JD Journal » JDJournal tipsters

Tipster: Fish & Richardson Lays Off Corporate Lawyers [Update]

Erik Even — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 19:56:30 +0000

According to a JDJournal tipster, intellectual property firm Fish & Richardson, which in January laid off 30 staff members across its eight US offices, “laid off its entire corporate section on Wednesday.”

That’s all we got. If you know anything about stealth layoffs at Fish & Richardson, please — send us a confidential tip!

Founded in 1878, Fish is one of the largest law firms in the world practicing intellectual property, litigation, and corporate law, and has as a legal staff of more than 450 attorneys and 1,200 employees in 12 offices across the globe, including an office in Munich, Germany.

UPDATE

Another tipster says:

This statement is not true. While it is correct that several corporate attorneys have been asked to leave the firm, the firm plans to keep corporate attorneys in the Northeast.

Okay, but who was laid off? How many? Why? Help us out, people!

Rumor: King & Spalding Turning Associates into Staff Attorneys [Update]

Erik Even — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 16:33:56 +0000

A JDJournal tipster informs us that Atlanta’s King & Spalding, which laid off 37 lawyers and 85 staff in March, is “converting a significant number of associates to staff attorneys.”

That’s all the information we have at the moment. If you know anything about the situation at King & Spalding, please — send us a confidential tip!

King & Spalding was founded in Atlanta in 1885. Its clients include Georgia blue chip companies, from Coca-Cola and Home Depot to SunTrust, as well as General Motors and Ernst & Young. It has 13 offices, including locations in Dubai and Frankfurt.

UPDATE

A JDJournal tipster tells is that 50 associates are to be converted to staff attorneys.

Thanks for the tip!

Tipster: Layoffs at USC Law School

Erik Even — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 16:13:06 +0000

According to a JDJournal tipster, there have been stealth layoffs at the USC Gould School of Law.

With all of the recent focus on the University of California Law School furloughs, it’s got to be asked why USC Law laid off staff members this past week, and none of this is being made public by USC Law. In this economy, what’s all the silence about?

That is an excellent question.

If you know anything about layoffs at USC Law, please — send us a confidential tip!

The University of Southern California Law School (Gould School of Law), located in Los Angeles, California, is a graduate school within the University of Southern California. The oldest law school in the Southwestern United States, USC Law had its beginnings in 1896, and was officially established as a school of the university in 1904.

It currently has about 600 JD students, and a growing LL.M program of 90 students.

Tipster: More Layoffs Today at Fulbright & Jaworski [Update 2]

Erik Even — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 21:07:33 +0000

We have been covering rumors of ongoing stealth layoffs at Fulbright & Jaworski.

We now believe that six associates and four staff were laid off in Los Angeles; 10 staff in San Antonio; 8 staff in New York; 24 staff in Dallas; and 12 secretaries 29 in Houston.

And a JDJournal tipster warned us that more layoffs were coming today.

Now, from the tip line: “Fulbright & Jaworski has laid off staff in Austin, TX – starting this morning at 10:00 a.m.”

C’mon, people! Who? How many? How were those targeted informed?

If you know anything about layoffs today at Fulbright & Jaworski, please — send us a confidential tip!

Founded in 1919, Fulbright & Jaworski LLP employs over 1,000 lawyers in 16 locations in Austin, Beijing, Dallas, Denver, Dubai, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Munich, New York, Riyadh, San Antonio, St. Louis and Washington, DC.

UPDATE

From a JDJournal Tipster:

Your numbers re Houston are incorrect. F&J laid of an additional 17 staff members on Friday in Houston. That’s on top of the 11 or 12 let go on Thursday, for a total of 28 or 29. I haven’t heard numbers from Austin either.

Thanks for the tip!

UPDATE 2

Now a tipster informs us that F&J Austin has lost four staff – two floaters, one secretary and one recruiting assistant.

Thanks!

