wow. We are all fucked.

Shit, I have friends there. Hope they don't get the axe.

The firm is closed. There will be a going out of business sale this Sunday @ 11.

Finally! I'm glad that you are all over this Lat. Previous comments on ATL regarding Dechert's internal problems are true. The firm is doing everything that they can to dump associates. Trumped up bad reviews reminiscent of OMM and stealth layoffs. Morale has never been so low. Partners are frantically trying to drum up business. There is just NO work.

good luck to all the Dechert associates

Trouble, oh we got trouble,
Right here in River City!
With a capital "T"
That rhymes with "P"
And that stands for Pool,
That stands for pool.
We've surely got trouble!
Right here in River City,
Right here!
Gotta figger out a way
To keep the young ones moral after school!
Trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble...

Same exact thing going on at Milbank. Depression coming folks...

Dechert is an anagram of retched, which, granted, is missing a "w" but still...

Working for another BigLaw firm in the same building, I heard (on the elevator) one Dechert Associate telling another that Friday would be her last day and that she'd be going back to Cleary. When asked why, she just said, "things are changing." Maybe a coincidence.

Dechert = TTT

SH1T....is this for real...I need to get my time in...

Which offices?

On the bright side, PPP for the firm went up a lot again -- Way to go team!!

Dechert had handled discover for the Vioxx cases. Now that a settlement is pending, bloodletting is not surprising. Hughes Hubbard is probably doing the same thing.

This is going on at other firms folks. The economy is MUCH worse than people expected. Only the top firms will be able to survive in this market. Everyone else is fucked.

at Milbank and busier than ever; haven't seen any evidence of slowdown

time to spend my last hour filling out the vault survey.

11:45 - got that right. I know of some stuff going down at other firms right now...

Some Dechert partners are also looking to jump ship. I overheard some people talking about it at a local Dechert haunt by the name of Channel 4 (C4).

I am not at Dechert, although I interviewed there for a long time for a senior job before going elsewhere.

Their PEP (not PPP) came in at US$4m this year, which is incredibly high by World Standards. However, they have probably been hit by the downturn in structured finance/private equity work and settlement of some litigation, but they are so high they have a long way to fall before they're in trouble.

Will they sack some under utilised associates? Possibly. Will lots of other firms do this? Probably. Are some of the writers on this blog underperforming associates worried about their own jobs. Absolutely.

Decherts is a smart, well run firm. Good hard working associates have little to worry about. Underperformers should probably fear for their jobs, because the booming economy will no longer cover for you.

i used to work at dechert. I know nothing about what is going on there right now. but i do know that much of the firm's strategy over the last few years as been to focus on super-profitable practices. These included securitizing mortgage backed securities and defending product and medical device liability. Well, the MBS market is dead, vioxx settled, and the SC's recent decision in the medical device liability case means that sector will be shriveling up soon too. Thus, I would expect some difficult times for Dechert up ahead . . . albeit after a phenomenal run up to now.

Real firms drop the hammer before the holidays.

Puzzled by reference to a slowdown at Milbank. . . generally markets are slower and this is being experienced by all BigLaw firms. In transactional departments other than pure CLO and CDO, it is more a return to a normal pace after years of huge hours. No danger of layoffs that I see. . . CTF down people.

11:44 - that's exactly right. When Dechert lost over $120 million in business overnight they were reeling. Dechert did not even know that settlement talks had taken place. The firm found out about it when it hit the news wire.

The only cash cow that Dechert had was Vioxx. I can't believe that they didn't have a Plan B. Goes to show you that the firm is poorly managed.

11:57 -- Are you drunk? Dechert's profit per equity partner is not, has never been, and probably never will be $4M

11:57 - No MARKETING TROLLS WELCOMED!! Figure out how to get your associates work and stop posting. No amount of damage control will save this firm. Learn how to get business and then allocate it accordingly.

Well, it *is* a Friday

Two associates just fired at my Dechert office...this is for real

The god damn plane has crashed into the mountain!

11:57 - Don't lie about the profits. Dechert does a poor enough job grossly inflating their profits. Dechert will never be Weil, Cravath, or Wachtell.

11:57 - You are such a marketing tool. The underperforming associates are in this boat because the firm failed to give them work. Try giving your people work and then talk about who is not getting the job done.

