JD Journal » New York State

Gov. Paterson Finally Signs the Bill that Will Raise NY Judges’ Benefits

marvins — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 00:44:55 +0000

The state of New York Governor David A. Paterson signed the new legislation known as A42010/S68010 that aims to improve the pay and non-salary benefits of about 1,300 state judges. The legislation primarily requires evaluating and making necessary recommendations on the adequacy of the judges’ pay and non-salary benefits every fourth year by a seven-member commission. The panel’s recommendation will take effect automatically once made, if the Legislature and the governor do not enact a statute to modify or reject the findings. The first raises will be paid starting April 1, 2012. The last raise was recorded in 1999. The first pay commission is set to convene on April 1, 2011 and will be given 150 days to accomplish its tasks. A new panel will then be created every fourth year after that.

Gov. Paterson explained during the signing ceremony that the state judges deserve this recognition. “The judges of this state will get [the pay] they deserve, which is important to creating the highest standard of jurisprudence in this nation.” Paterson said, when asked if it is appropriate to expect increases despite the present economic downturn and the 9.3 billion budget gap of the state, “There were other factors in the statute that would support increases such as the rate of inflation since judicial pay was last increased and the instruction to look at the pay of federal judges.”

Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman expressed his excitement over the governor’s decision. He said that even though the new legislation is not mandating to raise the judges’ pay, he is more than happy because at least, the salary and overall benefits of state judges will now be in line with the cost-of-living adjustments in each of the next three years. He described it as “A long overdue salute” to the state’s judges, who for many years without a pay increase, have labored day in and day out meeting their constitutional responsibilities.”

New York Judges May Get Pay Raises Soon

marvins — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 11:58:34 +0000

The New York Law Journal (NYLJ) reported that 1, 300 New York judges could finally see their paychecks increase with the creation of a commission to recommend new salary levels. Reports revealed that the plan, approved by lawmakers, calls for a seven-member commission to be created every four years, beginning in April 2011. Within five months, the commission would then recommend salary adjustments to cover the following four years. The soonest that current judges would see their pay actually increase would be April 2012.

Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman of the New York State Court of Appeals expressed his excitement over the legislation. He said that he and his colleagues have been lobbying hard for this to happen. The last raise was recorded in 1999, almost a dozen years ago. However, Lippman stated that he still has hesitation over the approval of the proposal. “Given the current shaky economy and perilous state of New York’s budget, the pay change procedure is a miracle.” Lippman also stressed the state legislators should separate the pay question from politics as much as possible. “This takes judicial pay out of the realm of politics where it does not belong.”

NYLJ also mentioned that the New York state trial judges earn roughly $136,700 per year, which is about $40,000 less than their counterparts in the federal judiciary and junior associates at many top Am Law 100 firms.

Former Head of New York State Attorney General Office’s Criminal Division Joins Jenner & Block’s New York Office as Partner

joshua — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 15:30:04 +0000

Today, Jenner & Block announced that experienced litigator Peter B. Pope has joined the Firm as a partner in its New York office.

Mr. Pope served as Deputy Attorney General of New York State, heading that Office’s 100-lawyer Criminal Division from 2000 through 2006. He also served as the state’s Director of Policy for two Governors. Mr. Pope began his career as an Assistant District Attorney in Manhattan, where he rose to Deputy Chief of the Labor Racketeering Unit.

While serving as Deputy Attorney General, Mr. Pope was involved in a broad range of significant New York State enforcement actions of national significance that included the insurance, mutual fund, securities analyst, and hedge fund industries.

Following his service as Deputy Attorney General, from 2007-2008 Mr. Pope was the Director of Policy for New York Governors Eliot Spitzer and David Paterson. In that capacity, he advised the Governors on a wide variety of matters and helped negotiate landmark laws with the New York State legislature, including the widely heralded overhaul of the Workers’ Compensation system, and one of the nation’s strongest Anti-Human Trafficking statutes. Mr. Pope left government service in 2008 to join Arkin Kaplan Rice LLP, one of Manhattan’s leading white collar defense boutique firms. He left the firm as a partner.

Jenner & Block’s White Collar Defense and Investigations practice includes 10 former federal prosecutors, including firm Chairman Anton R. Valukas, a former U.S. Attorney in Chicago who recently served as the court-appointed Examiner in the Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy, and Andrew Weissmann, a former Director of the Justice Department’s Enron Task Force and Chief of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York.

