We're Not Number 1!
 

Cleveland no longer poorest U.S. big city

You might not feel any richer, and experts question whether the region is any less poor, but Cleveland shed a shameful label Tuesday. No longer are we the poorest big city in America. Not even close.

The city fell to No. 12 from No. 1 in the government's ranking of America's poorest big cities, tied with New Orleans -- before the hurricane. Cleveland's one-year reign as the nation's poorest big city is over, while Detroit's has just begun.

The U.S. Census Bureau's fledgling annual survey of standards of living in American cities has generated controversy for its possible inaccuracies, especially this year.



IN YOUR FACE DETROIT!!!!! WOOOOOO!!!!

aV

We're Not Number 1!
 

Yeah, Hank. You can suck it.

announcement
 

Penske Account, yes THE Penske Account, will be posting here tonight about 11 PM PST. The post will complete a sept-fecta for him and he will not want to have to spend too much time dreaming up a post. Spooky and Violins, you should try and post some interesting things for him to base his post upon.

announcement
 

That's cool. I'll just copy and paste the most recent entries from the Detroit Board.

aV

announcement
 

Hank sucks. Discuss.

announcement
 

penske penske penske penske penske penske penske

announcement
 

Hi.

announcement
 

14-fecta in ET office hours yet!

announcement
 

I right behind you.

announcement
 

Yes. Behind, as usual.

announcement
 

I'm a giver, not a taker.

Arter & Hadden Returns
 

Looking for restitution

The former partners of bankrupt Cleveland law firm Arter & Hadden LLP knew the firm was insolvent two years prior to being shuttered in 2003, yet still improperly paid themselves $18.8 million from the firm’s coffers, a bankruptcy trustee has alleged in a complaint filed Sunday.

The complaint seeks restitution of $55 million from the partners and successive firms for “unwarranted capital distribution, improper expenditures, negligent financial reporting and depletion of assets.”

In addition, trustee Marc P. Gertz contends that the approximately 170 partners, along with their successor firms, failed to transfer back $32 million in case fees they had taken with them to their new firms, which opened in the same office space Arter & Hadden occupied. The new firms, Tucker, Ellis & West LLP and Bailey Cavalieri LLC, opened the day after Arter & Hadden shuttered in the former firm’s offices, with the same staff and furniture, the complaint alleges.

Also, the firm had about $3 million in questionable expenses, including an unnamed partners’ Arizona retreat that cost the firm $500,000 less than six months before Arter & Hadden closed.


A majority of the defendants named in the lawsuit work at Tucker Ellis and Bailey Cavalieri.

Tucker Ellis managing partner Bob Tucker is among the former Arter & Hadden officials named in the complaint. In a statement, he called the charges “inexplicable” and “based on mistaken conjecture, misinformation and misplaced cynicism.”

“The lawyers for the trustee have chosen to ignore the facts,” he said. “Their claims and accusations are simply wrong.”

In a phone interview, Mr. Tucker said the former partners of the firm did receive compensation for their work, but did not contribute to Arter & Hadden’s downfall.

“Those lawyers lost all of their investments in Arter & Hadden,” he said. “We lost all of our retirement benefits. There was no reason any Arter & Hadden partner would want the law firm to fail.”

While the suit says Tucker & Ellis had an office in Texas, Mr. Tucker said that was never the case.

“That’s an example of the misinformation the trustee has that pervades the entire complaint they have filed,” he said.

Irving B. Sugerman, an attorney representing Mr. Gertz, said the claims made in the filing will be substantiated in court. No hearing date has yet been scheduled. Mr. Sugerman said 36 former partners of Arter & Hadden had settled previously.

Officials at Bailey Cavalieri could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday.

An attorney exodus undermined Arter & Hadden’s expansion drive in the 1990s, a campaign that saw the regional firm expand from 70 attorneys to 465 lawyers in California, Ohio and Washington, D.C. The departures left the firm with lagging revenue, unfunded pension obligations and other financial woes, according to the complaint.

In January 2004, a group of retirees pushed the firm into involuntary bankruptcy proceedings, saying they were owed unpaid retirement benefits.

The firm’s bankruptcy case is ongoing in the Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division.

http://www.crainscleveland.com/apps/...6&Profile=1006

aV

Bar Exam
 

Congrats to all in Ohio who took and passed the July 2005 Bar Exam. Results are posted here:

http://www.sconet.state.oh.us/Admiss...SP/default.asp

aV

Geez, how would you like to be this guy?
 

Man convicted of murder/rape of his mother-in-law, rape/attempted murder of his then six-year-old niece is exonerated by DNA evidence. MIL's neighbor likely to be charged with crimes.

http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/13420862.htm

I'm thinking a simple "I'm sorry," isn't going to suffice.

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

I'm not sure if this board gets much substantive play, but I am casting a wide net for info......

