JD Journal » Sidley

An AP report found that 37 of 64 active or senior judges sitting in the Gulf Coast districts where most of the cases relating to the BP oil spill are pending have financial ties to the oil and gas industry, posing potential conflicts of interest…

D.C. lawyers were honored with Legal Times Awards…

Sidley Austin continued its expansion into Palo Alto…

Littler Mendelson opened an office in Anchorage, Alaska…

King & Spalding will open an office in Geneva…

The Philadelphia Business Journal reported that more women made partner this year…

Sidley Continues Expansion In Palo Alto

eric — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 19:06:10 +0000

Yabo Lin has joined Sidley’s Palo Alto Office as a partner, says Business Wire. Representing a large number of telecom, green energy and software companies, as well as other industries, Lin’s practice focuses on acquisitions, securities and compliance. Prior to joining Sidley, Lin was licensed to practice in China and accordingly his time will now be split between his home country and Palo Alto. Sidley established its Palo Alto office last year to create a presence in markets focused on tech and business innovation.

With its base of operations in Chicago, Illinois, Sidley Austin LLP is one of the world’s largest full-service law firms, with approximately 1700 lawyers practicing in 17 U.S. and international cities.

Report Identifies Attorney-Client Accounts as Major Loophole in Money Laundering Laws

joshua — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 12:46:05 +0000

In its report released last week, the U.S. Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations revealed that Chicago-based Sidley Austin LLP transferred approximately $21 million for a government official, Teodor Obiang, son of the president of Equatorial Guinea, who’d long been suspected of misappropriating the country’s oil and timber resources for personal gain.

The report’s findings may prompt deeper government scrutiny into the bank accounts lawyers hold for their clients. The Subcomittee found these accounts represent a serious loophole in anti-money laundering provisions.

“Larger law firms are certainly more likely to come into contact with suspicious transactions where money laundering could be facilitated,” said Jeffrey Cramer, a former federal prosecutor who heads the Chicago office of Kroll, a risk-consulting company.

Sidley sought clearance from the Department of Justice to make sure the $21 million wire transfer did not violate the law, the report says. This illustrates the challenges often faced in complying with money laundering laws.

“It’s pretty clear from the report that we did what we were supposed to do,” said Janet Zagorin, a spokeswoman for the firm.

All Associates Meeting at Sidley Austin

joshua — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:44:34 +0000

Sidley Austin had an all associates meeting in Washington DC today. Details, or rumors at least, are beginning to trickle out from the meeting, but nothing hard and fast as of yet. Some tipsters are reporting that Sidley hinted at bonuses larger than last year, and some reports say that the firm may be moving away from lockstep compensation. If you have any solid information for us, please send us an anonymous tip here.

And now for something different…

joshua — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 23:26:40 +0000

New associates at Sidley Austin are being deferred starting early this year in the Washington DC office. New associates are being given the option to begin after Labor Day to fulfill needs in certain practice groups. Associates in other offices have been offered voluntary deferrals and will begin working mid November.

Sidley Austin is one of the countries oldest law firms and includes Mary Todd Lincoln among its list of early clients. Formed in 1866 in Chicago, it has offices in 16 cities worldwide with 1,800 lawyers. Practice groups cover a broad range of areas and it has a long history with transactional matters and litigation.