Lat, What's going on at Paul Weiss? Seems a LOT of people are looking to leave ASAP.

Dechert's DC office has been in shambles since August of last year.

This is in NYC, I assume? Any DC rumblings?

big diverse national firms are kicking ass right now. same upside, lower risk, thats what diversification is all about.

tell me I work at a TTT all you want, at least I'll be working while youre getting laid off.

and im not talking about dechert.

11:57 -- thanks for the laugh.

See this for Dechert PEP increase:

http://www.legalweek.com/Articles/1094867/Dechert+joins+double-digit+club+for+'07+results.html

PS - 12.13 = seriously @ risk associate, but good thing he/she knows it

DECHERT SUCKS ASS.....

3 months pay and cobra for 6 months, guess I get to go on vacation now...thanks a bunch

12:09=Weil troll.

12.21 - that's much better than Mayer Brown gave some associates the week before Christmas. At least you probably got your bonus last year.

What's a troll?

Dechert at $2.35 is not exactly $4M. I smell marketing troll for 11:57.

My mistake, I meant US$2m, not US$4m (and it's US$2.35m).

That's still better than almost all firms and otherwise I stand by the rest of the posting.

12:21 - what's your point? So what that Dechert PPP went up. So did every other AMLAW 25 firm. Yet Dechert is still tightly pressed and they are cutting throats. Get over yourself dumb ass.

Prisoners what the key, fat people want to be skinny, and Dechert wants to dump associates. Wake up and smell the shit because it flows down hill.

Why don't they just make expand Cobra as our national healthcare plan... is there anything better than being a laid-off lawyer on Cobra (health) sitting on stoop drinking Cobra (malt liquor). Those will be the lazy days of summer...

Dechert is Doomed

P.S. Won't all bankruptcy firms be laughing to bank (the ones not collapsed) in recession/depression

BINGHAM!

The bottom line is that the partners will always get paid first. They are not going to dip into their potential profits just to hang onto a few associates.

Does this apply to IP? Seems that every IP group has no shortage of work and hasn't (yet) been affected by the economic downturn...

Hey Lat, can we get an update on last week's 'What's going on at Thacher Proffitt' post?

Does this apply to IP? Seems that every IP group has no shortage of work and hasn't (yet) been affected by the economic downturn...

Today is payday at Dechert. It's possible that the reason people are missing from their office is because they were let go.

12.34 - all firms have risen, but not as much as Dechert has.

Why is it that

a. poor performers spend so much time on blogs, and

b. always whine the loudest when they're the first to get the boot?

12:50, Monday is payday at Dechert.

12:51 AKA 12:21 & 11:57 - You are trying so hard to be the lone voice of reason that favors Dechert. It's really quite pathetic.

Can we get some real info here please? don't leave the world hanging Lat....

12:56 - Why are so many people missing from their office then?

12 structured finance/securitization lawyers are being let go. That's a big surprise. At least they didn't slash at the first sign of trouble, like Cadwalader did.

which offices?

12:58

Actually, I am a partner at another, much larger firm which is much more diversified (albeit less profitable on average)

I think Dechert is a great firm... but I am also not unhappy that overpaid untalented/underperforming associates are starting to get a dose of reality after years of slacking off, milking files, doing crap work and getting overpaid for it. What's truly pathetic is the lazy arse attitude of people like you who feel they are entitled to a living for free. Get over yourself.

There are plenty of hard working talented associates and, in the unlikely even they get fired, there's plenty of other firms (like mine) looking for versatile talented lawyers.

Only the really shit lawyers need worry because (almost) everyone is valuable, even in the current market.

Are you one of the worried lawyers?

the first sign of trouble was last august

IP? Anyone?

can anyone elaborate on the one random comment about paul weiss?

1.23 - what happened last August?

12.44/12.45/1.25 - apparently the whole IP department is being fired. Does that answer your question?

Plenty of guys at my highschool made $2.35m per year. It was no big deal.

Re the person asking about PW, people are looking to leave because the firm is too busy. The litigation department is beyond swamped and most people are regularly billing 16+ hour days. It is anything but slow.