I'm a first year at Ohio BIGlaw and while it may be a little early to have partnership questions, I like to be prepared (and as tax time approaches I am doing a little long-term economic plannin).

When someone becomes a partner at a biglaw firm, what is the typical buy-in? Is it a flat sum? Percentage? What is the basis? Physical assets plus some calculated revenue valuation? Is it all due upon election to partnership or is it a graduated buy-in over time? Is the buy-in tax deductible as a business expense?

thanks.

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

Lots of questions. Don't believe that you are going to get a lot of good answers. I think that your situation will depend on your firm. More specifically, does the firm have a two or three tiered partnership. If your firm does have non-equity/equity then I will assume that this will affect the amount of the buy-in for the initial level. In addition, when there is the big hit (single tier or step 2 at multi-tier) then there is (I believe) usually some type of buy-in period. As for your tax questions, no idea. I'm just a labor lawyer.

I must respect your early planning. You are definitely trying to be prepared.

aV

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

I just knew you'd come through on this one.

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

A partnership buy-in would not be deductible, since it's paid to acquire an interest in a capital asset. However, your buy-in would give you a basis in your interest, against which you can deduct your share of partnership losses and expenses that are passed through.

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

i was still most helpful: my advice- you can ask people at your firm this- it shouldn't be some secret.

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

While I whole-heartedly agree that Hank is most helpful, I am sadf to say that yes, here, in aV land, it is kept somewhat of a secret from associates.

aV

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

I have a question myself. I am learning the guitar and am concerned that I might get a raw deal from my record company on my first three disc deal. Can anyone offer me the name of an honest agent?

Preferably one who'll be alive in 2014.

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

Thanks Violins. Is there a general formula/economic rationale that compromises the buy-in?

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

Yikes, I am not looking for losses, but I suppose expenses are inevitable.

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

Neither were the partners at Brobeck or Jenkens & Gilchrist.

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

I have talked to some of the other first years and the general feel is that the only people who know are partners or perhaps very senior associates. The perception here is that it would be uncool in a big way to be asking about such things. Is your firm open about this info?

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

That's because your fellow associates are pussies. Excluding hard numbers, the partners don't care.

It's not about setting up an official meeting with a partner asking for their financials. Next time you're having lunch with your mentor or some other partner, or at the monthly firm "cocktail hour" or summer associate outing, or whatever, just ask one of them casually how partnership works. "I was wondering, what does it mean to make partner: do you buy in, or what? How does that work? Just curious." You aren't likely to get numbers, but you're going to get a better idea of what your firm's structure is than you will here.

Try to think of the question in the abstract: you are interested in a real-world example of how the theoretical structures you learned about in law school play out.

partnership Q (cross-post from Infirmation.com)
 

I agree with the "pussies" comment, generally, although we are lawyers, isn't the "risk aversion" affect a genetic defect common to us all? But your advice is otherwise well taken. Maybe I can get some testosterone pills to boost my nerve.

local bar
 

I have been trying to get involved in activities with the local (city) bar in order to lay a networking foundation for the future. Do people find that this process is better accomplished (at an early stage in the career) by joining lots of committees and going to a lot of events or just focusing on a select (but most relevant to your practice area) few?

Also, any real benefit (at an early career stage) in becoming active with the ABA or is that something for more established lawyers?

[and before anyone says ask in your firm, I have, but I am trying to seek an broader array of opinions/experiences-hell, I'll even read what Hank has to say........]

Thanks.

local bar
 

If you ask five lawyers about the best way to establish contacts for future business, you will get 6 different answers. Perhaps seven. Some will tell you that getting involved in the local bar and its committees is a complete waste of time. Others will drone on about how it was their bar activities and work on a specific cimmittee that created their whole book of business. I've heard rainmakers say, "develop a good niche or skill, and surround yourself with people who need that skill." Nice. Like a fortune cookie. Another stated, "get involved with activities that you like, you will develop your clients from those activities." Well, all those days at the strip club haven't done jack for me. Like I said, everyone who you consider to be a good rainmaker has gotten there a different way. If there were one good cookie-cutter approach, then everyone would have a $2 million dollar book of business, but that just ain't reality.

As a first year at biglaw, I think the most important thing that you can do, right now, is good quality work for the partners in your firm. They, the partners, are your clients. If you do good work, they use you again, and as a junior associate, billable hours are the key. Don't sweat the other stuff at this point. If you want to get involved in bar activities, do it because it is something that interests you, don't do it because you think you have to. At least not now.

That's my .02 on the subject. However, you will likely get lots of other "expert" opinions.

aV

local bar
 

aV is absolutely right. In the short term, unless you are related to someone or get really, really lucky, you have zero chance of bringing in the type of client your big firm wants (if you're BIGLAW, that's likely Fortune 1000, or at least Russell 3000), so emphasis should be on building the skills necessary to bring in that type of client.

