Law And More

LSAT Takers Plunges 11% from Last October

The drop in number of LSAT takers indicates, reports Jacob Gershman in THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, "the law-school bubble hasn't stopped deflating." Here you can read the article.

This month that number dropped 11% from October 2012 and 45% from October 2009.  

Those statistics should escalate the angst among junior faculty at law schools.  Recently Seton Hall Law School was able to save their jobs through concessions from senior faculty.  At New England Law School, faculty members have been offered buyouts.  If not enough accept, those who are allowed to keep their jobs could be adding two more courses a semester and have to be in the office from 9 to 5. 

Professors at law schools and those in law school preparing to teach law might find themselves in the same pickle as we humanities professors in the early 1970s.  The government had projected a surge in the need for college teachers in the humanities.  That didn't happen.  

A whole generation of us in doctoral programs had to reimagine careers for ourselves.  Many worked for the government in agencies such as Social Security. A number of us such as myself landed on our feet in communications jobs.  Others went into academic administration.  A few hung on and became what were called "gypsy scholars."  They chased contract college teaching jobs around the nation. 

It will be interesting to observe how law professors who can't hold onto their jobs find ways to make a living.  Will they encounter as grim a struggle as displaced lawyers are?

Michael Arrington: Once an associate at Wilson Sonsini, law degree from Stanford

Founder of wildly influential TechCrunch, Michael Arrington is such an outsized characters that there is so much to stuff into an article about him. Therefore, it's not surprising that the coverage usually doesn't mention that he had invested himself in getting a law degree at Stanford. Also he had been an associate at Wilson Sonsini.  In addition, he hated law and left that career track to do deals, not just fill out the paperwork about them.

But the feature in the current issue of VANITY FAIR does cite the legal background. It has to since the article focuses on his alleged sexual misdeeds with his former girlfried Jennifer Allen.  Here you can read that coverage by Maximillian Potter. 

In response to those allegations by Allen, Arrington had filed a lawsuit on May 7, 2013.  It seeks damages for defamation and goes to trial October 2014.  Anyone with any interest in tech, power, or sexual assault issues will be all ears. Another reason this trial will constitute a great show is that the defendant Allen is represented by Gloria Allred of Allred, Maroko & Goldberg.  Arrington is bound to get as good as he and his lawyers give. 

Had Arrington remained in law it is likely we would never have heard of him.  However, he was in law, wasn't he. He would be amazing guest columnist for "Careerist" or "Abovethelaw." Probably has a lot of provocative insights for current lawyers and law students. 

Labor Laws: Mr. Krabs won't let SpongeBob work for free, after a layoff

Like so many working stiffs, SpongeBob has been laid off.  The slo-mo economy has hit Bikini Bottom's Krusty Krab.  

SpongeBob can't handle not flipping patties and begs Mr. Krabs to let him work for free.  No way, says Mr. Krabs. Such an arrangement would be against the law.  And the joint would lose its license. 

Here you can read the tragic story as it is covered in the NEW YORK POST.

Rebekah Brooks, Andy Coulson, et al. - Legal follies could last 6 months

The alleged phone hacking seems light years ago.  It became a media matter in 2011, as enemies and competitors of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp covered the allegations with relish. Then it became a legal matter.

This week in London the trial of eight defendants begun. According to the media it could go on for six months. Previously, three of the tabloid journalists had pleaded guilty.  Here is the blurb from NEW YORK Magazine.  

During those six months, much damaging information could come out about both the workings of News Corp and the British government. Coulson had handled public relations for Prime Minister David Cameron.  There is also an allegation that the News Corp tabloid paid government officials money for information. 

The issue is if the media - business, legal, and political - will tire of the story?  Or will it become prime-time entertainment the way the O.J. criminal trial had been? 

Lawyers who know how to capture the angles of an unfolding courtroom drama could make a name for themselves if they blog on this or pitch a publication to sponsor their column.  The could become the next Dominick Dunne, only with the edge which comes from having a JD.

Law Students: Never allow your parents to co-sign for your student loans

One hat I wear is personal finance writer.  

Along the way I have made it my mission to warn parents not to co-sign any student loans - or credit card accounts.  That debt usually screws up their lives.  The suffering ranges from falling into panic when they lose a job to not being able to retire - ever. 

The dire implications of co-signing came to light in Elie Mystal's column in Abovethelaw.com.  The subject was a suicidal BigLaw associate who couldn't even enjoy offing-himself ideation.  

His father had co-signed his loans.  Despite his BigLaw salary the nut was still at $145,000.  By contract law, his father would still have to pay that off, even if the guy committed suicide. Here is that ATL article. 

It's bad enough for law students to get themselves in a financial black hole.  It's unethical to seduce their parents to jump in with them. 

Executive Assistants: Will BigLaw partners lose these "body guards"

The hybrid identity of executive assistant is what creates their unique usefulness to the powerful people they serve.  

Half part of the upper tier of the organization and half just another working stiff like most of the rest of the members of the law firm, executive assistants have access to both worlds.  Their bosses benefit greatly. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL salutes this role as well as indicates there could be less justification for executives to be able to retain an executive assistant.  Here is that article. 

Sure executive assistants do some word processing, keeping of the calender, and escorting bigwigs into the bosses' offices.  But more importantly, they are the brass' body guards.  Because they exist in both worlds of the law firm, they can pick up the intelligence to warn bosses of a bad apple among those supervised, a conspiracy brewing among the other partners, and even what's going on in other law firms and client companies. 