1:20 - If you love Dechert so much, then why don't you pick-up your book of business and come on over to Dechert. Oops, what? You have no business. Why are you posting? Don't you have work to do? I know some "service" partners who are overpaid untalented/underperforming and they love getting paid. If you work at a firm larger than Dechert, I'm sure you milking the files. It's like the pot calling the tea kettle black.

1:38

No, I saw the downturn coming and elected to go to a larger more diversified firm (you may not have got that from my last post) where partners are paid in part for the business they get associates to do. Actually, I am quite enjoying the slightly quieter times brought on by the economic downturn (and the 3 year guarantee I negotiated). We also have a good bunch of associates here, who actually think they're supposed to work and don't sit around whining about their entitlements, so it's a great place to work for partners and associates.

No wonder you're shit scared for you job, you moron.

1:20 -- will be de-equitized within 2 years and will be worse off than the mid-level/junior associates are right now. To think that "almost everyone" is valuable sheds a blind eye to the over-saturation of the market and simple principles of supply and demand. You saw a downturn coming, so you went to a larger firm where conflict issues make it even more difficult to generate new business -- smart.

Do you hear that? It is the sound of me pointing and laughing at all of the greedy associates who were scoffing at the last round of firm raises and crying out for 190K. Some of us told you then that firms could simply not keep up with the ridiculous market salary war. Your jobs are now in jeopardy thanks to the greed combined with the bad economy. Told you so.

Glad I didn't go to that TTT. Plus the screener was a douchebag.

1:48

Quite a few firms (including us) are actually hiring good people right now. Oops.. forgot you're not one of the good ones. Let's trade stories in 2 years and see how it all ends up. What's you're email (probably should give me your personal email, because I am sure your work email will change before then).?

What offices were the Dechert people let go from?

Same question as 1:56. If someone has some real info on offices / practice groups, please share with the rest of us.

1:56 - whichever office the very bitter Mr 1.48 works in. Which one is it, 1.48?

Dammit. These layoffs are all because of NAFTA! Vote for Obama this year and everyone will be employed at Big Law salaries forever and ever and ever.

11:57 - Thanks for the input, Bart!

Bottom line - Dechert is trying to bootstrap itself into national prominence by aggressively and blindly chasing profits above all else.

They are doing that by focusing on the practices that are (or were -- oops!) the most profitable, and by not paying market and not making partners at the rate they should.

I don't care what the PPP is, they'll always be TTT.

Firm wide cuts. Charlotte office lost three.

How many associates were in Charlotte? Couldn't have been many. Percentage-wise, this cut likely was pretty high.

2:07 = sub-standard lawyer who is bitter at being passed over (even for a salaried partnership, which doesn't effect the hallowed PEP)

And welcome back from the land of fairies and pixies, by the way. A law firm chasing profits? Oh my God, that is shameful...

Just heard that complete groups will take massive hits. Products/Mass Torts and FRE.

Milbank is up next; same thing going on over here...expect the ATL post within the next week or so.

Charlotte lost all of it's second year lawyers and one mid-level lawyer. All were called "economy-based" firings instead of performance.

When firms lay people off, do they generally let go mid-levels or junior associates?

FRE includes real estate, real estate finance and structured finance

They've been a huge sucess and managed to get a lot of great partners due to PEP, so they'll be very keen to defend the PEP numbers.

More than structured finance/securitization lawyers are getting the boot. Layoffs are firm wide and across all practice groups.

Charlotte only had 19 associates prior to the cut. Those fired were in the finance and real estate sector and were not the most recent hires.

2.20... they normally let the rubbish ones go first, which is why 1.48 is so worried. Very few firms are so short sighted that they would dump good people in areas they wish to keep working in. You only cut good people as a last resort.

Getting fired in Charlotte would really suck as it's a small market down there, so there's no where to hide and a relocation is the only option.

Mid-levels and senior associates are always the first to go.

I guarantee 1:48 is not worried.

did anyone in the California offices get cut?

I love the new guy! Not only did he create a "partner" persona for himself which involves negotiating three year deals, but he went one step further and made himself British.

Jolly good show, ol' chap.

If they're firing longer serving associates (as per 2.23), then it sounds like a clear out of dead wood, of which I am sure there is plenty after a boom in the FRE areas followed by the bust in those same areas. Shocking how quickly they and other firms like CWT have pulled the pin as good will is hard to re-build. Neither firm must expect a rebound (or need to go into the market and hire) any time soon. Goes to show the danger in a narrow field of practice.