In the press release at the firm’s site, Susan C. Levy, Managing Partner of Jenner & Block was quoted as saying: “We are thrilled that Peter is joining Jenner & Block. His first-rate courtroom and investigations experience will augment our stellar White Collar practice. We are extraordinarily strong in federal law enforcement experience, and Peter will now augment our strengths with his top-to-bottom experience in investigations by the New York State Attorney General and the New York County District Attorney, which are increasingly important to our clients.”

Founded in 1914, Jenner & Block consistently delivers outstanding results in corporate transactions and secures major litigation victories for clients from the trial level through the United States Supreme Court. The firm has approximately 470 attorneys located in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Washington, DC.

Loeb & Loeb Lays Off 4 Attorneys

Erik Even — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 23:55:54 +0000

Blawgs are reporting that Loeb & Loeb has laid off four corporate lawyers this week.

The firm cut four lawyers in January, and eight last November.

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

Founded in 1909 in Los Angeles, Loeb & Loeb is a national law firm with offices in LA, New York, Chicago and Nashville. It has applied to open a representative office in Beijing. The firm employs over 300 attorneys.

Tully Rinckey Merges with Fletcher Law

Erik Even — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 18:29:43 +0000

Albany, New York’s Tully Rinckey has merged with the Fletcher Law Firm of Saratoga Springs. The new firm will be called Tully Rinckey.

Fletcher Law’s Elizabeth Fairbanks-Fletcher joins as a senior associate, along with associate Meghan Marinello.

The united firm has 26 attorneys and revenue of about $7.5 million. The acquisition of Fletcher expands Tully Rinckey’s bankruptcy, consumer credit issues and tax debt relief practice.

Founded in 2001, Tully Rinckey’ has offices in Albany and Saratoga Springs, New York, and Washington DC.

DiscoverReady Hiring 100 Lawyers

Erik Even — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 20:09:13 +0000

Last week we reported that Los Angeles’ American Discovery is hiring 100 attorneys for its document review offices in the US and the Philippines.

Now DiscoverReady is ramping up a new office in Charlotte, North Carolina, and hiring 100 lawyers.

The firm analyzes e-mails and electronic documents for law firms and corporate legal departments. They have already filled two dozen positions, and will hire more people throughout the rest of the year.

DiscoverReady is also hiring project managers and office staff.

Founded in 2005, DiscoverReady provides fixed fee document reviews for corporations. It has offices in Charlotte and New York City.

BuckleySandler Adds More Lawyers

Erik Even — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:56:38 +0000

BuckleySandler, founded in March when two Skadden partners left the firm’s Washington DC office, has grown to 55 lawyers with the addition of two lawyers.

Stephen Ambrose Jr. joins from GE Capital, where he was general counsel of the consumer finance unit. He will be managing partner of the firm’s new New York office. He earned his JD at Fordham University Law School, where he served as Editor of the Fordham Law Review.

Robert Cook joins as of counsel from Countrywide Financial, where he was deputy general counsel. He was previously special counsel at the Federal Reserve Board.

BuckleySandler is headquartered in Washington DC, with offices in New York and Los Angeles. It represents clients in the financial services industry, such as banks, mortgage lenders, and credit card companies.

Update: Judge Agrees with Judge that Judges Need More Money

Erik Even — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 17:03:04 +0000

Two weeks ago, we reported that New York State’s Appellate Division had ruled, giving lawmakers 90 days to adjust judicial compensation to reflect a 30% increase in the cost of living since 1998.

This week, New York Supreme Court Justice Edward H. Lehner ruled in agreement with his colleague, and ordered New York’s governor and lawmakers to raise the pay of the state’s 1,300 judges.

Lehner ruled that the state executive and legislature violated the separation of powers doctrine by linking a judicial pay raise to other issues. Now the issue goes to the Court of Appeals, at the same time as two related cases decided by the Appellate Division.

LaFave Merges with Latimer/Stroud

Erik Even — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 00:04:11 +0000

Two women-owned law firms in the Albany, New York area have merged. Delmar’s LaFave Firm and Latham’s Latimer/Stroud will become LaFave, Latimer, Stroud & Jerome.

The new, eleven-person firm will be based in Latham. LaFave focused on personal injury, while Latimer/Stroud was a general practice.

LaFave, Latimer, Stroud & Jerome LLP is a general practice law firm. They handle cases from traffic tickets and family & matrimonial matters, to significant personal injury, medical malpractice, products liability and premises liability.

