http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/index.jsp Corporate Counsel, the monthly magazine for the in-house attorney, covers business issues, legal affairs, and reports on the latest developments in the corporate world. en-us 22 Nov 2009 09:56:56 -0500 Copyright 2009. Incisive Media US Properties, LLC. All rights reserved. http://www.law.com/service/terms_conditions.shtml http://www.law.com/img/cc/redesign/cc_rss.gif http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/index.jsp How badly do you want to score the legal work? To truly impress UTC, firms have to do more than propose working off the clock. They have to explain exactly how they came up with their flat fee, and how they'll make money, something many can't do. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435707581&rss=cc 1202435707581 Jurors in the accounting fraud case likened Marcus Topel, who represented ex-general counsel Jay Lapine, to a country lawyer. They didn't like the team led by Theodore Wells: Too 'New York acting.' http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435705148&rss=cc 1202435705148 A Georgia appeals court considered on Tuesday whether a sports deal worth hundreds of millions of dollars could have been sealed without the parties signing on the dotted line. At issue is Turner Broadcasting System's sale of the Atlanta Hawks and the Atlanta Thrashers. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435664720&rss=cc 1202435664720 Criminal enforcement chief reaches outside the ranks to hire a New York corporate defense lawyer to lead a section tasked with probing and prosecuting white-collar crime, a key role as the Obama administration ramps up efforts to fight financial fraud. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435706213&rss=cc 1202435706213 More companies are paying their outside counsel off the clock—and they're getting law firms to freeze or cut their hourly rates—according to the Hildebrandt 2009 Law Department Survey. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435657566&rss=cc 1202435657566 The first line of a burger joint's complaint against McDonald's reads, 'This is a case of David versus Goliath.' In it, the Lion's Tap accuses McDonald's of violating a trademark. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435292732&rss=cc 1202435292732 Firms are crying foul on several fronts, mostly because the in-house counsel comments are anonymous and could cloak lawyers with axes to grind, such as disgruntled ex-law firm associates. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435243406&rss=cc 1202435243406 The world's largest software maker approached a law firm about handling all of the company's piracy cases for a flat fee—and ended up saving a software giant-sized bundle after it implemented the new system. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435332225&rss=cc 1202435332225 Dead set on stamping out money-wasting practices, UPS hired a firm to be its national e-discovery counsel and began outsourcing its document reviews—and the move delivered millions in savings for the shipping company. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435291170&rss=cc 1202435291170 How to avoid getting slapped with fines by making sure the employee will be able to obtain the necessary consents. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435594129&rss=cc 1202435594129 With cell phones and texting, in-house counsel may hope these communications are confidential. But are they? http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435361191&rss=cc 1202435361191 In September, Jaap Tonckens ascended to Unibail-Rodamco's legal throne. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435542896&rss=cc 1202435542896 First DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. rolled out a chubby, green ogre called Shrek. Then the crazy Madagascar penguins and a Panda Kung Fu master. And now animated top lawyer Andrew Chang. Last week, the CG animation company named Chang, DreamWorks Animation's longtime head of litigation and technology law, their new general counsel. Chang has been with DreamWorks for seven years and has held his current position since the company?s IPO in 2004. He replaces current general counsel Katherine Kendrick, who announced on November 9 her plans to leave DreamWorks when her contract expires at the end of 2009. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435447280&rss=cc 1202435447280 This summer, the mountainous landscape of Arizona beckoned to David Falck, drawing him away from green, metropolitan New Jersey. The Grand Canyon State will be his new home as he takes over as executive vice president, general counsel, and secretary of Pinnacle West Capital Corporation and the Arizona Public Service Company. Despite having a new address, Falck will continue to do what he does best: working as the head legal adviser for a leading energy provider. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435403335&rss=cc 1202435403335 Mattress maker Tempur-Pedic International Inc. has named Lou Hedrick Jones to the positions of executive vice president and general counsel. The company's first-ever GC, Jones will be responsible for worldwide legal operations and will report directly to chief executive officer Mark Savary. The company, a manufacturer, marketer, and distributor of mattresses and pillows, has operations in over 70 countries. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435321815&rss=cc 1202435321815 When the Tropicana Las Vegas emerged from bankruptcy last July new owner Alex Yemenidjian was ready to shuffle the deck. He had big plans for the classic hotel-casino, including a complete renovation of the hotel rooms and casino floor in 2010. Looking for an ace in the hole, he made one of the first moves the hiring of a familiar face as his new GC, Joanne Beckett. Beckett had previously dealt for Yemenidjian at MGM Mirage, where he'd served as president as she worked as general counsel of the Golden Nugget, an MGM Mirage property. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435242440&rss=cc 1202435242440 During her 21-year tenure at Goldman Sachs & Co., Laurie Ferber encouraged her lawyer colleagues to "get their hands dirty down on the trading floor." Lawyers' direct participation in the day-to-day operations of a company is good for business, according to Ferber. "I couldn't imagine it any other way," she says. She'll be plenty involved at her new job as broker MF Global's GC. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435179192&rss=cc 1202435179192 While it may be willing to take risks in funding new start-up companies, Charles River Ventures played it safe when its general counsel position opened up. The Boston-based venture capital firm turned to a familiar face: Sarah Reed, who had occupied the post for almost eight years earlier in her career. Reed, 45, replaces Lisa Haines, who left to join law firm Outside GC. Reed originally joined Charles River in 2000 and left at the beginning of 2008 to establish a new office for Lowenstein Sandler. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202435069113&rss=cc 1202435069113 Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher partner Stephanie Tsacoumis has stepped onto the campus of Georgetown University every Monday this fall. She's there to teach Federal Securities Law Disclosure, a course offered at the university's law school. But the campus will soon be seeing a lot more of Tsacoumis. Starting November 2, she'll take over as the university's vice president and general counsel, an appointment announced on October 20. Tsacoumis has been an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center since 2001, but it's the work she's done at her day job that motivated her to move to the legal side of academia. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202434935224&rss=cc 1202434935224 Talk about a company in turnaround mode. After battling bankruptcy from 2003 to 2006, Mirant Corporation posted profits of $380 million in the first quarter of this year. Julia Houston has been one of the legal architects of Mirant's turnaround. She joined the company mid-crisis in 2004. After serving as deputy general counsel and corporate secretary for the company, Houston was promoted to senior VP, GC, chief compliance officer, and corporate secretary. She succeeds S. Linn Williams, who retired in May. Houston was unavailable for comment. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202434787616&rss=cc 1202434787616 Struggling cable television operator Charter Communications, Inc., has snagged an experienced chief restructuring officer and general counsel in Gregory Doody, a corporate turnaround expert who has helped oversee the rehabilitation of two major companies in the past six years. The St. Louis?based company hired Doody to serve as its chief restructuring officer in March, when Charter filed for a prearranged Chapter 11 bankruptcy, but Doody originally joined last December to assist with the company's financial restructuring. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202433142782&rss=cc 1202433142782 Pet supply chain PetSmart, Inc., calls all of its animal-owning employees 'pet parents.' Its new senior vice president, general counsel, and secretary will fit right in: Emily Dickinson is a 'pet parent' to a yellow labrador named Maggie, a cat named Pumpkin, and a red-eared slider turtle, Greenback, all of whom she hopes will enjoy moving with her to sunny Phoenix, where the company is headquartered. No word yet on whether she has any feathered friends, but as another Emily Dickinson taught us, 'hope is the thing with feathers.' http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202434513572&rss=cc 1202434513572 Sue Reisinger, Corporate Counsel magazine's senior reporter, breaks down the key characters in the investigation of the bank's controversial merger with Merrill Lynch. http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202434859335&rss=cc 1202434859335