what a douche bag.

awesome - love the last graphic

"Maybe it's because they can earn more mowing lawns in Newport Beach."

Um, Lat...

he was definitely an annoying gunner in law school

$1,500 for a bag? Not even close to breaking the ceiling of my wife's "prestigious" bags.

I just threw up in my mouth.

11:12:

1. That statement is no worse than what Jon Stewart says on the Daily Show whenever immigration is in the news.

2. It is a sad but true fact that many professionals in developing countries can earn more performing manual labor in the USA than practicing their profession in their home country.

I love these tools.

Great post Lat - I'm f'ing cracking up at my desk.

what a huge fucking toolbox. Lat, can you please get in contact with Karen Donovan and grill her about the obvious omissions from the piece?

also, this is just informed speculation from my days in the media world, but i suspect that this piece sprang forth because S&C's PR people threw a shit-fit at the previous Charney coverage in the NYT; so, to assuage S&C, the NYT reporter involved "suggested" that S&C send him or her some good story ideas. S&C, now fully in the middle of the Charney shit, decides to play up some of the players of intrigue (Gallion, namely) and passes the NYT reporter's name on to G&S. G&S makes a pitch roughly similar to what you see in print - what we like to call a "puff piece" - and the NYT editor decides that they'll take it in order to appease the powers that be at S&C, which, though unmentioned in the piece, receives indirect and positive coverage through the now-mainstream "elevation" of G&S, Spielvogel, and Gallion.

So there you have it. Lat - please dig around for confirmation.

Better picture here
http://www.internalinvestigationlaw.com/CM/BusinessLitigation/INBLF%20Annual%20Dinner%20Photo.pdf

Spielvogel just looks like an asshole.

The headline of this article accurately captures the ego jockeying on here:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06353/747148-28.stm

http://www.forbes.com/2006/05/23/cx_ls_0524featslide.html?thisSpeed=20000

I am sure Spielvogel must be rather annoyed at his likening to Ric Ocasek of the Cars, as that is hardly a "prestigious" comparison, and who the hell even remembers what that guy looks like? And I have some significant problems with this numbskull credentialing anybody; his organization looks like signing up for "Who's Who in America's Douchebags." If you pay extra money, do you get a book where you can see your firm's name in it among all the other prestigious boutiques, so that you can be sure that you, too, are prestigious? Oh, joy!

Karen Donovan may be the go-to person for inserting a puff piece in a newspaper.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/8/prweb422030.htm

From the story-----
“I commend Karen Donovan for her article, as it is a great promotional tool in encouraging law firms to improve their diversity,” said Yolanda Coly, Associate Director of NAMWOLF
--------

(NAMWOLF isn't what you think it is)

On the other hand, if this is the same person, she identified Milberg Weiss's sliminess about 11 years ago:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/4.11/es_larach_pr.html

I worked 2 years at Sullivan Cromwell, as well. Does that mean Fortune 500 clients will deem my talents as prestigious if my shit 2 lawyer firm solicits their business?

He looks more like me than Ric Ocasek.

Calling oneself "prestigious" as much as G&S do is like all the chicks who wear "Sexy" and "Princess" shirts. . . if you really are any of those things, people kinda get it without you having to label yourself, you know?

Powers here! to head up the Portsmouth chapter--$215K to start!

These jokers have a strange idea what constitutes a prestigious résumé.

Until I looked at the INBLT website (www.inblf.com), I was unaware that worker's compensation, personal injury and debt collection were prestigious practice areas.

"To do that, Mr. Spielvogel, who was in a band, E-Chaos, while at the University of Pennsylvania Law School in the early 1990s, learned a valuable lesson from his time at Sullivan & Cromwell, where he was a midlevel associate for two years."

Three questions about this:

1. How is Spielvogel's band at all relevant to his work in the International Assembly of People Who Want More Prestigious Acronyms on Their Bags?

