“Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has hired former Kirkland & Ellis partner Joseph Halloum to build out the firm’s upstart Silicon Valley office,” reports Roy Strom in Bloomberg Law’s Business & Practice.

“Halloum had been a partner since 2016 at Kirkland, where he worked on major transactions including the sales of Delphi Technologies, Del Frisco’s, and Smart & Final to private equity companies.”

“The hire adds depth to Freshfields’ Silicon Valley office, which opened in July with splash hires from firms including Davis Polk & Wardwell, Sidley Austin, and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. The firm signed a 10-year lease in a new office building in February, and currently lists 16 Silicon Valley lawyers on its website.”

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“Thanks to the pandemic, it’s been a year since lawyers were forced to leave the comforts of their offices and adapt to working from home on a semi-permanent basis. The thought of working from home used to be seen as a somewhat of a luxury, but after doing it for 12 months straight, it’s become simply exhausting. When your home is your office and your office is your home, the concept of work-life balance is no more, especially for lawyers who thought they were always ‘on’ even before the coronavirus crisis. One firm has come up with an amazing solution for this problem,” writes Staci Zaretsky in Above the Law’s Biglaw.

“Orrick — a firm that brought in $1,158,537,000 in 2019 gross revenue, placing in at No. 31 in the most recent Am Law 100 rankings — is offering everyone (i.e., staff, associates, of counsel, career associates, and partners) the chance to truly ‘unplug.’ The firm will credit 40 hours of bonus-eligible time for everyone to sit back, relax, and stop doing work.”

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“Nikola Corp. has given more than $79.6 million in stock to its chief legal officer Britton Worthen, who last year agreed to forego a $250,000 salary at the electric truck and hydrogen fuel cell battery maker,” reports Brian Baxter in Bloomberg Law’s Business & Practice.

“Nikola disclosed the equity grants to Worthen and five other current and former executives—worth more than $560 million—in a Monday securities filing ahead of a $100 million share sale by the company.”

“The executives must stay at Nikola through June 2023 to collect the grants, which are pegged to certain share price targets. ‘None of the share price milestones have been achieved and none of the performance awards have been earned,’ the filing said.”

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“Clifford Chance and Herbert Smith Freehills are paying staff an extra bonus of 5% of their salary for their hard work during the pandemic,” reports James Dennison in Roll on Friday.

“‘Over an extraordinary year, and in the face of sometimes immense personal challenges, our people have consistently gone the extra mile to support our clients and to support each other,’ CC’s Global Managing Partner Matthew Layton told RollOnFriday. I could not be prouder of our team here at Clifford Chance.'”

“The Magic Circle firm is giving a one-off payment of 5% of salary to staff worldwide – which is in addition to other salary and bonus reviews, and does not replace them.”

“Earlier this week, Herbert Smith Freehills also announced that it would provide an additional 5% bonus to all staff. CEO Justin D’Agostino said the payment is an acknowledgement of the ‘dedication and hard work’ of staff ‘in the face of the tremendous disruption and challenges experienced in the last year.'”

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“The American Bar Association (ABA) has issued Formal Opinion 498, which outlines several of the ethical implications of maintaining a virtual law practice but focuses primarily on data privacy and security issues,” write Calon N. Russell and Trisha M. Rich in Holland & Knight’s Insights.

“Although the opinion, released on March 10, 2021, identifies potential areas of concern for lawyers with virtual offices, it offers little specific guidance regarding what lawyers must do to address such issues. Lawyers with a virtual practice, therefore, will need to continue to make sure they understand the ethical issues and risks at play in connection with their particular areas of practice in order to choose and manage technologies that will aid such practices without creating undue risk.”

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“Boies Schiller Flexner will likely drop out of the American Lawyer’s list of the nation’s top 100 grossing law firms after losing a third of its equity partners last year,” reports Debra Cassens Weiss in ABA Journal’s Latest News.

In 2020 “Boies Schiller saw a 38% drop in gross revenue, a 54% drop in net income and a 32.1% drop in profits per equity partner. Revenue per lawyer increased, however, by 4.6%.”

“Total gross revenue was $250 million, down from $405 million in 2019. That number will likely keep Boies Schiller out of the Am Law 100 list, given that the firm in last place last year had $380.3 million in gross revenue.”

