NY BigLaw Firm Lays Off 25 Attorneys

NY BigLaw Firm Lays Off 25 Attorneys
The National Law Journal by Leigh Jones - March 11, 2009

New York-based Chadbourne & Parke let go of 25 attorneys on Tuesday, according to a spokesman for the law firm. The cuts were made because of the economic downturn and will affect associates and counsel handling transactional work in its U.S. and overseas offices, according to Andrew Blum, media relations manager at the firm. In addition, the law firm will delay the start date for its first-year associates until January. It will pay those people a $13,000 "bar and expense" stipend, the spokesman said. The reductions will not affect Chadbourne & Parke's summer associate class, he said, adding that the firm does not expect additional layoffs. The spokesman declined to disclose the details of severance packages. In October, Chadbourne & Parke implemented a hiring freeze, as reported on the legal blog Above the Law. Before the layoffs, Chadbourne & Parke had about 480 attorneys in 13 offices, according to The NLJ 250, The National Law Journal¹s annual survey of the nation¹s largest law firms. Mr. Blum told Law Journal affiliate Legal Times that the layoffs were "an economic decision due to the recession." He says the associates who were affected were primarily in the firm's transactional practices. Blum says the affected lawyers who were in the office today have already been informed. He would not confirm whether anyone was laid off in the firm's Washington office, which has over 50 lawyers. The firm will be offering severance packages to those affected, but Blum says "the individual separation pay arrangements will not be disclosed." Additional reporting for this story was provided by Jeff Jeffrey, a reporter with Legal Times, a Law Journal affiliate based in Washington.