Chicago Porch Collapse
 

Another one of the victims was the 23 year old daughter of a partner in the Milwaukee office of Godfrey and Kahn. She was a recent grad of Duke who was working in Chicago. Very sad.

Chicago Porch Collapse
 

Very sad indeed.

The property owner was my old landlord a while back. We were on the second floor deck of our apartment MANY times when the girls above had huge parties on the third floor deck. Scary.

BTW, they put W/D in their apartments, and then made you get a card that you have to charge money on to do laundry. Wash = $1.50. Dry = $1.50. You couldn't use REAL money. You had to use the card. So fuck them. I hope they get taken DOWN.

Not that I'm counting bodies, but....
 

How are our unhappy friends from Altheimer faring? Is the market absorbing them, or not?

Not that I'm counting bodies, but....
 

Not hearing much right now, Wonk, partly I think because these are the "dog days" and things seem to slow down a bit this time of year. Of course, anyone with information is welcome to post it here or PM me with it with confidentiality assured...

Poll: Status of Chicago Law
 

One of Chicago's nicknames is the "Second City", and it seems like some members of the local populace, lawyers included, have an inferiority complex when it comes to what Chicago has to offer, both as a city and in terms of the quality of its lawyering. Despite being home to some of the best firms in the country and some of its most high-profile attorneys, particularly litigators, there still seems to be a lingering feeling of inadequacy among some local counsel...

So that's what I want to discuss, with both Chicago and counsel from around the country... How do you and lawyers in your area (if outside Chicago) really perceive the Chicago market and the quality of its firms and lawyers?? I don't want this to turn into a flame war or a "My city is better than yours" back and forth tirade, but I want to hear what people think of Chicago law and an honest assessment of its strengths and weaknesses...

Look forward to hearing your responses...

Not that I'm counting bodies, but....
 

Today's Trib. seems to indicate that the attorneys from Altheimer are having better luck in general than you might think in today's economy. Looks like 19 or so attorneys and staff have migrated to Neal Gerber, another 12 are going to Perkins Coie's expanding Chicago office and a couple are heading to Jenner.

Hope others are having as much luck...

Poll: Status of Chicago Law
 

I find that tax lawyers tend to be more geographically distributed. There are top tax lawyers in NYC, Chicago, Washington, DC, LA, etc.

Some of the best tax practitioners in the country are in Chicago and we rely on them regularly.

Not that I'm counting bodies, but...
 

Today's Trib. reports that another 4 former Altheimer partners, including Jeremy Margolis, will be joining Sonnenschein...

Chicago 2004 Vault Survey Highlights
 

The 2004 Vault Survey of over 12,000 large firm associates has been released, and several Chicago firms fared very well. The full charts can be viewed at www.vault.com and you can also order a full book of the survey results there:

In the Top 100 Prestige Rankings, Kirkland led the way for Chicago-based firms at 11th, followed by Sidley at 16, Mayer Brown at 34, Winston at 40, Baker at 44, MWE at 47, Jenner at 51, Sonnenschein at 58 and KMZR at 92...

In the "Best to Work For" category, a Chicago firm, Winston & Strawn, took the top spot in the survey for the entire country. Jenner finished 10th. No other Chicago-based firm made the top 20, which is all that is released on the site.

In the Diversity category, Jenner placed 2nd nationally, with Winston 7th. Again, they were the only Chicago-based firms mentioned in the top 20.

Question: Do surveys like this have any influence on you when considering employment out of law school or in lateralling?? I'd be interested in hearing peoples' thoughts...

Dog Days of Summer Poll
 

It's the Dog Days of Summer in Chicago, many lawyers and judges are on vacation, and the wheels of justice have slowed a bit for the time being (a least for me, NTTAWWT).

Which brings me to the poll topic...

Question 1: How busy are you and your colleagues right now? I get the sense from friends that things aren't really hopping right now. Also, significant legal news after the Altheimer meltdown is pretty much nonexistent.

Question 2: How are you spending your summer? Know any great off-the-beaten-path activities or bars/restaurants that you're willing to share? I, myself, will be taking advantage of this probably brief hiatus and have a few places in mind to check out... I'll report back and look forward to your suggestions as well.

