By Kathleen Pearson

As reported on Above the Law and Law.com, there is a new trend emerging with incoming associates.   That particular article shows a novel idea several BigLaw firms are trying out – using the first year or two as a true apprenticeship.  New associates will earn a lower salary (if you want to call $100,000 a low starting salary) but not have rigorous billing requirements right out of the gate.  Instead, they will continue classroom style training and shadowing attorneys to really learn how to put all of the theory they learned in law school to practical use. 

One should keep in mind, however, that while BigLaw makes a big news  splash with sky-high starting salaries – which may have been a significant contributing factor to profitability problems, need for deferring start dates, layoffs and apprenticeship models - these associates make up a relatively small percentage of the entire associate pool across the country.   According to NALP, only 23% of incoming associates in the 2007 class made $160,000 while 49% earned less than $75,000.

As YLB has reported in the past, mid-sized and regional firms that did not join the race to the top of the salary stratosphere continue to be better placed in the market and appear to be weathering this legal recession better than their larger, higher-leveraged colleagues.

Good Idea:  Seeking bankruptcy protections, if you are really broke.

Bad Idea:  Seeking bankruptcy protections simply to avoid a $1 million payment to your ex-husband, fleeing in a sweet Jaguar, and stopping to scout oceanfront property.

By Robert Chapski 

Paul Lippe posts an excellent article in the AmLaw Daily calling for much needed changes to the overall structure of the law school curriculum.  The article is notably not a criticism of one law school in particular, nor should it be, but rather a commentary on a system that quite honestly does not adequately prepare individuals for the actual practice of law.   

As many young lawyers come to find out, it often takes several years following law school to gain some comfort in the law practice.  Furthermore, the lack of experience that most law students develop in law school has, as Mr. Lippe notes, probably exacerbated the anger of clients who do not want to pay the hourly rates charged for some first year lawyers.  One of the suggestions Mr. Lippe offers is that law school should more closely follow medical school and have an accelerated curriculum, with no more than a year of case method, a year of clinical, and then a year of externship with subject area focus (i.e., along the lines of medical school).

Some schools currently do a great job of incorporating a clinic as part of the law school curriculum (such as my alma mater, the University of Tennessee College of Law), but, just as there are some fundamental changes going on right now between corporate clients and law firms, there definitely needs to be less of a disconnect between law school and the "real world."

By Brian Malcom

In these tough times, everyone is looking for ways to save money.  This includes businesses and law firms.  One way to save money is to reduce overhead.  One way to reduce overhead is to work from home.

So, guess what some firms are doing . . . letting lawyers work from home.

Some firms are going even further; they do not even have a physical office.

As the ABA Journal reports, Virtual Law Partners is one such office.  I would say they are based in San Francisco, but they are really based on the web.  They are a self-described web-based law firm.  The lawyers and staff all work “mostly from home.” 

“After being open for 11 months the firm has 40 lawyers, most of whom went to Ivy League law schools and worked at large firms. While a handful of other firms are trying the no-office approach, Virtual Law Partners is at this point probably the largest, with the most large-firm refugees.”

The benefits of working from home are shared by the lawyers and the clients.  “Partners get 65 percent of what they bill and collect as working attorneys.”  “If they also manage a project, they get an additional 20 percent of their collections. The remaining 15 percent goes to firm overhead.”

Clients typically get a well-qualified attorney at a fraction of the cost, when compared to the rates charged by large law firms.

Keep an eye on this trend.  The suit and tie could soon be replaced with slippers and a robe.

By Bethany Kolenic 

If I’ve learned anything in my first year as a corporate associate, it is that time management is an elusive and slippery concept. You can not predict when work will pick up or slow down, when a deal will suddenly rocket forward or unexpectedly lose steam, and as a result, there are times when you have literally no billable work on your plate. Whether it is just an hour or two, an entire day or a week, it makes me feel disoriented… zoning out in front of people.com might have a certain allure, but is probably not going to knock anyone’s socks off or make anyone feel inclined to keep you around should they be forced to make some tough decisions. 

So what exactly do you do when there’s “nothing” to do? Once you have made it known that you are available to help with any project that comes your way, there are several ways to make the time count.   

If you’ve got an hour or two:

• Crack open one of the 57 law journals you get in your mailbox every month, but are normally too busy to read.
• Get online and research your clients or the industries in which they operate.Investigate which partners are working on interesting projects and schedule a time to stop by and discuss.
• Get organized – clean out your email inbox, get your files in order, take the coffee cups back to the kitchen. 

If you’ve got a whole day:

• Sign up for an online CLE course.
• Find out who is working on an article, and offer your help with research, citations, etc.
• Draft or update your personal development plan.Devote attention to business development by reconnecting with old classmates, former professors, and other acquaintances that may result in referrals or business someday. 

If you’ve got a whole week:

• Volunteer to write a client bulletin or an article.
• Take on a pro bono matter.
• Schedule a week of business development and networking lunches.
• Seek out opportunities for client contact by tagging along on client meetings.  

Finally, don’t underestimate the importance of just asking how you can be useful – everyone appreciates a good attitude. Even if the answer is “no,” actively seeking work rather that passively waiting for it goes a long way towards developing a great reputation as a valuable team player.