Law firm layoffs, etc.
Jun 14th, 2010 by admin
The following is a compilation of reported layoffs, salary freezes, pay cuts, deferred hirings and other cutbacks by Minnesota law firms seeking to deal with the downturn. If you have heard of any new recession-related cutbacks that you would like to share with us, you can e-mail Minnesota Lawyer associate editor Barbara Jones at barbara.jones@minnlawyer.com. (You can also reach her at 612-584-1543 or just leave a comment below.)
December 2009
Action: Thomson Reuters to lay off 120 people who work in the legal information division at its Eagan campus
Source: “120 to be shepherded out of West” (MinnLawyerBlog, 12/04/09)
November 2009
Action: Washington, D.C.-based Sprenger and Lang closes five-attorney Minneapolis office.
Source: “Law firm stood up for powerless workers.” (Star Tribune, 11/22/09)
September 2009
Action: Dorsey & Whitney reportedly considers overhauling its associate compensation scheme.
Source: “Will Dorsey move to a new model of associate compensation?” (MinnLawyer blog via Above the Law, 09/24/09)
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Action: Faegre & Benson cuts starting salary about 10 percent, from $120,000 to $110,000.
Source: “Nationwide Salary Cut Watch: Don’t Forget About Faegre & Benson.” (Above the Law)
July 2009
Action: Lindquist & Vennum, effective July 1, joined the growing number of big local law firms to scale back associate salaries. Lindquist pared back associate compensation by 10 percent. Additionally, the firm delayed the starting date of its incoming class of new associates to January 2010.
Source: “Lindquist joins the 10-percent club, scales back associate salaries” (07/10/09)
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June 2009
Action: First- through third-year associates’ pay cut by 10 percent; fourth- and fifth-year associates’ pay reduced by 8 percent; sixth- and seventh-year associates’ pay cut by 5 percent.
Source: “Fredrikson & Byron latest to cut associate salaries” (06/25/09)
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Action:Minneapolis-based Gray Plant Mooty announces a 10 percent pay cut for associates. Earlier in the year, the firm had cut staff salaries by 5 percent. Additionally, hourly employees are reported to be losing some hours and subject to furloughs.
Source: “Gray Plant prunes associate pay by 10 percent” (06/17/09)
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Action:Dorsey & Whitney lets go of 55 support staff, 38 of whom were employed in the Minneapolis office. Additionally, salaries for nonpartner lawyers were cut by 10 percent across the board; bonuses were reduced by an undisclosed amount.
Source: “Dorsey lays off 38 support staff in Minneapolis” (06/02/09); “Minneapolis’ largest law firm laying off lawyers” (6/02/09)
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April 2009
Action: Start date of incoming class of associates announced to be Nov. 30, two months later than the traditional Oct. 1 start date. The class of 42 new associates had not been previously given a firm start date. Thirty of those associates will work in the Minneapolis office.
Source: “Dorsey’s fall class will start Nov. 30,” (04/13/09)
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March 2009
Action: Layoff of two lawyers, three staff
Source: “Dunlap and Seeger lets two attorneys, three staff go” (3/27/09)
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February 2009
Actions: Salary and pay freeze, deferred start-time of new associates, suspension of 401K matching
Source: “Oppenheimer vows no layoffs but implements a salary freeze” (2/24/09)
Oppenheimer Wollf & Donnelly approves a fiscal plan for 2009 a pay and hiring freeze at all levels, a suspension of 2009 retirement account contributions and deferring the start time for fall associates. (Click here for more.)
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Action: Salary freeze
Source: “Dorsey is OK, but Marianne Short is losing sleep” (2/16/09); “A little more on Dorsey cost-cutting” (2/18/09)
“We do have a salary freeze in place for staff and associates. When we announced it in late December, we said it would be re-evaluated as business conditions change which was to say that it was not necessarily in place for all of 2009. As far as offers to summer associates, we have not announced any change to our plans regarding those folks.” (Click here for more.)
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Action: Layoff of 29 lawyers
Source: “Faegre & Benson lets go of 29 attorneys,” (2/12/09); “Exxon Valdez and that sinking feeling from Faegre layoffs,” (02/12/09); “Faegre hopes, expects worst is over,” (2/18/09)
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Action: Layoff/cut of 7 lawyers, 2 patent agents, 1 paraprofessional and 23 staff
Source: “Faegre & Benson lets go of 29 attorneys” (2/12/09); “More on Merchant & Gould cuts,” (2/13/09)
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Halleland Lewis Nilan & Johnson
Action: Layoff of 2 lawyers, 4 staff
Source: “Faegre layoffs send shiver through state’s legal market” (2/19/09)
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Action: Eliminated five administrative positions
Source: “Faegre layoffs send shiver through state’s legal market” (2/19/09)