Judges Rule That Judges Deserve Pay Raise

Erik Even — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:49:24 +0000

New York State’s 1,300 judges have not had a pay raise in a decade. Now the state’s Appellate Division, 1st Department has ruled on the issue, giving lawmakers 90 days to adjust judicial compensation to reflect a 30% increase in the cost of living since 1998.

The state legislature’s failure to give the state’s judges a raise violated the separation of powers doctrine, the appeals court ruled unanimously yesterday. By linking judicial pay to legislators’ pay and other political considerations, lawmakers tainted the judicial branch with politics, the court found.

The panel’s decision affirms a ruling by Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Edward Lehner that the linkage of judicial raises to other issues is unconstitutional.

As lawmakers are reticent to give anyone a pay increase in the current economic environment, the issue is likely headed back to court.

The suit was brought by four judges: Manhattan Family Court Judge Susan Larabee, Cattaraugus County Family Court Judge Michael Nenno, Manhattan Civil Court Judge Geoffrey Wright and Manhattan Criminal Court Judge Patricia Nunez.

Tallman Hudders Merging with Norris McLaughlin

Erik Even — Thu, 28 May 2009 17:14:04 +0000

Pennsylvania law firm Tallman, Hudders & Sorrentino is merging with New Jersey’s Norris McLaughlin & Marcus. The merger goes into effect next Monday.

Each office will keep it’s original name. The new firm will be the largest independent business law firm in the region, with 150 lawyers across offices in Allentown, Pennsylvania; Bridgewater, New Jersey; and Manhattan.

The merger has been under consideration for over two years.

Jaeckle Fleischmann & Mugel Offering Voluntary Buyouts

Erik Even — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 19:48:59 +0000

Buffalo, New York law firm Jaeckle Fleischmann & Mugel is offering a voluntary buyout program for 38 of its support staff.

Eligible employees have until May 15th to apply for the firm’s “voluntary separation” program, which offers “salary continuation” for a period of time depending on employees’ years of service.

The firm has 60 full-time support staffers, but only 10 can take the buyout. It has 58 attorneys in its Buffalo and Amherst offices.

Last year, the firm shut its Rochester office.

Clifford Chance Lays Off 24 New York Associates

Erik Even — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 17:24:27 +0000

London’s Clifford Chance today laid off 24 of its New York associates.

It is expected that the firm will announce further layoffs shortly. Also, incoming associates will be deferred to January and October 2010.

Just yesterday the firm voted to implement a plan to restructure its partnership.

If you possess any inside info about layoffs at Clifford Chance, please send us a confidential tip!

Clifford Chance LLP is the largest law firm in the world, both by number of lawyers and revenue, and a component of the UK’s “Magic Circle” of leading law firms. It is a prestigious international practice with its principal office in London.

Haynes and Boone Lays Off Three at NYC Office

Erik Even — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 00:18:46 +0000

Dallas’ Haynes and Boone yesterday laid off one associate, one of counsel and one staff in their New York City office.

The terminations resulted from the upcoming departure of two New York-based corporate partners who are leaving by mutual agreement. Affected attorneys and staff were recruited specifically to support the departing partners.

The firm does not expect any further attorney or staff layoffs in their New York office, nor in any of the firm’s other eleven national and international offices.

Haynes and Boone, LLP has grown from a handful of lawyers in 1970 to more than 450 lawyers in 2007. The firm has expanded to ten offices, including Washington, DC, Mexico City and Moscow.
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Revenue, Profits Down at Stroock & Stroock

Erik Even — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 23:52:10 +0000

The Am Law 100′s Stroock & Stroock & Lavan, a firm with about 75% of its 750 lawyers in New York, saw profits per partner drop by 8.6%, to $1,185,000 last year.

Stroock’s gross revenue dropped 6.7% to $270 million, a larger drop than most firms.

Stroock has added several recent laterals, including a four-lawyer intellectual property group from Jenner & Block.

The firm has carefully managed expenses, canceling its holiday party, limiting travel when possible, and trimming head count from 369 to 350. The firm is not ruling out layoffs or salary freezes for 2009.

Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP is based in New York City, with approximately 350 lawyers in three offices, the other two being Miami and Los Angeles. It was founded in 1876.

Chicago’s Chapman and Cutler Expands into New York

Erik Even — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 17:25:33 +0000

Chicago’s 215-lawyer Chapman and Cutler has launched a New York office with three partners.