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“Biglaw has done well — really, really well — in spite of the ongoing pandemic. In fact, the largest law firms in America have done so well that some associates have started to wonder whether salary increases could be in their futures. The last time this happened was in 2018, when the majority of Biglaw firms increased their base pay for associates to $190K,” writes Staci Zaretsky in Above the Law’s Biglaw.

“Today, it looks like raises are on the horizon for associates working for at least one firm, but will others follow in this firm’s footsteps?”

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Biglaw has endured a practice-level impact over the past year, report Roy Strom, Brian Baxter, Paige Smith and Matthew Bultman in Boomberg Law’s Coronavirus.

“Last May, reporters across the Bloomberg Law newsroom spoke with Big Law attorneys and in-house counsel about how the pandemic was impacting their work. As the one-year mark nears, we again checked in with lawyers in a variety of practice areas.”

“Here’s what they told us.”

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“DLA Piper LLP (US) is pleased to announce a number of firm and practice leadership changes,” released DLA Piper in their Newsroom.

“The firm has formed an 11-person Management Team, which will support Frank Ryan, who assumed the role of Americas chair January 1, in the leadership of the firm.”

“‘I’m a strong believer in the power and importance of the team, and I’m pleased that this talented and diverse group has chosen to join me in the leadership of the firm,’ said Ryan. ‘Each of them has demonstrated a strong commitment to DLA Piper, developed a notable reputation in the marketplace, provided exemplary service to clients and has a solid record of mentoring others. I look very forward to working with them to the benefit of the firm, our clients, our people and our communities.'”

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“Some of the nation’s top law firms posted substantial boosts in profits last year after laying off attorneys or staff members,” reports Debra Cassens Weiss in ABA Journal’s News.

“… at least 15 of the nation’s 200 highest-grossing firms posted revenue or profit increases of more than 5% last year, even after layoffs. Most were among the nation’s top 100 firms.”

“… layoffs were needed to keep their firms healthy. Some said decisions were made before they saw an increase in demand for legal work later in the year. And some said layoffs were already planned, but the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the timeline.”

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“Davis Polk & Wardwell, which was the first Big Law firm to offer a ‘special bonus’ of up to $40,000 for associates last year, is offering them another thank you for hard work during the pandemic in the form of high-end gift packages,” reports Meghan Tribe in Bloomberg Law’s Business & Practice.

“Associates have the opportunity to select a gift from a curated selection of items and experiences that include a shopping spree, fitness equipment, and wine packages, said Davis Polk managing partner Neil Barr in an email.”

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“Roche Cyrulnik Freedman LLP has filed a federal lawsuit against founding name partner Jason Cyrulnik, alleging he was unanimously voted out of the firm for ‘abusive, destructive, erratic, and obstructive behavior,’ but has refused to leave,” posts Thomson Reuters Westlaw Today.

“The 25-page lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court on Saturday asks a judge to rule that Cyrulnik was properly voted out of the partnership. The firm accused Cyrulnik of refusing to leave unless he receives ‘excessive payments.'”

“The firm voted Cyrulnik out on Feb. 12. Although he is no longer on the website, Cyrulnik, through his attorney Marc Kasowitz of Kasowitz Benson Torres, told his colleagues he has no intention of leaving, according to the lawsuit.”

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“Three top U.S. law firms, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, and Latham & Watkins, announced Monday they hired antitrust partners, signaling growing demand as regulators more closely scrutinize potential anticompetitive behavior,” reports Rebekah Mintzer in Bloomberg Law’s The United States Law Week.

“The four new hires have government antitrust enforcement experience that could be useful for clients facing an anticipated growth in scrutiny under the Biden administration and public debate about “breaking up” Big Tech and other industries.”

“According to data from Decipher, which performs due diligence for law firm hires, between November 2020 and January 2021 there have been 80% more antitrust lateral moves announced by Big Law compared to an average of the same period from the previous three years.”

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“Despite the coronavirus pandemic and recession that made life so miserable for millions last year, law firms did very well for themselves,” writes David Lat in Lateral Link’s Lat’s Legal Letter.

Of the 29 firms listed in the newsletter, “all posted increases in profit per partner, many of them well into the double digits. The highest figure so far, a 46.6 percent increase, was reported by Crowell & Moring (which led me to declare Crowell my Law Firm of the Week last week). But the firm had plenty of company, with eight other firms posting PPEP increases of 20 percent or more.”

“Now, the increases in profit per partner might be somewhat understandable, given how the pandemic and working remotely led to dramatic drops in many firms’ expenses, such as rent (in some cases), utilities, travel, and entertainment. And yes, some firms did engage in layoffs last year as well.”

