Dreier Stein & Kahan and Browne Woods & George have announced that their firms have agreed to a merger. The new firm, titled Dreier Stein Kahan Browne Woods & George, will house 1 attorneys and will have offices in Santa Monica and Century City, California.
Source: www.nlj.com
Alston & Bird Bumps up Pay in Atlanta
Alston & Bird has raised Atlanta first year associates’ salaries from $130,000 to $145,000, matching the firm’s pay in its Charlotte office. The raises will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2008. Alston’s pay raise matches the rate set by Hunton & Williams back in February; the firm raised its starting salary to $145,000 in all offices except for New York. This raise reaches $190,000 for seventh-year associates, and many mid-level associates have voiced complaints that their raises are not equal to those of the first-year associates. To compare, Hunton’s Charlotte pay scale tops at $240,000 for seventh-years.
Source: www.law.com
Fox Rothschild Acquires PA Firm
Fox & Rothschild has done it again – less than a month after its merger with Roseland, NJ’s Goldman & Kramer, the firm has announced another merger. The latest acquisition is Pottstown, PA firm Binder Kalis & Proctor. The three-attorney outfit specialized in corporate matters, municipal law, real estate and estate planning. Founded in 1941, it was the oldest continuously existing firm in the area. This merger is Fox & Rothschild’s seventh since 2005, with most of the expansion taking place in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
Corporate Partner Joins Orrick in China
Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe has recruited Baker & McKenzie Shanghai partner Thomas Man. Man, a Chinese native, will join the firm’s Beijing office and focus his practice on representing foreign companies in foreign direct investments, M&A transactions and real estate investment in China. He is the sixth partner that Orrick has added to its China offices in the past six months.
Source: www.thelawyer.com
Cozen O’Connor Welcomes Tad Decker Back as CEO
Tad Decker has announced his return to Cozen O’Connor as CEO. In 2004 Decker was appointed to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, and he was reappointed to a three-year term the following year. Decker will be taking the place of Patrick O’Connor, who will step down as president and CEO of the firm. His first goal is to redo the firm’s strategic plan, and he also plans to expand the firm in Philadelphia and nationally. Decker acknowledges that he is limited by his age (61) in this role, and plans to revisit the position every few years, ensuring that he will be succeeded by a suitable candidate.
Source: www.law.com
DLA Piper Office in Munich
DLA Piper has opened a new office in Munich. This office will focus on technology, media and commercial areas of practice and will be run by managing partner Thomas Jansen. DLA Piper already has offices in Cologne, Frankfurt and Hamburg and intends, to continue expanding within Germany over the next 18 months. The firm chose to open this fourth office in Munich because the region was not represented adequately by the three existing offices.
Source: www.law.com
Baker & McKenzie/Jenner & Block Pay Hikes
Continuing a trend among Chicago law firms, both Baker & McKenzie and Jenner & Block have raised their first-year base salaries to $160,000. These increases follow those made by other Chicago firms such as Kirkland & Ellis, Sidley Austin, Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw, and DLA Piper. The Chicago pay hikes are part of a national trend started in New York and California and are due in large part to increased competition among firms for top law school graduates.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker hire Pisano as Partner
Vincent J. Pisano, formerly of Kirkland & Ellis, has moved to Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker as a capital markets partner. Previous to working at Kirkland & Ellis, Mr. Pisano worked for Skaden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and transferred to Kirkland & ELlis in 2003. Mr. Pisano specializes in representing major underwriters such as Bear Stearns, Credit Suisse, and Deutsche Bank.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
Yetter & Warden LLP Open Austin Office
Houston-based law firm Yetter & Warden LLP has opened an office in Austin which will have six or seven attorneys. The Austin office will focus on a national apellate practice and major clients include American Airlines, General Electric, Levi Strauss & Co., and Southwest Airlines. Greg Coleman, previously of Weil Gotshal & Manges’s national appellate practice in Austin, will head the new office.
Source:www.news.moneycentral.msn.com
Winstead Opts for Bigger Bonuses Instead of Higher Salaries
Dallas-based Winstead has announced it will not be joining the other Texas firms that raised associate salaries. The new salary scale is effective today at Vinson & Elkins, the firm that started the move to $160,000 for 1st-years, and $170,000 for 2nd years. Winstead will continue to pay a starting base salary of $135,000, and will instead offer a merit-based bonus of up to $25,000. Denis Braham, chairman and chief executive officer of the firm, commented on the decision saying that Winstead would prefer to reward individual associates based on their contributions. He feels that bonuses will keep the firm competitive, attracting associates with a long-term view and who want to be rewarded for hard work.
Source: www.law.com
