Firms that have established offices in Boston over the past couple years are seeking to expand by acquiring lateral hires. Filling an office in this manner is not easy, and firms understand that it requires patience and sometimes just good timing to find individuals who will be a good fit. The competition for top laterals in Boston is fierce among the firms new to the market. In general, large firms are looking for $1 million in portable billings, and some are offering signing bonuses starting at $50,000 and even reaching $150,000.
Source: www.law.com
McKee Nelson Hikes Up D.C. Salaries
McKee Nelson announced last Friday that it would raise the salaries of its D.C. and NY first year associates to $160,000, matching the increases made by NY firms earlier in the week. This salary hike is an all-time high for a D.C. firm; McKee Nelson was before paying a starting salary of $145,000. No other D.C. firms have given word about a similar decision, but most likely some will eventually follow with a raise of their own.
Source: www.law.com
Four Promoted to Partnership at Milberg Weiss & Bershad
New York firm, Milberg Weiss & Bershad, promoted four associates to partners this week. Neil Fraser, Matthew Kuppilas and Christopher Polaszek have joined the partnership in the firm’s NY headquarters, while new partner Sabrina Kim is based in Los Angeles. The firm also promoted two associates to of counsel.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
Greenberg Traurig’s Growing Real Estate Practice
Almost all of the attorneys from New York’s real estate law firm Solomon and Weinberg have relocated to Greenberg Traurig’s real estate practice. Seven attorneys – Gary Kleinman, Howard Shapiro, Joseph D’Angelo, Nicole Fenton, Howard Schochet, Bennet Deutsch and Steven Sinatra – will join the firm as partners. Founding partner Craig Solomon, as well as Dana Gallo and Andrew Kellner, will become of counsel. Seven of the lawyers will join Greenberg Traurig’s New York real estate group; the remaining two will join the REIT tax practice and the litigation group, respectively.
Source: www.law.com
Some Firms Match Simpon’s Pay Raise
In response to Simpson Thacher & Bartlett’s salary increase implemented this week, several firms have matched their first year pay rate of $160,000. Miami’s Greenberg Traurig reported that first-year, mid-level, and senior associates’ salaries in its 330-lawyer New York office would be increased. Litigation boutique Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges also plans to increase salaries in both its Los Angeles headquarters and its 85-lawyer New York office. New York firms Willkie Farr & Gallagher, Shearman & Sterling and Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson also announced associate pay raises yesterday. Some firms like O’Melveny & Myers, on the other hand, matched NY salaries, but didn’t apply them in all offices; first years in their CA office will receive $145,000. Morrison & Foerster also will match in New York, but keep its CA starting pay at $135,000.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
Holland & Knight’s FL Expansion
At the beginning of the month, Florida firm Holland & Knight LLP announced the expansion through lateral hiring of its South Florida Securities and M&A practice. Three former shareholders at Akerman Senterfitt, Kara L. MacCullough, Laurie Green and Esther L. Moreno, joined Holland & Knight as partners. MacCullough, formerly the chair of Akerman’s Securities group, and Moreno focus on securities, mergers and acquisitions and international corporate transactions. Green’s expertise comes largely from her experience with the Division of Corporation Finance at the Securities and Exchange Commission. Holland & Knight has one of the largest business groups in the country, with over 380 lawyers in its practice. Firmwide, Holland & Knight has more than 1,150 lawyers in 17 U.S. offices, along with several foreign offices. The firm is one of the top 15 largest firms in the world.
Source: www.lawdragon.com
A Match Made in Heaven?: CA Firms and NY Pay
After New York firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett raised first-year pay to $160,000, all eyes have turned to large California-based firms to see if they too will raise their rates. Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges, for example, was one of the few CA firms that had matched NY’s $145,000, but now it has another 15 thousand with which to contend. Other NY firms like Sullivan & Cromwell matched Simpon’s raise, but unlike Simpson, not all of them applied the new salary to all of their offices. Speculation abounds as to whether CA firms will rise to the challenge, but most likely the powerhouse firms will match NY to stay competitive, while the lower-performing firms will not. This difference will increase segmentation in the CA market.
Source: www.law.com
Houston Firm Expands to Philly
Next month, Chamberlain, Hrdlicka, White, Williams & Martin of Houston, TX will be expanding. With the acquisition of three partners and one associate from the Philadelphia office of Washington, D.C.’s Miller & Chevalier, Chamberlain Hrdlicka will open their own office in Philly. Herbert Odell, Philip Karter and Kevin Johnson will join Chamberlain Hrdlicka as shareholders. Jonathan Prokup joins the firm as a senior associate. Chamberlain Hdrlicka started in 1965 as a regional tax boutique, but later added an office in Atlanta; there is the possibility that another office may open by the summer in Washington D.C.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
Sedgwick Detert’s New Houston Office
On Jan. 17, San Francisco’s Sedgwick, Detert, Moran & Arnold opened in Houston with the arrival of four new attorneys. Carrie Weitinger, Julia Adams, and associate Monica Fendler are leaving Houston’s Westmoreland Hall to join the new office; former Germer Gertz associate Shannon Thorne is also coming aboard. Sedgwick’s TX managing partner reported that the firm wanted to open an office in Houston because the city is one of the country’s major litigation centers. Opened in 2001, Dallas was the firm’s first Texas office, and Austin was second in 2006. In total, Sedgwick has 370 attorneys in 13 offices worldwide.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
King & Spalding Opens in Dubai
Atlanta-based firm, King & Spalding, opened an office in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, this week. Philip Weems, head of the firm’s international energy practice, moved from the firm’s 105-lawyer Houston office to Dubai to oversee the office. Besides Weems, three King & Spalding partners and three associates from Baker Botts’ Middle East outpost will staff the new office. King & Spalding’s Dubai office will focus on Islamic finance and energy, and has room for as many as 17 attorneys at the new office.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