Layoffs Ongoing at Fulbright & Jaworski? [Update 2]

Erik Even — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 02:30:42 +0000

Earlier this week we reported on a tip that Fulbright & Jaworski laid off at least 42 people in Texas and New York.

Now a JDJournal tipster tells us that the firm is laying off “a significant number” of staff today in Houston. The tipster does not have numbers, and isn’t sure if lawyers will be affected.

Thanks for the tip!

If you know anything about layoffs today at Fulbright & Jaworski, please — send us a confidential tip!

UPDATE

A JDJournal tipster says:

Layoff rumors were true. All of the Houston floater secretaries were let go this morning. There were 11 of them. Rumor mill is saying more layoffs coming Friday.

Thanks!

PS – JDJournal has learned that 12 secretaries were let go in Houston. And…

UPDATE 2

Another JDJournal tipster says:

Rumors are the Austin office will have layoffs this Thursday.

We’ll keep bringing you the news (and rumors) as the situation evolves.

Tipster: Husch Blackwell Laying Off More Lawyers

Erik Even — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 18:15:07 +0000

Husch Blackwell laid off 17 lawyers and 45 staff in March, and 10 lawyers two weeks ago.

Now a JDJournal tipster says the firm has laid off an undisclosed number of additional attorneys.

More attorneys were laid off last week at the St. Louis Husch, Blackwell office, including well respected partners and associates. [They] also demoted equity partners, cut salaries, etc. No one knows until the very last minute. Possibly more to come?

Thanks for the tip!

If you know anything about layoffs or salary cuts at Husch Blackwell, please send us a confidential tip!

Husch Blackwell Sanders is a multinational litigation and business services law firm based in St. Louis, Missouri. It has approximately 675 attorneys in 13 cities. The firm was formed in 2008 as a combination of two regional law firms, Husch & Eppenberger and Blackwell Sanders. The firm also merged with Welsh & Katz of Chicago.

Tipster: More Layoffs at Fulbright & Jaworski

Erik Even — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 15:56:25 +0000

Last week, we reported that Fulbright & Jaworski has laid off six associates and four staff at its Los Angeles office.

Now a JDJournal tipster tells us that the firm cut 10 support staff from its San Antonio, Texas office; eight from New York; and 24 from Dallas, including 20 secretaries, one recruiter, one accountant, a legal assistant and an IT help desk person.

The tipster also adds that “although attorneys in Dallas have not been laid off to my knowledge, some have been ‘asked to leave.’”

Thanks for the tip!

If you have any additional details about layoffs at Fulbright & Jaworski, please — send us a confidential tip!

Tipster: More Layoffs on Horizon at Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt [Update 3]

Erik Even — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 16:00:48 +0000

In June we reported that Portland, Oregon’s Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt would cut associate salaries and lay off support staff.

Now a JDJournal tipster informs us that more layoffs are coming in August, and the new round will likely include associates.

The tipster says (edited for length and clarity):

Hopefully, Schwabe will handle this round of layoffs better than the June 15 layoffs of nearly 10% of its secretarial and professional staff, in which management attempted such a stealthy layoff that they did not even bother to tell the attorneys that their secretaries would be eliminated – many attorneys came back from a CLE event, a meeting, or a vacation and discovered their secretaries were simply gone.

It would be pretty interesting if management attempted to conduct any associate layoffs in this manner, and just left it up to the supervising partners to figure out who was still around to work on their cases.

Much of the staff affected by the June 15th layoff has been seriously questioning the timing of it – while Schwabe is still insisting that these staff members were cut due to the current state of the economy, Schwabe went on to hire two full-time secretaries within a week of cutting nearly 10% of its secretarial staff… None of the laid-off secretarial staff were asked to return to fill either one of these positions.

…it is worth mentioning that nearly all of the secretarial staff laid off on June 15th had raised some complaint to their supervisor, Virginia Zingg, in the seven months preceding the layoffs, leaving most of the secretarial staff who lost their jobs on June 15th to reach the conclusion that Ms. Zingg simply used the layoffs as a convenient way to clean house for those staff members who she apparently perceived as troublemakers.

