So, I sent an email to 49 of my legal marketing friends inviting them to check out legalwatercooler. Over 10% of my legal marketing friends were OoO, yesterday. As I read each OoOA message I decided that there must be a strategy to these messages. When I mentioned it to Heather M she told me she got binged for being OoO too much. “Does ms. milligan ever come to work?” The managing partner at my firm told me that I was not allowed to use OoOA. ” . . . that’s what we have our blackberries for.” So, do you post new messages every time you’re OoO? Do you include details that make it sound like you’re actually doing some thing OoO? What about vacation? Any clever tips on being OoO?

New Derivative Case Against Brocade Directors Accuses Wilson Sonsini of Malpractice, Zusha Elinson, The Recorder, 05-02-2008

If your clients are going to jail over the legal advice you provided, are they going to keep coming back for more? Why is it that Brocade only fired Wilson Sonsini on advice from the judge?

Wilson Sonsini is at the heart (at least in the press) of the stock-option backdating scandals of 2006-current. According to the above article, the firm itself has now been sued over stock option backdating.

Few plaintiffs have gone after companies’ outside lawyers in backdating lawsuits. But a new derivative case against directors and officers at Brocade Communications Systems Inc. also targets the company’s law firm, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Filed April 18 in Northern District federal court by a small San Diego firm, Johnson Bottini, the suit accuses Wilson Sonsini of legal malpractice for allegedly blessing backdating at Brocade, a company that saw two of its former executives convicted of criminal charges.

While their numbers still look good, with this kind of press, how do you sustain current client relationships, or build new ones? How do you sell the firm to your board when facing a “bet the farm” case? How do you answer my favorite RFP questions: Has the firm ever been sued for malpractice? “Um, yeah, but the client only went to jail on the lesser charges, and paid a $15 million fine.” Not a ringing endorcement for the “trust” column.

And, I haven’t even mentioned the whole Ann Baskin, GC for HP, scandal.

Has Wilson Sonsini entered a Brobeckesque death spiral? Is it time to start a ghoul-pool? If not, how do they repair the damage?

I read in IPLaw 360 that Sutherland Asbill recently laid off approximately 15 associates. According to the article, several other firms have done the same, including Dechert LLP, Cadwalader and Clifford Chance. Thankfully the layoffs have been relatively small, but the trend does seem to have some traction. Jenner & Block even laid off or demoted equity partners! I see that the NYSE climbed above 13,000 yesterday, but I think another drop is coming. I don’t believe the subprime mess is over. Fortunately our esteemed economists at the various Federal Reserve Banks around the country are coming to the same conclusion. So fellow watercoolerites, what’s your crystal ball saying about your regional legal market. Thumbs up, down or wavering? In my local market it’s a little bit of everything. Being solely focused on intellectual property, our work has been stable to growing, but I know from conversations with colleagues at other firms that not all are fairing as well — with real estate and finance groups (as expected) bearing the brunt of the slow down.

My buddy Tank sent me a link to the following American Lawyer article on Cravath’s new Director for Stategic Planning. I don’t know the gentleman personally, but a resume that includes 11 years with Hildebrandt can’t be beat. Unfortunately for him, the presiding partner has a different take:

“This is just a support job to help us out in our work,” says [Evan] Chesler, who explained that a group of nine Cravath partners, which he chairs, will continue to formulate firm strategy.

… “[Johnston will be] gathering information, doing the staff work, the kind of stuff that any committee would have a person doing the staff work for,” says Chesler. “We have a very busy administrative staff [and] people were simply overburdened by trying to do that in their spare time.”

My question is, how did this happen? There was obviously a disconnect in the hiring process. I know I have overlooked red-flags in the interview process only to kick myself on day three of a new job. Was the first red-flag reporting to the executive director and not the presiding partner?
What’s your Red-Flag moment? Here’s mine:
I interviewed at an AmLaw ranked firm with the managing partner and marketing partner. After 30 minutes or so, I noticed the signs of one of the partner’s checking his watch, I stopped myself and did a time check to see if we should go on, or continue at a later time. Within seconds they were up and out of the room, barely a goodbye and definitely no handshake.

I ignored the red-flags because I really wanted to work with the CMO. Bad decision for the short-term, but made some great connections that continue to serve me today.