1:54,

You're = You are

Obviously you were not one of the good people who were hired.

I have a friend summering in the Charlotte office--should they be worried?

Or 1.55 doesn't take this blog half as seriously as 2.34 (aka 1.48) does (probably because he/she has job security, unlike 2.34/1.48).

If firms tend to cut mid-levels and senior associates first, shouldn't juniors and summer associates be somewhat ok?

1:48 must have struck a chord with the fake contract partner.

My economy is financed through an option ARM, should you be worried?

Or 1.54 doesn't take this blog half as seriously as 2.34 (aka 1.48) does (probably because he/she has job security, unlike 2.34/1.48).

2:16 - wrong, 2:07 is a partner at a V15 who left Dechert as an associate because I disagreed with their dishonesty in dealing with their associates - you troll.

2:31 - Ditto! These groups made the firm so much money 3 to 4 years in a row. Now after a few slow months they want to start dumping bodies. Poor management. There is no loyalty. Don't let the door hit you on the way out. TTT only look for TTS = Third Tier Students. No top student would dream of choosing Dechert.

Why is the new Dude English?

My friends at Milbank are telling me they are extremely worried. Work is almost non-existent at the firm.

Expect Lat to cover this next week...

2:47,

11:57: reference to "World Standards" "utilised"

1:20: "arse"

1:44: "quite enjoying"

2:25: "rubbish"

2.48 and all the other Milbank bashers (and that's assuming there's more than one) must have one mighty big axe (judging by the way they've been grinding it).

Have any of the Dechert rumours on this blog actually been verified?As we all know, 1 person (and let's face it, there are some people here who are not friends of Dechert) could simply be sitting here making stuff up.

Lat - where is the verification that you promised?

Dechert is so slow that associates can take 3 hour group lunches and not receive one missed call or blackberry alert.

what should summers at Dechert think? Get an offer and then jump ship and do 3L OCI?

Good luck to the laid off associates.

summers at Dechert probably aren't too good at thinking in the first place, otherwise they'd be at a decent firm.

2.55 - well spotted (Dude... you've clearly not got enough work to do), but I doubt English people are the only people who use UK spellings.

Dechert CLT is a sh!thole...no class. One of the two partners there is unconditionally a sleaze-bag who plays favorites and screws associates (literally).

3.04 - what's wrong with that? Never had a bit on the side in the office? Why don't you leave if you are so morally outraged? Or where you let go and are looking for some payback?

It looks like some people in the Dechert Charlotte office work in another practice group - were they hit too?

3:07...I jumped ship last year moron

3.10/3.04 = let go from Dechert CLT today

I agree with 2:55. I wonder if this is the same douche who posted on the bar exam study thread about his boozing, fiance dumping, and womanizing. I bet he is.

Morale at Dechert has been an issue for a very long time. Partners play hard to get. They rarely return calls or emails. Most days you can't find them in the office. The admin people are ineffective. They can make no real decisions. They're basically gate keepers. They push the line of bullshit that the firm is selling. They aren't around to really advocate for the associates. They want to protect the firm and secure their own jobs. There is absolutely no associate development. It's every man for themselves. The quality of work is low lung. Most senior paralegals with 10 years of experience can do the same work. It's really quite telling.

milbank = TTT

Sorry, that would be "fiancee" dumping.

What moron said this: "Dechert will never be Weil, Cravath, or Wachtell"

you mean just like weil will never be cravath, wachtel, simpson ot skadden? Sweet lord.

I know plenty of people in the dechert CLT office, and they hate it, the big problem is, especially if you want to stay in CLT, where else are you going to go? No one else is hiring. If you want a job, you either have to stay in your shithole, or move. And a lot of people don't want to relocate.

I'm sure it's no consolation to the latest biglaw casualties, but do any of you realize the massive layoffs going on at the big banks? We're talking thousands of dudes leaving the Fin. Dist. (to the extent that rents are actually falling). The banks are much more brutal in terms of performance-related firings (bottom 5-15% get laid off even in good years) and their lack of patience before axing. The IBers get mo' money than us, but in this market, job security is what you want, and lawyers have that, even if many are getting the boot for economic reasons.