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“Stepping into his role as global co-chair of 4,500-lawyer DLA Piper, Frank Ryan says the best path forward is to get even bigger,” reports Roy Strom in Bloomberg Law’s Business & Practice.

“The law firm wants to compete, Ryan said, for high-end, global projects while also providing “full-service” to clients, a strategy many of the country’s most profitable firms have shied away from to focus on the highest-rate practices. Growing revenue by taking market share is how Ryan said he will measure the firm’s success.”

“Ryan, whose intellectual property and litigation practice focuses on clients in the sports and entertainment industries, was elected in May 2019 to begin this year a four-year term as chair of DLA Piper, the third largest U.S. firm by revenue, according to American Lawyer data. Last year, he said the firm’s U.S. business grew revenue and profits per equity partner in the high single digits.”

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“Frost Brown Todd (FBT) is formally consolidating its federal public policy and regulatory practices into a Washington D.C. office. The Mid-American firm now has 15 offices across nine states and Washington D.C. In addition to recruiting new members, a roster of nearly a dozen well-networked and experienced attorneys who represent their client’s needs in their home markets, including Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia, and Kentucky and on the federal level, will support the office. It will operate virtually due to the pandemic and move into a permanent address later when quarantines are lifted,” released Frost Brown Todd in their Press Releases.

“FBT’s bi-partisan government service counsel has held high-ranking government positions at the national, state, or local levels. Others have served in an advisory capacity to prominent lawmakers, cabinet members, and federal commissions, and advocated for clients before federal regulatory authorities.”

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“Husch Blackwell is pleased to announce that the firm reported revenue of $417,056,000 in 2020. This figure represents the highest single-year revenue total in the firm’s 104-year history,” released Husch Blackwell in their News Releases.

“Complementing the total revenue record, the firm also posted year-over-year growth in revenue of 9.7 percent, which represents the firm’s fastest pace of organic revenue growth—growth unrelated to a merger or business combination—in well over a decade.”

“On March 18, 2020, Husch Blackwell’s leadership team sent all employees home, except for a small contingent of essential onsite workers in select offices, and quickly adopted a work-from-home protocol that enabled the vast majority of the firm’s 1,500 employees to service clients from a remote location. The firm remains in its work-from-home protocol nearly one year later.”

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“Big Law continues to report large ‘pandemic profit’ growth, as Cooleys and White & Case report double digit growth in 2020, while Hogan Lovells reports profits per partner (PPP) jumping 30 per cent from 2019 to 2020,” posts LawFuel in their Big Law.

“The pandemic has seen revenues remain steady while expenses have been reduced and more firms are investing in technology and legal talent.”

“Global turnover for White & Case managed to grow 6.6 [per cent to $2.18bn, while profit per equity partner (PEP) was up over eight per cent to $2.59m, albeit against a drop of 10 equity partners to 332 worldwide.”

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“The former co-chairman of a major New York law firm has been suspended from practicing law for two years after pleading guilty and spending time in prison over his role in the U.S. college admissions scandal,” reports Nate Raymond in Reuters’ U.S. News.

“Gordon Caplan, who had been co-chairman at Willkie Farr & Gallagher, avoided disbarment despite his efforts to avoid “getting caught,” according to a Thursday decision by a New York appellate court imposing the suspension.”

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“Legal Innovators, an alternative legal services provider focused on innovative talent management solutions, and Orrick, a global law firm known for talent innovation, are collaborating on a pilot program through which two Legal Innovators lawyers will join Orrick’s incoming class of law school graduates as ‘Orrick Legal Innovators’ Fellows.’ In addition, a larger group of diverse lawyers joining Orrick this year will participate in a Legal Innovators-led training program,” posts Legal Innovators in their News.

“Through this collaboration, Orrick’s Legal Innovators Fellows will be fully integrated into Orrick client teams while continuing to receive the support of Legal Innovators’ unique training and mentorship program. After their second year with the firm, the Fellows may be offered full-time associate positions.”

“Under the pilot, five new Orrick associates also participated in the Legal Innovators training program, which helps lawyers develop analytical, writing and business development skills. The Legal Innovators’ training program was designed by David Cruickshank, Principal at Edge International and the former head of Professional Development for Paul Weiss, and Legal Innovators co-founder and Chairman, Jonathan Greenblatt.”

Read the release.