If you know anything about layoffs at Schwabe, please — send us a confidential tip! And thanks to all our tipsters!

Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt is a law firm with over 160 attorneys in seven cities. The firm currently has offices in Portland, Bend and Salem, Oregon; Seattle, Vancouver and Stevenson, Washington; and Washington, DC. It is the seventh largest law firm in the Pacific Northwest, and the second largest in Oregon.

UPDATE

Another tipster has a lot to say. Edited for length and clarity:

Viginia Zingg did use the layoffs as an excuse to clean house of those she didn’t like… She breaches confidentiality between the secretaries and staff behind her closed doors, and starts rumors just to get someone to give up information.

There has been no support to the secretarial staff since the layoffs took place, and the associates and summers are doing yet another rafting trip to the Deschutes this weekend, like last weekend wasn’t enough!

The staff get to go pull weeds out of Washington Park and have a picnic at the Zoo afterwards as their reward this summer. I bet we will see an article about how great of community services the firm provides after the staff go sweat all day pulling the weeds at their summer event, which used to take place on the Portland Spirit. I guess those days are over…

…the morale at Schwabe is null/void. It is beyond low if that is possible – non-existent.

UPDATE 2

Another tipster writes in (edited for length and clarity):

…one of the managing partners went before the entire firm to announce that every level of Schwabe would be making sacrifices in these difficult times; staff suffered layoffs, associates received pay cuts, and the partners would not be receiving their “holdbacks.” (The partners have a percentage of their salary held back each month. and then receive those funds in June and December pending good receivables).

Within two weeks after that announcement, the partners did in fact receive their holdbacks. Also, note that mid-level management was not mentioned with regard to any sort of sacrifice — no layoffs, no pay cuts.

There have been complaints brought to upper management for years with regard to Virginia Zingg’s inability to maintain confidentiality. It has been a wonder to staff how she maintains her position as a mid-level manager, and further why Schwabe’s upper management and board would allow her to make the decision with regard to which individuals would be laid off.

UPDATE 3

Disturbing reports are emerging from several staff members at Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt that Virginia Zingg allegedly commented to them, “Now that so many staff have been eliminated, there will be bigger bonuses for all of us at the end of the year.” In light of the recent reports that the partners did, in fact, receive their holdbacks, it is becoming increasingly clear that the June staff lay-offs, the attorney pay cuts, and the future lay-offs planned for August are not due to the current financial forecast.

Rather, according to Ms. Zingg – a member of management, who would be privy to knowing such things – it was all so that there would be bigger bonuses for all employees at year’s end.

In fact, if Schwabe were legitimately concerned about remaining economically viable, they would terminate Ms. Zingg because she is a huge liability – upper management already has substantiated evidence that she has violated employees’ protected health information under the HIPAA Regulations, and it is just a matter of time before one of these employees obtains a judgment against Schwabe big enough to shut the whole place down.

Arizona AG Lays Off 30 [Update]

Erik Even — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 18:40:13 +0000

Arizona’s State Attorney General, Terry Goddard, has announced the layoffs of 29 employees from the Attorney General’s Office.

Goddard blamed the state budget crisis. The Arizona legislature still has a $3 billion deficit to close.

Those affected were notified this morning. It is not clear how many of the layoffs affected attorneys.

If you have any details about layoffs at the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, please — send us a confidential tip!

The Attorney General’s Office is the largest law office in Arizona, with approximately 400 attorneys and 1,000 employees.

UPDATE

A JDJournal tipster points us to a local media report that the AG layoffs affected 12 lawyers and 17 staff, for a total of 29. Many of the layoffs are of people who work with the Child & Family Protection Division of the Department of Economic Security.

Thanks for the tip!