To address your questions more directly, however, I think you need to look at your own personality somewhat. If you are good at working a room (I am not), then going for more breadth is probably a good thing. If not, you are probably better off concentrating on one or two committees and becoming known and respected in those committees. I'd suggest whichever committee is closest to what you do, plus the Young Lawyers division/committee/whatever.

That being said, committee networking is often most effective for people in boutiques rather than large firms, because it's networking for referals from other attorneys. Attorneys don't make (many) referals to big firms, because they worry about their client walking off for all their legal matters.

You may be better off getting involved in a trade association related to what you do (for example, a building contractors association, or an advertising association, or a technology association: whatever makes sense for what you do).

So, take a step back and think about what kind of clients your firm is going to want. Then ask yourself how you might get those companies to give you business. The task looks more daunting when you cut down the potential client list that way, but at least you aren't chasing up blind alleys.

One thing is for certain: all of this takes a while. I've seen attorneys work at this for years (including me) with no results, then suddenly BAM, people start calling.

local bar
 

Also, my experience at BIGLAW was that these types of questions aren't always appreciated at your level: partners perceive it as a distraction away from the important goals of getting you up to speed as a lawyer and billing. Not that you shouldn't ask, but don't be surprised if the response is a little cold or vague.

local bar
 

Thanks Balt and Violins, I appreciate the advice.



That is exactly why I would rather ask the questions here. As I wrote to Hank (I think it was Hank) bad reviews here won't impact my ability to pay the rent or buy beer......

You Wanna Piece of Me?
 

Now this is how to practice some mother f-ing labor law!!

Labor talks at Schwebel's result in claims of assault
Friday, May 19, 2006

Negotiations on a contract for Schwebel's Bakery workers turned testy last week when a partner from the management firm of Duvin Cahn & Hutton allegedly attacked a labor attorney from behind, choking and punching him until he brought the lawyer to the floor.

John Masters, representing bakery workers in Teamsters Local 336, charges Duvin lawyer Stephen Sferra "viciously and violently attacked" him as he tried to leave a meeting, according to charges filed Wednesday with the National Labor Relations Board.

The NLRB complaint says that Schwebel's representatives approved the assault by standing and watching the attack. Sferra, 44, continued to violently choke Masters until he was physically restrained by a Local 336 member, according to the account in the complaint.

Boston Heights police and an emergency medical squad were called to the scene. Masters, 48, was not hospitalized, but he says he has injuries to his neck, back and shoulder.

The outburst came at a May 9 bargaining session after Masters told Sferra he could not evaluate Schwebel's pension proposals without information that Masters said the company had refused to provide. In three other NLRB charges filed with the assault claim, the union says Schwebel's has withheld financial and actuarial data it needs to discuss issues raised in bargaining.

The two sides are negotiating a new contract for 139 members of Local 336 who make bakery goods at a Schwebel's plant in Cuyahoga Falls. The union has been working under a contract extension that expires at midnight Monday.

Sferra was in Chicago Thursday and could not be reached for comment.

In an exchange of letters Wednesday, Bob Duvin apologized to Masters for Sferra's "unprofessional and unacceptable part in this experience. It is also my opinion that your provocation was extraordinarily and stunningly unprofessional."

Duvin added that he was saddened by Masters' "apparent uncontrollable rage" at Duvin and his firm.

Duvin would not say in a telephone interview what the provocation was. He stoutly defended Sferra.

"Steve Sferra, who, standing on his toes, is maybe 5-7, 5-7½ and 150 pounds, is both a lawyer and a man," Duvin said. "Lawyers ought to resist [provocation], but sometimes a man can't."

Masters said only that he hoped Sferra "receives whatever treatment he needs to control what in my opinion is a significant anger problem."

In a letter to Duvin, he dismissed the management attorney's description of events as "fictitious and self-serving."

He also said it was a mystery why Duvin should think he harbored ill will. "I can't even remember the last time you won a case against me," he wrote.

A bargaining session set for today is to be joined by a federal mediator.


http://www.cleveland.com/business/pl...450.xml&coll=2

aV

You Wanna Piece of Me?
 

My first reaction here is why didn't the "chokee" grab the choker's nutsack and start squeezing and digging his fingernails in?

My second reaction is to wonder if the federal mediator doubles as a wrestling referee?

My third reaction is to think there's probably some merit to having labor disputes resolved by cage match.

local bar
 

You were a good sock. I miss you most [sniff]

We will always have Toledo my redhaired friend.

and to all a good night
 

To much penske is just not a good thing.

aV

and to all a good night
 

Bah humbug!

and to all a good night
 

you big softie! c'mere and give me a big hug!

aV

and to all a good night
 

Indeed....merry merry! You know, except for the hotel room incident, I have a particular soft spot for Cleveland.....and Toledo...

Time to shut off the lights
 

on the Ohio Board. I believe that it is officially dead.

aV