The firm hired its first new attorney for the office, hiring as a partner Kenneth Marin from New York’s McKee Nelson, where he was co-head of that firm’s covered bonds team in the corporate finance department.

Marin will be based solely in the New York office. The other partners, Melanie Gnazzo and James Reid Nelson, will split their time between New York and other cities.

The addition of New York expands the firm’s US presence to the East Coast and brings its total number of offices to four, including the headquarters in Chicago and offices in San Francisco and Salt Lake City.

Rosenbaum to Take Over at Greenberg Traurig

Erik Even — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 19:23:59 +0000

Miami’s Greenberg Traurig has announced that CEO Cesar Alvarez will hand over the reins to President Richard A. Rosenbaum next year, after 12 years as head honcho of the 1,800-plus attorney firm.

Alvarez, 61, will become executive chairman.

Rosenbaum, 54, works in Greenberg Traurig’s New York office. He joined the firm in Fort Lauderdale in 1985 before moving to New York in 1996. He remains a member of the Florida Bar.

From New York, Rosenbaum has overseen about half of the firm’s offices in the United States, as well as offices in Europe and Asia.

Greenberg Traurig has more than 1,800 lawyers in 32 offices, up from about 1,650 in 2007. It had 325 lawyers when Alvarez became CEO in 1997. Last fall, the National Law Journal ranked it the country’s eighth-largest law firm.

Greenberg Traurig had $1.2 billion in revenue in 2007, up from $1.04 billion in 2006.

Chairman Larry J. Hoffman and president Matthew Gorson will remain in their roles.

At the time Alvarez became CEO, Greenberg Traurig said he was the first Hispanic managing partner of a major US law firm.

Nixon Peabody Gets $1 Million for Rochester Expansion

Erik Even — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 21:55:24 +0000

Nixon Peabody LLP, one of the largest law firms in the US, told the County of Monroe, New York Industrial Development Agency board that it will expand into existing space at the Clinton Square Building in Rochester.

The Am Law 100 firm, founded in 1875, occupies the fourth floor, and floors nine through 14. Nixon Peabody plans to renovate the space, eliminating some legal libraries and allowing for 20 new employees over three years.

The building will also be the site for the law firm’s global operations center. The firm has 825 employees in 19 locations worldwide. In Rochester, the firm employs 373 people.

On Tuesday, the COMIDA board approved about $1 million in property-tax and sales-tax abatements for the project. Contingent upon lease negotiations and closing on COMIDA incentives, the law firm could sign a new deal with Broadstone Real Estate possibly in February, said Scott Turner, managing partner.

The project had the backing of Rochester city government, which is supporting its own payment-in-lieu-of-taxes program.

Judy Seil, COMIDA executive director, said she expects the abatements will produce $5 million in taxpayer benefits, including the new jobs. Seil said the average job could pay at least $40,000 annually.

NY Attorneys Donate to Obama Inauguration

Erik Even — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 17:00:29 +0000

According to the New York Law Journal:

Dozens of New York lawyers have reached into their pockets to help new President Barack Obama help defray the cost of an inauguration that many think will be, in the words of one, “for the ages.”

Barry H. Berke [of] Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel… personally donated $10,000 and collected $40,000 from others because Obama “has the potential to be a different kind of leader, a transformational leader who goes beyond ordinary politics.”

Patricia Cliff [of] Corcoran Real Estate Group, said she contributed $10,000 because it is “really important to be a part of an unbelievable first in American history.” Not just the election of the first black president but someone who is bringing “a whole new generation into government — it’s a very memorable experience for the whole country,” she said.

John P. “Sean” Coffey, a partner at Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossman, said he had contributed $50,000 because he realized that individuals would have to pick up the slack resulting from Obama’s refusal to accept donations from traditional interest groups.

“I was happy to do my bit for an inauguration that will be for the ages,” he said.

Altogether Obama’s inaugural committee has collected about $42.1 million from private donors.

The New York Law Journal focused its inquiry on the 141 donors identified by Public Citizen as having donated $10,000 or more from New York, Connecticut and New Jersey.

Read the story.

Caroline Kennedy — Celebrity? Or Qualified Senate Candidate?

Erik Even — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 22:13:08 +0000

Political commentators and legal experts are debating the qualifications of Caroline Bouvier Kennedy to fill the role of US Senator from New York. (Hillary Clinton is vacating her seat to serve as Secretary of State.)

