices.”

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“Top law firms are building out practice groups focused on state attorneys general, whose aggressive moves on everything from workers’ rights to Big Tech have clients looking for lawyers with a deep understanding of the process,” reports Ellen M. Gilmer in Bloomberg Law’s Environment and Energy.

“The latest entrant is DLA Piper, which unveiled its new practice Tuesday, led by veterans of the New York and California state attorneys general offices. Other big firms with similar practices include Jones Day, O’Melveny & Myers LLP, and Crowell & Moring LLP.”

“Companies face scrutiny from state attorneys general on all sides. Democratic-led offices are set to team up with the Biden administration on complex investigations and, in some cases, have been granted broader jurisdiction. Republican-led offices are taking aim at Big Tech.”

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“Shad Sumrow, who practiced at Thompson & Knight for more than two decades and led its firmwide finance group, is taking his practice to fellow Texas firm Baker Botts,” reports David Thomas in Reuters’ US Legal News.

“He joins Baker Botts as a partner in Dallas, the firm said Tuesday, touting his work on oil and gas and asset-based lending and structured finance transactions as well as restructurings. The firm noted that it added Doug Getten, the former chair of Paul Hastings’ Houston corporate department, as a partner last week.”

“Sumrow’s departure from Thompson & Knight comes a little more than a month after the firm and Miami-based Holland & Knight said that they were in talks to merge later this summer.”

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