2. Anyone else want to bet that e-chaos was actually an acappella group? It has to be either that or trip hop, right?

3. Is E-Chaos available on itunes?

I.N.B.L.F. = I No Below League Firm

Why you no has tattoo?

I Need Bag Letters, Fast!

But Ric Ocasek married supermodel Paulina Porizkova (http://images.google.com/images?um=1&tab=wi&hl=en&q=Paulina%20Porizkova)

Lat, I think we need to do is talk about Spielvogel so much that ATL comes up as the first thing in a google search. That'll show everyone how prestigious he is.

I'm guessing that what he actually said to the reporter was "a rebuttable presumption."

It makes more sense, but has the clear disadvantage of not being nearly as easy to mock.

And I'm with 11:12 on the "clipping hedges" remark, Lat -- watch yourself; that wasn't funny.

11:59 -

Spielvogel,

Welcome. It's good that you continue to have dillusions of grandure.

Lat, your un-PC comment about the mexican law firm was so damn funny (as was the entire posting) that I officially absolve you, on behalf of my people. Gracias!

lat, you're ass is grass and i'm a horde of dandelions.

(i think that means i love you.)

One of the funniest posts ever. Nice work Lat.

Oh, and Spielvogel = douche.

We need to set up a mock interview with that clown, whether under the guise of looking for a job or for "press" purposes, then post the video on ATL. That would be priceless.

The International Network of Reputable Presumptions is up to four members on Facebook -- and counting.....

Could it outstrip the Monica Goodling Fan Club in membership?

12:05: consider the presumption rebutted.

But surely big law firm names do (frequently) carry that presumption. Many of us go biglaw because we know we can "go anywhere" with said biglaw firm on the resume.

12:30 is right. One of the most overlooked reasons NOT to leave Biglaw is to escape the huge chip on the shoulder borne by those who are no longer there. E.g., Spielvogel.

Ex-Biglaw attorneys shamelessly drop the name of their former employer into casual conversation: "Back when I was at Cravath - Wachtell - S&C..."

If they really have signed up 250 firms at $1,500 each, that's $375,000. Might be more than they bring in from their prestigious practice of law.

He looks more like David Schwimmer to me.

Thank god these tools are back in the news. Every single thing about these idiots is hilarious. What a bunch of jackasses.

Gallion OUT!

Same reporter did a while book on the prestigious David Boies - http://www.amazon.com/v-Goliath-Trials-David-Boies/dp/0375421130

White Girls With Newport Beach Hedge Clippers all the way.

LMAO!

Life Alert will be HUGE!

Who else still has the coin he passed out?

Other cities don't make NY bonuses.

The most exceedingly prestigous Bolivians in Newport Beach carry Gallion & Spielvogel hedge-clipper totes for the reputable presumption.

not ric ocasek, or luke wilson. more like an emaciated Ross from Friends.

Why is no one discussing the fact that this guy's entire identity is tied up with the fact that he was formerly at S&C. Now we learn he was there only a measly two years. I had figured he at least was 8 and out. Two years??? How can he refer to his time there with a straight face?

Read this guy's bio on his website. He is a very "prestigous" and "pedigreed" fellow. Yup, pedigreed like my f'ing dog.

1:41: Well when I was a summer at S&C ....

"How does Mexico's "oldest and largest firm" qualify as a "boutique"? Guess law firms south of the border don't get that big. They can earn more money clipping hedges in Newport Beach."

Nice one, Lat! You fucking racist. You've now encouraged every other fucking bigot who reads this blog to come out of the woodwork. Glass houses and all that - motherfucker.

1:55 -

Lat obvious pokes fun at everyone, including himself.

Gallion said that Spielvogel was a "c.v. snob"

Does two year stint as lateral midlevel associate of no distinction qualify stand out as a prestigious achivement? Or is it more coveted? Dunno

That isn't poking fun. That's no different than calling a Hispanic person a "spic gardner."

Every Hispanic is a gardening day-laborer who hangs out in front of Home Depot looking for a job, right?

