Daniel Gallagher is leaving his Securities and Exchange Commission position for Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr. He will officially join the firm at the end of the month as a partner. Gallagher is one of a string of SEC defections in the recent past. The most recent was the announcement that an associate director of enforcement, Fredric Firestone, was leaving his position for McDermott Will & Emery. George Curtis left his position as a special advisor to the director of the division of enforcement rejoined Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.

Source:  www.legaltimes.typepad.com

Robert M. Morgenthau just recently retired from his position as Manhattan district attorney. The 90 year old then took a week long vacation during which he realized that not working makes him “nervous”. He solved that problem very quickly by accepting an of counsel position with Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz.

Source:  www.nylj.com

Haynes and Boone has greatly boosted its Austin office with the hire of Michael Jewell. Jewell is taking the firm’s new government affairs counsel position. Before joining Haynes, Jewell served as a director of Texas government and regulatory affairs at Reliant Energy and RRI Energy.

Source:  www.lawfuel.com

Allen & Overy has introduced a new benefit:  equity partners are now given the opportunity to work part-time in hopes of keeping more its female employees.  The particulars:  partners can work as little as four days a week or have as much as 52 extra days off a year.  Arrangements must be made with department managers.

Source:  www.thelawyer.com

Despite the long hours and fear of being laid off, the annual Fortune survey declares six BigLaw firms as some of the best places to work.  The annual survey rates the 100 best companies to work for based on a survey given to a sample of employees and a series of questions given to the company.  The following six firms made it on the list: Bingham McCutchen – #12, Alston & Bird – #30, Arnold & Porter – #65, Perkins Coie – #75, Baker Donelson – #77, and Orrick – #95.

Source:  www.blogs.wsj.com

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft has had its profits per partner increase by 28 percent. This increase is due to the firm loosing 21 percent of its equity partners. In fact, Cadwalader’s total revenue was 10 percent lower than the year before. In 2009, the firm made a gross revenue of $456.5 million, exactly 9.78 percent less than 2008’s gross revenue.

Source:  www.amlawdaily.typepad.com

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart has a new addition: an office in Las Vegas. This latest office makes Ogletree’s 36^th office. There is a possibility that the firm will open two new offices next in Denver and the Pacific Northwest.

Source:  www.law.com