What firms are diversified enough to take some hits from the economy?

To 3:04: are these literal screwings heterosexual, bisexual or homosexual?

Sex in Dechert's workplace is the least of their problems. They need work.

Maybe the dechert associates could start billing the partners for sex. I mean, a billable hour is a billable hour, right?

I assume there has to be an email of some sort that has been circulated - anyone care to share it?

I work at Dechert. No emails have been circulated. Our associates were let go around noon and we just had an informal meeting to discuss the situation. 13 total have been let go in the FRE group.

3:33 - Where were the 13?

3:01,

No, I'm actually swamped right now, but sometimes you can only focus for so many hours in a row. Besides, if I didn't have work, there's no way in hell that I'd be here after 3 on a Friday.

I'm also in litigation so there's no real worry about a slow down. The gov is always looking to hassle innocent corporations.

We find it's always better to fire people on a Friday. Studies have statistically shown that there's less chance of an incident if you do it at the end of the week.

Dechert = TTT

We need some real info here. It takes too long to read through all this garbage. Who has real info?

So, Dechert only has 18 people left in their Charlotte office. With BofA and Wachovia in trouble, what's the over/under on how long before they close the doors?

So 24 people were let go today at Dechert? Across offices and groups?

Are BofA and Wachovia in trouble?

3:51--BofA and Wachovia are in trouble, but they'll bounce back, it may not be as soon as we all want, but they will bounce back and Charlotte law firms will be busy again.

I have a friend at Wachovia. He told me that the NY managing partner took some loans out for the firm. Dechert is no liquid with all the money they allegedly have?

I have a friend at Wachovia. He told me that the NY managing partner took some loans out for the firm. Dechert is not liquid with all the money they allegedly have?

3:57, Where are you getting that number from?

Dechert Charlotte only has 15 lawyers now. The 3 that were fired are still up on the website. Morale is beyond low in the office. Two of the associates who were let go did not deserve it at all. They kept incompetent and unlicensed first year associates and fired good lawyers? Makes no sense.

should be a great summer at the CLT office for summer associates . . . Yeah!!!

I think the person (just one) talking about Milbank is an associate who recently (past 6 months) got the boot for performance reasons. Stop imagining it was the economy or the amount of work (and there's lots) at Milbank that was the cause . . . and stop trying to convince others.

Note Lat's update above, just added:

"Update (4:40 PM): As reported by the Legal Intelligencer, Dechert just laid off 13 associates. We'll be doing a new post on this shortly, but we thought we'd note it here as well."

Due to the major shift in market conditions affecting client demands in our Finance and Real Estate practice area, we currently do not have sufficient work for all the associates in FRE. As a consequence, we have told 13 associates in the U.S. FRE group that we see no demand for them in that group in the foreseeable future. However, due to increased and substantial demand in other practice areas, we will be offering those lawyers the opportunity to work in those other groups.

Barton J. Winokur
Dechert LLP

So does that mean they actually got fired or just moved to other groups at Dechert?

The news about what the severance packages entail seems like an odd detail to have floating around if this really is just people being shuffled into different practice groups.

how many were fired firm wide? thought it was from the real estate finance group only.

Is Barton Winkour a character from a Tim burton movie?

any from Hartford?

These people were not shuffled to other groups. They were let go.

The attorneys who are leaving were offered three months severance, six months of paid medical benefits and transition placement support.

Due to the major shift in market conditions affecting client demands in our Finance and Real Estate practice area, we currently do not have sufficient work for all the associates in FRE. As a consequence, we have told 13 associates in the U.S. FRE group that we see no demand for them in that group in the foreseeable future. However, due to increased and substantial demand in other practice areas, we will be offering those lawyers the opportunity to work in those other groups.

There's a fresh post about this at the top of the page now.

3.43: Dechert TTT? I think you need to get the story right.