Just like every Jew is a money-grubbing thief, and every Muslim is a terrorist.

Yeah, that sounds totally fucking reasonable to me, asshole.

I'm WITH 1:55.

Cool it, dipshits. 1 - Lat is basically a tool and 2 - he just posts crap like that to drive up talkback traffic. You fools play right into it by not being able to shut up. Make sure you click on Camp Biche every time you come back angry to post. Fools.

Gallion OUT!

Just so that we can clear up the "misunderstanding"...

ok, 1:55 posing as 2:18. You are the one making all the racist associations and using racist slurs.

guess, my chill-pill reference tipped the scale for ya. my bad.

2:18 - thanks for cursing a lot so I know you're serious. Apparently you haven't the intelligence to construct convincing arguments, so you resort to profanity.

Dave, please just change the caption on the picture to "professional douche bag".

As for who he looks like, I think he looks like Alan Rickman in Harry Potter, and as dispicable too.

2:18, Lat is not saying "All Mexicans are gardeners." That is YOUR spin on his statement.

This is what Lat wrote:

"Guess law firms south of the border don't get that big. They can earn more money clipping hedges in Newport Beach."

This is merely an allusion to the "brain drain" problem that many "Third World" (or "developing") countries suffer.

Well-educated professionals leave because they can do better economically in the United States, even if their work in the United States is not professional in nature. It is regrettable, but a reality.

In other words, as noted by 11:16:

"It is a sad but true fact that many professionals in developing countries can earn more performing manual labor in the USA than practicing their profession in their home country."

In my home country, trained engineers do whatever they can to come to the United States -- so they can work as taxi drivers, for three times as much as they would earn back home (as engineers).

2:27:

Calling a hispanic immigrant a gardener is probably not per se racist. It is certainly non-P.C., but anyone reading this board should expect that.

However, placing the attorneys who work at "Mexico's 'oldest and largest law firm'" below immigrant gardeners in a blog posting, when such comparison is a tangent to the story at best, and at worst, a cheap ploy for generating comments, qualifies as racist and then some.

Even those of us with pretty thick skin regarding our own's particular color can find something as unneccessary and blatant as the above comment out of line.

2:54 (2nd commenter): Are you saying that attorneys are "better" than gardeners? That lawyers at the "oldest and largest law firms," like Cravath and Sullivan & Cromwell, are "better" than the people who mow their lawns?

Maybe that's not racist. But it sure sounds ELITIST.

2:58:

I am unsure as to why you place "better" in quotes, as if I used the word somewhere in my earlier comment.

If you read it, what it says is that "placing [those attorneys] *below* immigrant gardeners" is turning otherwise acceptible humor into a racist remark.

Now, as you seem to have missed my earlier point, let me restate it: the problem is not in referring to hispanics as gardeners. The problem lies in making such a reference in a posting that otherwise has nothing to do with hispanics, immigration, etc. Therein lies the difference between Lat's comments and, say, Jon Stewart's.

Hope that helps clear up your confusion.

1. The point still stands: How has Lat placed the attorneys "below" immigrant gardeners?

2. Based on my cousins, who are lawyers, earn in my home country, I would not be surprised to learn that restaurant workers or taxi drivers in the United States make more than attorneys in a developing nation.

3:17 for fear of inciting another New York riot, isn't there a COL issue though? Sure they may make more driving taxis in the states, but it also costs $10 to get lunch here.

Now now, you have gotten away from the point of this post, which is to mock the eminently prestigious Steven Spielvogel for being a complete tool.

3:08, there is no difference between "below" and "better" in your comment.

You are talking about Lat placing gardeners and lawyers in a hierarchy. In that hierarchy, presumably "below" can be equated with "worse," and "above" can be equated with "better."

It is funny that you are being so snippy about this, when there is no difference between the terms as they are being employed in this context.