Morning News Roundup for Monday

Erik Even — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:00:07 +0000

Good morning! Here are the top stories:

This week in law firm layoffs: 49 lawyers, 11 staff, 175 undisclosed…

A JDJournal tipster tells us that Mishcon de Reya has begun a round of redundancies, targeting 10 to 12 staffers…

Winstead which has let go 20 employees, according to the Dallas Morning News…

Linklaters is now the UK’s largest law firm by revenue, reporting income of £1.3 billion ($2.13 billion)…

Ruden McClosky has laid off eight associates…

Tipster: Mishcon de Reya to Cut Up to 12

Erik Even — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 18:22:30 +0000

A JDJournal tipster tells us that the UK’s Mishcon de Reya, which in January cut two partners and 15 staff, has begun another round of redundancies, targeting 10 to 12 staffers.

Worst hit is the Property department which has suffered badly from the financial crisis and is struggling to gain client trust after one senior partner’s part in a fraud investigation.

If you know anything about layoffs at Mishcon de Reya, please send us a confidential tip. And thanks to our tipster!

Mishcon de Reya is a London law firm specializing in commercial law. It was formed when Victor Mishcon merged with Bartletts de Reya in 1988. The firm came to wider notice when partner Anthony Julius represented Diana, Princess of Wales in her divorce.

Tipster: Miller Canfield Lays Off 16 Lawyers, 9 Staff [Update]

Erik Even — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 17:40:06 +0000

A JDJournal tipster informs us that the Detroit headquarters of Miller Canfield has let go 25 people, which includes approximately 16 lawyers, including partners.

The cuts targeted a group that did work for Chrysler.

If you know anything about layoffs at Miller Canfield, please — send us a confidential tip!

Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone was established in Detroit in 1852 and has offices in Michigan, Illinois, Florida, New York, Canada, Poland, Mexico and China.

UPDATE:

Another tipster says: “I was one of three paralegals and three staff members laid off or asked to retire from Miller Canfield’s Chrysler Group on or about December 1, 2008. To the best of my knowledge, the rest were laid off last week.”

Thanks to all our tipsters!

Tipster: Stealth Layoffs at Sughrue Mion

Erik Even — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 21:05:06 +0000

A JDJournal tipster says he or she is the latest victim of stealth layoffs at intellectual property firm Sughrue Mion:

I am, perhaps, the latest casualty of Sughrue. It is my belief and understanding [that]:

1.) almost weekly, several people are fired, attorneys and/or staff, which I believe [is] more related to internal issues than economic [ones];

2.) there is a hiring freeze in place;

3.) staff overtime has been slashed, and partners have agreed they will not receive an increase this year due to economic issues.

And I have observed frequent erratic emotional explosions [from] an unnamed senior partner, and that many people are walking on eggshells wondering who, or whether they, will be next to be given their walking papers.

Sughrue Mion PPLC concentrates on the practice of intellectual property law, with offices in Washington DC; Menlo Park, CA; and Tokyo, Japan.

Tipster: Stealth Layoffs at Dykema

Erik Even — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 16:39:28 +0000

A JDJournal tipster says that Dykema has laid off at least 20 lawyers and 30 staff since November. This was not reported to the media.

The tipster reports plans to further reduce attorney and staff headcount due to the GM bankruptcy, although this is being kept from firm employees.

If you know anything about the situation at Dykema, please — send us a confidential tip!

Dykema Gossett PLLC is a law firm headquartered in Detroit, Michigan. Founded in 1926, the firm has offices across the United States, including Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC. It currently employs over 450 lawyers and lobbying professionals. With the 2008 acquisition of 53 lawyers from the now-defunct Schwartz Cooper, Dykema’s largest office is now in Chicago.

Snell & Wilmer Lays Off Up to 40 Staffers [Update 2]

Erik Even — Sun, 31 May 2009 15:09:18 +0000

Snell & Wilmer has laid off between 30 and 40 staff members, most at its Phoenix, Arizona headquarters. A more precise number has not been provided.

No lawyers were affected.

