Legal Week
Allen & Overy has resolved a religious discrimination suit filed against the firm by a former New York associate. The Magic Circle firm confirmed that the claim -- made against the firm by Norman Schoenfeld in December -- was expected to close shortly. Schoenfeld was laid off last October after only two months with the firm. He claimed that he was dismissed for observing the Jewish Sabbath, meaning he was unable to work from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday.
Legal Week
Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis has bolstered its presence in Asia by merging with nine-lawyer local firm J&J Attorneys-at-Law. The lawyers will become part of K&L Gates' Taipei office, creating a team with more than 25 legal professionals. The office is K&L Gates' second move to expand its Asian offering in recent weeks, following its launch in Shanghai only last month. In addition to Shanghai and the Taipei branch, which opened in 2003, K&L Gates also has offices in Hong Kong and Beijing.
The National Law Journal
The Kentucky Supreme Court elected John Minton Jr. this week to serve as its next chief justice, picking a new leader for the first time in a decade. Minton will take the post June 27 when Chief Justice Joseph E. Lambert retires. Minton was elected to the court in November 2006 to represent the 2nd Supreme Court District after being appointed to the court to fill a vacancy in July of that year. Minton has also served on the Kentucky Court of Appeals and was a circuit court judge in Warren County.
The Recorder
Just five months ago, lawyers at The Furth Firm were preparing to move from downtown San Francisco to new offices in Santa Rosa, Calif. Now most of them have been asked to look for work elsewhere. There will be no move to Santa Rosa, veteran antitrust plaintiffs attorney Frederick Furth said Monday. Instead, he and two other Furth lawyers will take their open matters, including the $172 million Wal-Mart meal-break case, to Zelle Hofmann Voelbel Mason & Gette.
The National Law Journal
Gowling Lafleur Henderson, a Canadian law firm, has added Kenneth W. Movat as a partner in its Toronto office. Movat, who joins the firm's national practice in construction law, comes from Movat Eccleston, a construction law firm in Toronto. He practices solely in the area of construction law, with an emphasis on litigation. Over the past 15 years, he has provided legal counsel to owners, architects, engineers, contractors, subcontractors, material suppliers and surety bonding companies.
The National Law Journal
When Gordon & Rees was founded in 1974, the plan was to grow the law firm to 40 lawyers. As it turns out, those were modest goals. In the past five years, San Francisco-based Gordon & Rees has opened 10 offices outside California. And managing partner Dion Cominos says the next goal is to open an office in the Southeastern U.S., possibly in Florida or Atlanta. "The idea is to have our core practice areas represented in all our major markets so our clients can turn to us in any of those areas," he says.
The Recorder
Heller Ehrman has lost its San Diego office managing partner, the latest former Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison attorney to leave the troubled office. Craig Andrews, a former firmwide co-chairman of Heller's Venture Law Group unit, will join DLA Piper's corporate and finance practice as a partner. Andrews' departure follows the loss of four partners from San Diego in mid-April. All five are former Brobeck lawyers who joined Heller in 2003 after Brobeck's collapse.
Legal Times
Atlanta-based Kilpatrick Stockton hopes to rejuvenate its small Washington office by acquiring D.C. corporate and financial transactions boutique Muldoon Murphy & Aguggia. Adding the smaller firm "gives us instant credibility" when it comes to bidding for corporate work, says Stephen Baskin, Kilpatrick's D.C. managing partner. Legal consultant Bradford Hildebrandt says that he expects merger activity to be up as firms figure out how to cope with a tough market.
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