GeeneParmesan's back in the hizouse. Return of the coveted and virtually unaltered Gallion & Spielvogel biographies: triggered.

http://www.internalinvestigationlaw.com/CM/Custom/Attorneys.asp

2:58/3:17:

1. The firm in question (Basham Ringe y Correa) is the largest, oldest firm in Mexico. You yourself made the logical comparison to the U.S.'s largest, oldest firms (S&C, Cravath), which pay the most money, and at the same time are the most prestigious. Based on that reasonable comparison, follow the syllogism: Basham is assumedly one of the most prestigious firms in Mexico.

By saying, "guess law firms south of the border don't get that big. They can earn more money clipping hedges in Newport Beach," Lat's comment clearly places gardening above being as associate at Basham.

2. I honestly don't know enough about the Mexican economy to say one way or another, and this website is the closest I could come to an answer.
http://www.payscale.com/research/MX/People_with_Jobs_that_require_a_Law_%2f_Legal_Degree/Salary.

With regard to the "better"/"below" issue: I admit the difference is semantic, and I shouldn't have made it an issue. I will just say that I think Lat's comment is only funny if it differentiates attorneys and gardeners by their status as citizens, and as such makes the hierarchy issue part of the discussion.

According to that site, Mexican lawyers earn 551,000 Mexican pesos a year. At current exchange rates (1 Mexican peso = 0.092014 U.S. dollars), that comes out to around $5,000 in U.S. dollars a year.

So working as a landscaper in the United States probably does pay more than working as a lawyer in Mexico.

4:25 - According to that site, people with jobs that require law degrees, on average across the entire country of Mexico, earn $5,000 a year. It is highly likely that attorneys at the biggest firm in the country earn well above this average. Just sayin.

The American "entry-level Attorney" comes in at about $55K.

actually, come to think of it, I think he looks like horse

4:25: you dumbshit. Do the math. It's change under $50,700.

At $50,000, Mexican lawyers make more than many lawyers in the United States -- public defenders, state prosecutors, public-interest lawyers.

So why do Mexicans keep coming to the United States? Why don't they all just go to law school?

Basham Ringe y Correa to $190K!!!

Dude, they're already at 551K. That's like an insult to our NAFTA brothers.

he looks like Adrien Brody

Why don't they just go with S&G scrunched together so closely that it looks like an S&C bag, or just "GS" to look even more rebuttably presumptious as Goldman Sachs counsel or bankers.

I would think S&C would tire of their endless metions of a their firm, where he worked as a mid-level for 2 sorry years. He behaves like he was an original named partner... Spielvogel & Cromwell.

May NAMBLA welcome the perfect merger with the very forgettable - INBLF.

what's wrong with you people - yeah - "you people" - Lat made an accuate observation on lawyers in Mexico earning less there than hedge clippers from Mexico earn here. And it's true - I turned over about 25K to have my yard done here in the OC - that's two or three months of after tax salary. And they take the cash and pay no taxes! If one of them clips off a finger, they get treated in the US for free. Moreover, everyone knows, thanks to the Mexican President, that they are only doing jobs that even the blacks don't want. Mexican snob Tierists.

and by the way, there's no shame in being a hedge clipper. they probably don't sit around cracking on other hedge clippers all day on weblogs. they work their asses off. i'm so sick of lawyers that I would happily move to Italy or Spain and clip hedges if the pay was good -- doesn't even have to be better than US biglaw pay. And I wouldn't feel at all slighted if someone called me a hedge clipper while I was clipping hedges on the Spanish Riviera for the same or better salary.

but I'd still carry my clipping tools in an S&C satchel and wear a Yale Law t-shirt.

"In founding their own law firm, the partners resolved to offer their clients the same unequaled quality of legal representation found at the beset [sic] Wall Street corporate law firms without all of the very high unnecessary overhead costs [like proofreading] that large law firms pass on to their clients."

http://www.internalinvestigationlaw.com/CM/BusinessLitigation/Firm-Overview-BL.asp