|
|
|
Students who paid to attend inauguration sue
Law Firm News |
2009/05/14 10:04
|
A lawsuit was filed in federal court Wednesday on behalf of more than 15,000 students who paid thousands to attend President Barack Obama's inauguration but reportedly were left out in the cold.
p
The lawsuit filed in Washington says Vienna, Va.-based Envision EMI promised middle, high school and college students across the country special access to the inauguration, parade and a black tie inaugural ball on Jan. 20./ppBut the lawsuit, filed by attorneys of two students, says once the students got to Washington, they had no tickets for the inauguration or parade. And the balls they attended were not official events connected to the inauguration./ppEnvision, a for-profit company that reportedly brought in $40 million from the inaugural sales, has said it would refund students $1 million. But the lawsuit says that would only reimburse each attendee about $65. The students were charged $2,380 to $2,620 and also had to pay for travel to Washington, formal wear for the ball and in some cases extra meals not included in the base cost./ppThese kids took odd jobs and raised funds from family, friends and strangers in order to participate in the defendants' inaugural youth conference to eyewitness a truly historical event, said Bernard DiMuro of DiMuroGinsberg PC, which filed the lawsuit jointly with another law firm, Hausfeld LLP. Instead all they saw was the inside of a bus or were dropped off near the Washington Monument to fend for themselves./p |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Study Predicts 5 Percent Growth in Legal Spending
Law Firm News |
2009/05/07 10:48
|
pA decline in legal spending by large companies is about to be reversed, according to a new survey of Fortune 1000 companies.
/ppThe study by market research firm BTI Consulting says large companies will increase legal spending on outside counsel nearly 5 percent over the next six months, according to a press release. The top areas for growth in legal spending will be in the areas of regulatory compliance (up 5.8 percent), bankruptcy (up 2.6 percent), securities and finance (up 2.1 percent), and employment (up .7 percent), an executive summary says (PDF)./ppThe projected increase in spending follows a significant drop in legal spending last year and in the first six months of 2009. When the expected increase is taken into account, overall legal spending is expected to decline just 1.4 percent for the year./ppIn a press release, Michael Rynowecer, president of BTI Consulting, calls the findings “a big ray of sunshine in what has been a very stormy environment.” He cautions, however, that some law firms won’t benefit from the increase in spending./pp“Rather than a wholesale recovery, we are seeing a shift of resources to specific firms and practices that are well-positioned,” he said in the press release. “Large companies are sharing this renewed spending with a smaller group of law firms than just six months ago. Those firms caught unaware or unprepared for this shift will continue to face significant challenges and not reap the benefits of this increased spending.”/ppThe study is based on 370 interviews with corporate counsel at Fortune 1000 companies that average $19.4 million in outside counsel spending./p |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Demjanjuk appeals German court decision
Court Watch |
2009/05/07 10:46
|
Suspected Nazi guard John Demjanjuk's attorney says he has appealed a Berlin court ruling that stymied an attempt to stop his client's deportation from the United States.
p
Lawyer Ulrich Busch told The Associated Press late Thursday he is asking for the German government to retract its agreement to take Demjanjuk on humanitarian grounds./ppHe says it might take two weeks for the appeal filed with a Berlin administrative court to be ruled upon. And he says even if the ruling is in Demjanjuk's favor, American authorities still could deport him./ppDemjanjuk (dem-YAHN'-yuk) is wanted in Germany on an arrest warrant accusing him of being an accessory to 29,000 murders at the Nazis' Sobibor death camp in occupied Poland. He denies the charges./p |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nixon Peabody Cuts First Year Associates Pay
Firm News |
2009/04/29 09:11
|
Nixon Peabody LLP has shaved $15,000 off of salaries for its first year associates in an effort to reduce expenses, the law firm confirmed this week.
In a memo to staff, firm managing partner and CEO Richard F. Langan said first year salaries will be reduced to $145,000, down from $160,000, for firm associates. The firm also has made performance-based salary cuts for current associates and has introduced a new bonus structure.
Up until this year big law firms have felt pressure to keep first-year associate salaries level with those at competitor firms.
Nixon Peabody, which has about 170 lawyers in Boston and a total of 720 lawyers, is the first major Boston firm to announce such a pay reduction, but is among several national law firms that have recently made the decision to reduce first year salaries.
Other firms that have cut first-year salaries in recent weeks include Robinson amp; Cole LLP, which has 200 lawyers nationally and 50 in Massachusetts, and McKenna Long amp; Aldridge, a Washington, D.C., firm.
Langan said in his memo, “Nixon Peabody LLP has taken measures over the past several months to review its cost of doing business while keeping its commitment to providing extraordinary client service. To maintain staffing levels in the best interest of our clients, we have decided to reduce starting compensation levels for incoming associates and summer associates to $145,000 in major financial centers with related reductions in associate compensation throughout the firm’s U.S. operations.”
The “major financial” centers the memo refers to reportedly include Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago and California, according to Abovethelaw.com. Other regions will see smaller pay decreases, corresponding to lower salary levels.
Langan’s memo continued, “Additionally, we have made downward adjustments to the base pay of our current associates based on their individual performance and contribution to our firm. Along with this change in compensation, associates will be eligible for a new bonus program, based on the firm’s financial performance, which will reward top performing associates who make extraordinary contributions to the firm. With our new bonus program and strong firm culture, we expect to attract and retain the best and brightest talent for many years to come. Through this innovative approach to associate compensation, along with a wide range of innovative pricing arrangements to meet the varied needs of our clients, we are able to continue to provide our clients with the highest level of service and lower cost practical solutions in order to meet their business needs in this challenging economic climate. We appreciate our associates’ understanding and commitment to our firm and its future.” |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Judge waives waiting period for gay Iowa couple
Topics |
2009/04/27 09:33
|
A same-sex Iowa couple will be allowed to wed as soon as Monday after a judge allowed them to bypass the state's three-day waiting period.
p
Melisa Keeton and Shelley Wolfe of Des Moines received their waiver by 9 a.m./ppSame-sex couples in Iowa began applying for marriage license Monday after a state Supreme Court ruling legalizing gay unions took effect./ppThe high court issued an order early in the day confirming that the appeals process in the case has officially concluded./ppThe Iowa Supreme Court's unanimous and emphatic decision on April 3 made Iowa the third state to allow same-sex marriage, joining Massachusetts and Connecticut. Vermont has passed a law that will take effect in September./p |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Judge in LA orders green card cases reopened
Topics |
2009/04/24 09:33
|
A federal judge tentatively ordered the Department of Homeland Security to reopen the cases of 22 people who were denied green cards because their American spouses died during the application process.
p
U.S. District Judge Christina A. Snyder ruled the so-called widow penalty doesn't necessarily require that immigrants' permanent residency applications be denied when their American spouses die. Citing a 2006 decision by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Snyder ruled this week that applicants don't lose their status as spouses of U.S. citizens if the death occurs before the government rules on their applications./ppThe decision, if made final, would be a victory for more than 200 people across the country who have been affected by the widow penalty, said attorney Brent Renison, who filed the class-action lawsuit in Los Angeles./ppThis case is very significant because it's the first that follows the circuit court decision and gives guidance to the agency on what it can and cannot do in these situations, Renison told The Associated Press on Tuesday./ppThe U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service has argued the law requires that residency applications be rejected for immigrants whose American spouses die within two years of being married./p |
|
|
|
|
|
Legal News RSS Feed