Source: The Lawyer US Rev Counter Feb 19, 2008

http://www.thelawyer.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=131327&d=415&h=417&f=416

Rank Firm Rev ($m) PEP ($m)
1 DLA Piper 2,100 1.28
2 Skadden 2,020 2.28
3 Latham 2,005 2.27
4 Baker 1,830 1.06
5 Sidley 1,390 1.38
6 White & Case 1,370 1.67
7 Jones Day 1,300 0.77
8 Greenberg 1,200 1.30
9 Mayer Brown 1,180 1.24
10 Weil Gotshal 1,180 2.11
11 Dewey 1,000 1.57
12 Paul Hastings 980 1.92
13 WilmerHale 940 1.06
14 O'Melveny 934 1.64
15 Shearman 921 1.85
16 Gibson 908 1.90
17 Morrison 894 1.27
18 Reed Smith 890 1.00
19 Cleary 890 2.14
20 Hogan 850 1.19
21 Dechert 836 2.3
22 Winston 697 1.28
23 Milbank 643 2.53
24 Proskauer 627 1.55
25 Willkie Farr 600 2.23
26 Pillsbury 590 0.99
27 Cadwalader 590 2.72
28 Baker Botts 578 1.30
29 Alston & Bird 518 1.00
30 Heller Ehrman 490 1.01

I think BofA and Wac will *survive* but as far as "bounce back" to anything approaching the gogo securitization boom, hell no. You might as well ask if garbage dot-com IPO business would bounce back.

This was a bubble. It burst. Business will recover but will never be the "same" because "same" was an aberration.

Realize that this thread has been superceded, but as former BigLaw senior associate who mentored many junior associates over the years, couldn't suppress need to respond to Clever Little F@cker's post yesterday (@1:20pm)...

"I am also not unhappy that overpaid untalented/underperforming associates are starting to get a dose of reality after years of slacking off, milking files, doing crap work and getting overpaid for it. ... Only the really shit lawyers need worry because (almost) everyone is valuable, even in the current market."

Overpaid? Irrespective of one's opinion on this issue, firms (and not us lowly associates) ultimately establish associate compensation. We just ride the wave, bumps and all. Bitch to your fellow partners/ExCom members.

Untalented (and doing crap work)? Again, firms ultimately make the hiring decisions. So if caliber not there, I suggest that you bitch instead to your fellow partners, Hiring Committee, and/or Recruiter Director to revise hiring criteria. And if work is crap, do something affirmative about it - I assure you, most other associates aren't too happy about it either.

Underperforming? IMHO, it is mgmt's responsibility to monitor/address any such issues - in good times and bad, and not only at annual review. From personal experience, seems that partners can't be bothered during busy periods (even though the associates know if/when others are slacking off) b/c warm bodies are needed and even an underperforming "shit lawyer" has billable hours (and b/c "shit" lawyer, probably more hours than a "competent/efficient" lawyer). But how to underperform during slow periods when there is little/less/no work? What's the measure?

"Only the really shit lawyers need worry"? So the recent layoffs by the likes of Dechert, CWT and TP were really deadwood shedding under the guise of economic downturn?

If you really are a partner at a large firm, then I pity the assoicates who have to work for you (b/c clearly, they would never, ever work "with" you). And I wonder if you inadvertently foster the unacceptable situation. If properly supervised and developed, few associates get away with "slacking off" and "milking files" - b/c in most instances, (1) good mgmt prevents the same, and (2) someone takes notice (and hopefully for you, it's not the client upon receipt of a monthly invoice).

Thankfully, most of my BigLaw experiences were with professionals who understood how to motivate assoicates (or tried their best)... and not anyone like you. But then again, it's just MHO.

Mr. Lat,
Mr. Winokur's email was clearly misleading (but what would you expect from this (insert your own harsh insult here)?).
As you noted, Mr. Winokur's email implies that the associates were not being let go, but rather just being moved from one practice group to another. Here's what's really happening:
1. 13 FRE associates were told on Friday that they were being asked to leave.
2. a couple hours later, they were thrown a (bare) bone: they could stay on for two months (minimum) if they want to do document review for the Vytorin litigation (wonder how Merck feels about this). They will be let go once that doc review is completed.
So if you were one of the unlucky 13, you were given the option to leave now or do doc review at a firm you know doesn't want you, has already fired you, and will keep you just to push that firing date back a couple months. I wonder how Merck feels about this?
So Mr. Winokur sends out that email, making it sound as though the firm is being gracious, when in fact it's just another one of his bald-faced lies.