In another sign of a seeming paradigm shift in BigLaw practice, bankruptcy behemoth Weil Gotshal & Manges laid off 79 administrative staff members throughout its United States offices effective today Although the firm has been in the headlines for its high-profile bankruptcy representations and hasn't laid off any lawyers, it says the staff cuts were necessary not only because of the dismal economy but an overall change in the way law is being practiced: “The decision to undertake this action has been an extremely difficult one; the fact that many peer law firms were forced to make similar moves is…

In another sign of a seeming paradigm shift in BigLaw practice, bankruptcy behemoth Weil Gotshal & Manges laid off 79 administrative staff members throughout its United States offices effective today Although the firm has been in the headlines for its high-profile bankruptcy representations and hasn't laid off any lawyers, it says the staff cuts were necessary not only because of the dismal economy but an overall change in the way law is being practiced: “The decision to undertake this action has been an extremely difficult one; the fact that many peer law firms were forced to make similar moves is…

Thanks to a Texas law firm, two new graduates of New York University School of Law getting ready to start public interest jobs don't have to worry about dealing with a crushing educational debt load. The 45-attorney Bickel & Brewer litigation boutique in Dallas paid for Thomas Fritzsche and classmate Melissa Navarro to earn their juris doctor degrees at the prestigious law school, as the firm will continue to do for two NYU law students each year under a scholarship program that has attracted hundreds of applicants, reports the National Law Journal in an article reprinted by New York Lawyer…

A discrimination suit filed earlier this year by a high-profile former staff attorney against Covington & Burling and five current or former lawyers there has been dismissed. In a order (PDF) filed today, U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton of the District of Columbia dismisses the case without prejudice for want of prosecution, saying that plaintiff Yolanda Young and her counsel failed to appear at a scheduled status conference this morning. Walton says in the order that the plaintiff's failure to appear follows earlier violations on her part of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and local rules, as well as…

Developing: Famed pop producer Phil Spector faced the music today, as he was sentenced in Los Angeles Superior Court to 19 years to life for the second-degree murder of Lana Clarkson, reports Reuters. Prosecutors argued at trial that Spector's shooting of Clarkson was part of a pattern of violent behavior he had displayed toward women for 20 years, describing him as a bully and saying that he had a problem controlling his anger, the news agency notes. Convicted in April of shooting the 40-year-old actress and restaurant hostess to death in his home in 2003, Spector had to get a…

When New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick chooses his new players in the NFL draft, he doesn't opt for anyone he doesn't need. And if Belichick was managing partner of a BigLaw firm and Patriots owner Robert Kraft was his partner, the two would make some changes in the way such firms traditionally field their attorney team, writes Cleveland Browns fan Aric Press for The American Lawyer (sub. req.) in an article reprinted by the Am Law Daily. For starters, Belichick & Kraft would make a game plan, determining where they were, where they wanted to be and what players…

The global chief of litigation for Clifford Chance has announced his resignation after the law firm’s decision to restructure its litigation and dispute resolution practice in the United States. Mark Kirsch handed in his resignation yesterday, according to reports in Above the Law, the Lawyer and Legal Week. He has headed global litigation and dispute resolution for the firm since last year and for the New York office for the last five years. Juan Morillo will take over Kirsch’s U.S. role. A firmwide memo posted on Above the Law discloses that Clifford Chance will review the positions of its U.S.…

Today show weatherman Al Roker got caught in the middle of a media storm when he took pictures of potential jurors on his iPhone yesterday and posted them to Twitter while waiting to be called for jury duty. The postings spurred a lesson in courthouse decorum and an apology from Roker. The New York Post ran a story headlined “Oh, What a Twit!” while a story in the New York Daily News began, “Al Roker's stint on jury duty was short—and tweet.” One photo showed potential jurors from the back while another showed a potential juror’s face, the Post story…