Snell & Wilmer was founded in 1938 by Frank Snell Jr. and Mark Wilmer. The firm is the largest in the state of Arizona and the 99th largest in the US by number of lawyers, according to the National Law Journal’s 2007 statistics. The southwestern regional firm, which has about 1,000 employees, also has offices in seven other cities in Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah and Los Cabos, Mexico.

UPDATE

A JDJournal tipster claims that Snell & Wilmer has in fact been laying off associates since January, with 30 let go last month.

UPDATE 2

Another tipster says (edited for clarity and length):

Snell has been shedding lawyers for months under the guise of “not making hours.” The firm has a tough billables requirement that is hard to hit even in better times. Thus, they have a built-in reason for not making [new] partners, layoffs, etc.

Don’t expect any survivors to talk, the confidentiality agreement attorneys and staff have to sign regarding firm business is tough. The sick (no pun intended) aspect to the staff layoffs is for the past few years the firm has been targeting anyone with a health concern. The firm went in-house with health care about five years ago to save on insurance premiums. This gives the firm full access to everyone’s medical files. Since then, personnel has been targeting staffers with high medical costs. I’ve seen e-mails from the company handling claims which contain lists of meds and surgical costs. Why would these e-mails go to the personnel director instead of the benefits administrator?

If you have any information about stealth attorney layoffs at Snell & Wilmer, please send us a confidential tip!

Tipster: Stealth Layoffs at Hogan & Hartson [Update]

Erik Even — Thu, 14 May 2009 16:30:16 +0000

A JDJournal tipster informs us that layoffs are underway at Hogan & Hartson.

The layoffs include senior associates who were not up for promotions. The tipster tells us “this was never an ‘up or out’ track until now.”

We don’t yet know any numbers, or which practices are being affected.

In April the firm let go 93 support staff, and cut associate pay.

If you have any information about layoffs at Hogan & Hartson, please send us a confidential tip!

Founded in 1904, Hogan & Hartson is the oldest major law firm headquartered in Washington, DC. It is a global firm with more than 1,100 lawyers in 27 offices worldwide, including offices in North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.

UPDATE

Another tipster writes in, and makes a startling allegation:

Hogan & Hartson’s associate attorney layoffs have not just started. Associates have been being laid off since last, December to my knowledge. Most dispicably, the firm is laying off mostly minorities in its first wave of “letting you go when things just don’t work out.” Don’t be confused however, white associates are also being let go. They offer no severance pay or anything else. Associates [are even] being asked to turn in their BlackBerries, or [the cost] will be taken out of their last check.

Tipster: Brown McCarroll Lays Off Lawyers and Staff

Erik Even — Sat, 09 May 2009 17:24:00 +0000

A tipster informs us that Texas’ Brown McCarroll has laid off a “significant number” of attorneys and staff in its Austin, Dallas and Houston offices.

From the tipster (edited for length):

All the personnel who received the proverbial “pink slip” were given no notice of the impending dismissals. In fact, the day of receiving notice of the layoff was their last day of employment. Strong hints were given to the surviving attorneys and staff that further layoffs are still being considered. Capital partners beware — you are not immune. Inside information suggests an additional three dozen or so attorneys and staff could be laid off within the next three to six months.

Seventy-year-old Brown McCarroll has historically focused on litigation as a core practice area. Its 2003 merger with business law firm Hilgers & Watkins added a corporate and transactional practice.

Harvard Law School to Lay Off Staff

Erik Even — Thu, 07 May 2009 17:17:21 +0000

A JDJournal tipster points us to Harvard Law School’s announcement this week that the nation’s second ranked law school will have to cut staff after a 10% budget cut.

Harvard University as a whole faces a 30% decline in its endowment.

The law school will leave empty positions unfilled, and is offering an early retirement program, in the hopes of minimizing the number of layoffs.