Kennedy, a graduate of Columbia Law School, is the only surviving daughter of John and Jackie Kennedy. According to Wikipedia:

Kennedy graduated from Radcliffe College and worked at New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, where she met her future husband, exhibit designer Edwin Schlossberg. She went on to receive a law degree from Columbia Law School. Kennedy’s professional life has spanned law and politics as well as education and charitable work. She has also acted as a spokesperson for her family’s legacy and authored several works on civil liberties.

The CQ Politics Blog:

A hot topic of debate in New York and elsewhere in the country is whether Caroline Kennedy, political neophyte and daughter of the late President John F. Kennedy, has the chops to be a U.S. senator.

But it wasn’t so long ago that New Yorkers were questioning the qualifications of another female Senate candidate with powerful connections and a universally recognized last name.

Back in 2000, skeptics dismissed then-First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton ’s run for retiring Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan’s seat, calling her a “carpetbagger” and criticizing her lack of legislative experience.

CQ Politics points out the similarities between Kennedy and Clinton, who was also criticized as a celebrity political neophyte when she first ran for the Senate. Both women are well-educated, came from political families, and are devoted to public service.

Kennedy has never been a lawyer, though she applied her legal training to co-authoring books on the Bill of Rights and the right to privacy.

From CBS News:

Speaking on CBS’ ”Face The Nation,” Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y. (who has said he wants to run for Senate) called Kennedy a “People Magazine celebrity” who, as far as he knew, “has never held a real job. …she’s never taken a stand on any public issue. She’s never even held one news conference. She hasn’t gone to one American Legion hall or Knights of Columbus hall or Masonic temple, or one synagogue to answer questions. When she does go on her so-called listening tour upstate, she’s, like, running from city hall into the car to avoid reporters. ”

Some Republicans are crticizing the appointment of a politically inexperienced member of a prominent family to a post that is usually elected. The New York State Constitution calls for the governor to choose a new senator when the seat is vacated.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.

Thacher Proffitt Is No More; Fourth Biglaw Collapse This Year

Erik Even — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 18:10:58 +0000

Thacher Proffitt & Wood, the 160-year-old New York-based law firm, will close forever. The subprime crisis slashed demand for its structured-finance practice, and more than half of its attorneys have left for a competitor.

Thacher Proffitt will wind down operations next year. Its planning committee failed to reach a merger agreement with an unidentified firm (known to be King & Spalding) over the past six months.

A group of about 100 Thacher Proffitt lawyers, including 40 partners, will join Chicago-based Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal, bringing that firm’s total number of lawyers to about 800.

Thacher Profitt is the fourth major US law firm to announce plans to close this year. Thelen, a San Francisco firm that was, like Thacher Proffitt, focused on structured finance, has shut down. Heller Ehrman, a 118-year-old firm that once boasted about 700 lawyers, also collapsed. And New York-based Dreier filed for bankruptcy protection after its founder was jailed and accused of cheating investors out of more than $100 million.

Thacher Proffitt, which had about 195 lawyers before the departures, put up for sublease all five floors of its headquarters this year. In October, it closed its office in White Plains, New York.

Some Thacher Proffitt lawyers were hired by the US Treasury Department on December 10th, to assist in purchasing asset-backed securities under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act. The attorneys will be paid as much as $500,000 for the work.

Sonnenschein is also facing slowing demand for legal services. The firm has fired 62 lawyers and about 175 staff since May due to “tumult in the financial markets.” The new hires will double the size of the firm’s New York office.

Via Bloomberg.

New York to Recover Exhorbitant Fees From Scrooge Attorney

Erik Even — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 18:51:09 +0000

New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is to reopen 170 estates of deceased people, in order to reimburse heirs who were gouged by a greedy Brooklyn lawyer Louis Rosenthal.

Rosenthal piled up millions of dollars in fees with the approval of his former law school pal, disgraced ex-Surrogate Court Judge Michael Feinberg.

On December 4th, the state Appellate Division disbarred Feinberg, and suspended Rosenthal from practicing law for two years.

From 1992 to 2002, Judge Feinberg awarded Rosenthal nearly $9 million in fees. He regularly awarded his buddy 8% of the estates’ assets, while lawyers in other boroughs typically received 6% or less.

Instead of filing the required affidavits, Rosenthal submitted fee requests on Post-it notes.