With mergers (think about Orrick and Pillsbury talking), downsizing, and downsizing of their power within the firm, bosses could find that they lose their trusted body guard.  Instead they find themselves sharing a secretary and maybe not for that long.  There they then stand, exposed to a Machiavellian universe inside and outside the firm. 

Goldman Sachs Tells Newbies to Work Less: Will BigLaw follow along?

What to make of it?  Goldman Sachs has told the new hires to work less.  For example, reports BLOOMBERG BUSINESS WEEK, they should enjoy their weekends.  Traditionally Wall Street is a hard-charging culture. Here is the article in BBW.

Some speculate this meme of balance is in direct response to the death of the Bank of America intern Moritz Erhaardt who died suddenly. He had pulled a triple of all-nighters.  And there are among us those who wonder if the newbies know enough to ignore the advice and work impossible hours as probably is expected.

If Goldman Sachs really means to change the organizational culture, though, that could influence the ethos in BigLaw.  After all, the legal sector does a lot of business with Wall Street.

Will the associates entering BigLaw next September be told to take it easy?  Will they even be encouraged to make fun of the overbearing partner? Will anyone looking tired be sent home to sleep it off? 

Document Grunts at $35 Hourly: Media-Placement Freelancer Bills at $275 Hourly

No, getting media placements - print, digital, broadcast - for clients isn't a walk in the park.  But paying attention to the details of document review isn't, well, a walk in the park either.

I am finding out that those in media placement are quite well paid for their effort.  A new ghostwriting client wants me to provide in my proposal for the book I'm going to ghostwrite for him a short list of media representatives.  I have to describe what kind of buzz they can get going for him before and after publication.  

Shock.  A Manhattan freelance media representative informed me that she bills at $275 hourly.  However, she prefers only larger projects, starting at $5000.

A small firm in the Washington D.C. Metro Area aka This Town only operates on monthly retainer.  For a shot at the bigs ranging from THE NEW YORK TIMES to "Today," the fee is $8,000 each month, with no guarantees.  Should the A list not pan out they will do their best on the B and C levels.  Again, no guarantees. 

How does a lawyer break into media placement?  

One route is to get an internship at a public relations firm, assisting with media relations.  Just being in that environment will be a deep learning experience.  Jack O'Dwyer's firm issues a free online directory of public relations firms.  They are broken down by special areas of expertise, geographical location, and alphabetically.  Here you can click on the O'Dwyer directory.  You can also track developments in the public relations industry through O'Dwyer's daily newsletter, which you can click on here. 

Another route is to investigate degree programs and certificates in media relations.  The program probably has internships, then contacts for job placement.

A third is to Just Ask. People in public relations tend to be generous.  After all, it's a social profession. So, it's likely that if lawyers contact a public relations agency and ask for a 10-minute informational interview on how to break in, they will get some appointments.  Who knows where that can lead.  It was by asking for an informational interview that I got a job in executive communications at Chevron, making the transition from non-profit. 

In the old days it was possible to start out in journalism to eventually land in media relations.  After all, you understand how the media think.  But the word out on the street is that's increasingly unlikely.  Public relations firms need those who can hit the ground running. There are very few training programs.  Corporations have outsourced much of the work to those agencies and no longer act as training grounds either for media relations. 

For lawyers who are willing to leave their comfort zone, there's a big world out there.  Two years ago I left mine ghostwriting about macro business issues.  I was admitted free into the McGraw-Hill funded online course in financial writing.  The rest is history.  Currently I have a pile on of ghostwriting assignments in the nuts and bolts of consumer banking. 

 

New England Law School: Will faculty endure sweatshop conditions?

In many ways, it's irrelevant that the dean of the New England Law School John F. O'Brien is earning $867,000 a year.  The real story is that the law school announced that by August 1, 2014, 14 full-time faculty positions could be eliminated. 

Right now, reports Elie Mystal at Abovethelaw.com, faculty are being offered buyouts.  If not enough take it, then those who opt to stay on could be facing sweatshop conditions.  Those include teaching 4 courses a semester versus 2 and being at their desks 9 to 5.  Here is Mystal's coverage. 

Seton Hall University Law School, as we recall, resolved the budget crunch through negotiating with senior faculty for concessions.  As a result, no junior faculty positions had to be eliminated. Originally, all junior faculty had been warned that their positions could disappear for the 2014-2015 academic year.  It would have been difficult for them to find comparable positions.  It's a bear market for many special areas of expertise associated with law. Lexis Nexis had laid off. 

Airbnb: How much will grassroots movement in New York hurt its model?

Airbnb is taking it on the chin in New York. Not only is the state Attorney General demanding the list of those who lease space in their homes and apartments for short stays. Probably more worrisome, at least in New York, is the grassroots movement against it.

For example, as Patrick Keys reports in Y Combinator Universe, supervisors in New York buildings are warning tenants not to list their properties for overnight stays on Airbnb.  In addition, Keys says, "Property managers are also asking tenants to report neighbors they suspect of using their services." Here is that article.

This kind of pressure is what resonates in New York.  Tenants recognize how easy it is to be forced out either by sustained harassment or formal notice.  

But Airbnb is still keeping its eye on official legal action. It has filed a lawsuit against the Attorney General's request for the list of names of those listing their rentals on the site.