From our tipster (edited for length):

HLS is planning layoffs and there is no way these layoffs won’t affect the “educational mission” of HLS. The people who work at Harvard all contribute to the educational experience at the school. HLS says it will cut 10% this year and 8-12% the next year – this would inevitably affect programming near and dear to students’ hearts, like clinical programs. Some students here are still asking, “Will the ice rink go?” The answer is an unequivocal “YES!” Dean Jackson already said it, and this is only a drop in the bucket of what would be cut if he sticks with this draconian plan.

Oh no! No more ice rink! I haven’t seen a disaster this dire since UCLA tore out its bowling alley. (Seriously. The year I started at UCLA, they removed the bowling alley. I was bummed.)

There is absolutely no transparency around what landed HLS and Harvard in this situation. (It is not enough to say “the economy is bad,” because Harvard is in a particularly difficult situation and took huge risks with its endowment, which were criticized by many people. It acted like a hedge fund, not an endowment).

Students are very angry that HLS is waiting until summer to make concrete announcements. By the time they are back, the decisions will appear irreversible. Harvard has provided no sufficient justification for its decision to reduce its endowment payout and Dean Jackson needs to stand up to the University Administration to demand a more reasonable response. This is an opportunity for HLS to take a leadership role at Harvard.

Thanks to our tipster!

Tipster: Holme Roberts & Owen Lays Off Up to 15 Associates

Erik Even — Mon, 04 May 2009 23:54:46 +0000

A JDJournal tipster informs us that Holme Roberts & Owen laid off between 10 and 15 associates in mid-April.

According to the tipster:

Several first year and second year associates were cut. This is less than six months after the firm told us our jobs were safe. Both the Denver Post and the ABA Journal ran stories on the firm’s announcement in November that they wouldn’t lay anyone off. I believe most people got 3 months severance.

Also in April, a tipster informed us that HRO deferred its entire incoming associate class for one year.

Holme Roberts & Owen employs employed approximately 265 attorneys. The only international law firm based in Denver, it has several other offices in the United States and worldwide.

Irell & Manella Partners to Found New Firm

Erik Even — Mon, 04 May 2009 20:59:48 +0000

A tipster informs us that three top partners are leaving Southern California’s Irell & Manella, an intellectual property litigation and general business litigation firm, to hang out their own shingle.

The new firm, Kendall Brill & Klieger, consists of Richard B. Kendall, Laura W. Brill, and Robert N. Klieger.

The partners intend to maintain a “strong relationship” with their former firm.

Richard Kendall has been honored by the Century City Bar Association as its “Litigator of the Year.”

Laura Brill, a former law clerk to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, is a recipient of People for the American Way Foundation’s Defenders of Democracy award.

Robert Klieger has been named by Los Angeles Magazine to its Southern California “Super Lawyers” list for five consecutive years.

Tipster: More Stealth Layoffs at Duval & Stachenfeld

Erik Even — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 20:43:53 +0000

A tipster told us in January that New York City’s Duval & Stachenfeld was laying off an undisclosed number of first and second year associates.

Now a JDJournal tipster has more to sat about stealth layoffs at the firm.

Edited for clarity:

In addition to its previously reported layoffs of junior associates, D&S has also recently laid off and/or constructively laid off (slashing compensation 30-65% with a modest buy-out offer) a few more senior associates, as well as a few non-equity and at least one equity partner.

Some have been removed from the firm’s web site, but at least a half dozen of the departed lawyers are still listed on the site.

Is this tipster “disgruntled?” He or she signs off with:

… Hoping to be in the next wave.

Have anymore details? Let us know with a confidential tip!

Founded in 1997, Duval & Stachenfeld LLP provides legal advisory services. The firm focuses on areas such as bankruptcy, litigation, real estate, restructuring, securities and construction.

Confirmed: Layoffs at Quinn Emanuel

Erik Even — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 18:50:43 +0000

A JDJournal tipster informed us yesterday that Quinn Emanuel held layoffs at their Los Angeles office.

Today the firm confirmed that our tipster was reliable: Quinn Emanuel laid off 10 staff members in LA this week.