First thing on my list is to hit Comiskey for a Sox game and check out the FBI digging up part of one of the parking lots looking for the body of a long-dead mobster (true story)... Good times.

Dog Days of Summer Poll
 

#1. I was almost always in school in my adult summers, but a few things I liked to do included, going up to Southwest Michigan on a few weekdays, when all the weekenders had gone home, to enjoy a nice quiet lake. Everybody has friends with a place up there, so it shouldn't be too hard to throw $200 at em for a Monday thru Wednesday so you can read a book.

#2. Laugh if you will, but I once had a college friend whose entire retired military family was in Olney, IL. So I went and visited them with a few of our other college friends. Having never been in the middle of a farm that is filled with ripe? (is that the right word) corn for so much as a single evening, I found the entire experience of sitting on a patio in the middle of the sticks, and talking to nice older people well, nice. I think I'd like to visit a farm (plants, not animals) for 3-5 days in July or August every year. I'd even volunteer to do some work.

#3 did you say "off-the-beaten-path activities"? There is a bakery around 95th and Kedzie named Wolfs that sells the absolute best Potato bread I've ever had. There is a Polish bakery somewhere around 47th and Ashland, but I'd better get you a good address before I send anyone there, where they sell great bread too. The Medici at U of C on east 57th street? Panes bread shop on Sheffield (mmmm, Chicked Pompazo OR the French loaf bread). Whats that place in LaGrange where everyone goes?

#4 Sox Park? I'd be redundaticizing myself to name places out that way, but if you want me to....

Say Hello For Me

Dog Days of Summer Poll
 

1: Varies widely by department, from very to mildly. August is always slow in terms of legal news. Everyone who can goes on vacation, everyone else gets stuck doing all their work.

2: I've been spending a lot of my time rehabbing/remodeling stuff in the house. Amazingly, a six pack and a few cds make hanging drywall, refinishing floors and painting not seem like that much work. Organizing closets and deciding what stuff to throw out, though, is still work. At least things should be all squared away for the winter months. Except maybe the hot tub, which might take until the first of the year.

As for restaurants, I've been going to off-the-beaten path places without returning to old favorite favorites that much. Trying to expand my experiences, I suppose. Haven't been too impressed by much yet, but have found a new neighborhood Italian fusion place that I like (Tarantino's, near Clybourn on Armitage).

Is this going too far??
 

So I see the ABA Board of Governors has approved changes to model ethics rules allowing lawyers to breach attorney-client privilege to prevent corporate fraud in certain situations. Previously, only risk of death or bodily harm would allow such a breach.

While I realize that we as a profession are "officers of the Court", we are also supposed to be loyal to and zealous on behalf of our clients... I certainly sympathize with those who lost everything in the Enron, Worldcom, et al. debacles, but lawyers are not accountants. We aren't certifying ANYTHING to the public and are supposed to be advocating the position our clients tell us to advocate (or that we suggest they take). My personal opinion is that this new rule change goes a bit too far.

I'd be interested in hearing everyone's thoughts.


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Dog Days of Summer
 

I've been working my ass off (other than a brief trip to the sick ward) all summer. I have a number of deals going, ranging in size from a few billion to $320K. But that's the thing about in-house. We still conduct business, even if we don't have the budget to hire a lot of you outsiders to take a piece of it.

For folks in the Western 'Burbs, a ray of sunshine. There's a new branch of Heaven on Seven opening in downtown Naperville this month. It took the spot that used to make the best Cuban sandwich this side of Miami, but one must make sacrifices for gumbo.

Freeborn & Peters
 

Because we had no internet on Monday, I had to waste time by looking through magazines. While flipping through Corporate Counsel, I came across an interesting ad for Freeborn & Peters. The full-page ad features a picture of the 311 South Wacker bldg at night, with all the office windows dark except for those presumably occupied by F&P. The ad reads:

"Yes, we have regular business hours. Sometimes they're all hours. Freeborn & Peters guarantees hard work, quick turnaround and client service. Our business is conducted in real time, and that's not always daytime. So when our clients notice our lights on late, they rest assured."

A few questions.

1. Do they show this ad to their SAs?

2. If GAs leave early, do they have to leave their lights on to allow their clients peace of mind?

3. Do the GPs know that the website address (www.freebornpeters.com) makes me giggle?