No lawyers were affected.

Quinn Emanuel’s revenues climbed 15% to $442 million in 2008, and profits per partner rose 11% to $3.34 million. I’m sure the laid off staff were happy to hear it.

The firm also laid off “a handful” of people in March.

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges LLP was founded in 1986 by John B. Quinn. It is headquartered in Los Angeles, with major offices in San Francisco, the Silicon Valley, and New York.

Tipster: Staff Layoffs at Bracewell & Giuliani

Erik Even — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 21:18:00 +0000

Today we received a lengthy tip from a frustrated employee of Bracewell & Giuliani, reporting support staff layoffs at the firm’s Washington, DC office.

Here’s is what the tipster had to say, edited for length & clarity:

I work for the firm Bracewell & Giuliani, and would like to share the layoff process they conducted this past Monday, April 6, 2009.

Just a little over a month and a half ago, we were all told by the office administrator that B&G was one of the only firms in DC that was not going through any type of layoff. We were all assured that our jobs were secure and that if anything should arise we would be the first to know.

During this meeting we were also told about the expansion the firm was in the process of making. … They would be hiring more attorneys, associated and secretaries. We were told that the firm was growing and we were all lucky part of that team. They really pumped us [up], making us all feel extremely secure.

My suspicions [were] aroused when we were all told that they were replacing our Special Service team, with an different agency that was more affordable. Special Service folks were given the opportunity to interview with this particular agency, but if they agency did not hire them, they were out of a job.

These folks have been with B&G [as long as] 30 years.

On Monday… a secretary at our firm… was told that she was being “laid off” and needed to leave the building immediately. They called a cab and gave her a voucher. Shortly thereafter, they called another secretary and then another.

The following day the layoff rampage continued and they let IT folks go, and sent them out the door with out anytime to properly gather their items or tell people they had been working with for years good-bye.

The tipster takes issue with the way the layoffs are being handled.

The process almost seems rude, cruel and inhuman. It seemed to me that the HR bosses from Houston took great joy in walking around the hallways for the next few days, intimidating us. I also overheard a few people laughing and making jokes about the people that had been laid off.

At this point, no one cared about the stress they were causing us and how their nonchalant attitudes affected us. I felt terrible and continue to feel terrible for the people that were laid off, and feel so incredibly angry every time I see the Partners having their expensive catered lunches.

There were rumors of B&G layoffs in January.

Bracewell & Giuliani employs more than 400 lawyers at offices in Texas, New York, Washington DC, and Connecticut, as well as in Dubai, Kazakhstan, and London.

Tipster: Quinn Emanuel Layoffs in Los Angeles

Erik Even — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 16:13:43 +0000

According to a JDJournal tipster, Quinn Emanuel held more layoffs at their Los Angeles Office yesterday.

There are no further details. The last rumored layoff was held last month, and there were no numbers released then as well.

If you know anything about the situation at Quinn Emanuel, please — send us a confidential tip!

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges LLP was founded in 1986 by John B. Quinn. It is headquartered in Los Angeles, California with major offices in San Francisco, the Silicon Valley, and New York.

Tipster: Holme Roberts & Owen Deferring Incoming Associates

Erik Even — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 17:36:40 +0000

According to a JDJournal tipster, Denver-based international law firm Holme Roberts & Owen is deferring its entire incoming class of associates for 12 months.

Our tipster reports:

3Ls were informed of this YESTERDAY [4/6], when less than 2 months ago they were told that they would be starting this fall in October. Firm will pay minuscule stipend of $15,000 for the year. Bar fees and cost of study course will not be covered.

A number of strings are attached to the stipend.

We are FUCKED. Sources inside the firm suggest that management was sitting on this information for weeks.

If you know anything about the situation at Holme Roberts & Owen, please — send us a confidential tip!

Holme Roberts & Owen employs approximately 265 attorneys. The only international law firm based in Denver, it has several other offices in the United States and worldwide.