Welcome to the daily rundown of the top news for lawyers, law firms, and in-house counsel.
In a noteworthy development, Steve Bannon’s refusal to pay his attorneys could lead to complications in a separate criminal case involving allegations of defrauding donors to a privately funded US-Mexico border wall. Bannon’s attorney, Harlan Protass, noted in a court filing that if Davidoff Hutcher & Citron can gain access to Bannon’s bank accounts, it could potentially reveal information that may impact his criminal cases (Newsweek).
In other news, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman has signed a lease for a new, larger office space in Houston. This 5,000-square-foot upgrade aligns with the ongoing trend of law firms driving the Houston office market towards more updated, amenitized spaces (Bisnow).
Furthermore, a recent report released this Friday revealed that billing rates for partners, associates, and paralegals have maintained a steady upward trajectory. The mean rate for partners saw the most significant surge, from $768 in 2022 to $784 in 2023, a rise of 2% (Wolters Kluwer).
Lateral moves and transfers:
- Michelle Scheffler has joined Skadden as a litigation partner in Houston (Bloomberg Law).
- Aliza Karetnick has transferred to Morgan Lewis as a partner in the Philadelphia office, previously at Ballard Spahr (Bloomberg Law).
- Christopher Schaffer and Tony Bramian have joined FisherBroyles as partners in the intellectual property, patent prosecution, and technology licensing practices in Los Angeles, formerly at Kilpatrick Townsend (Bloomberg Law).
- Rajan Singh has returned to Womble Bond Dickinson as part of the corporate and securities practice in Tysons, Va. (Bloomberg Law).
- Issaku Yamaashi has moved to Lathrop GPM as a partner in the business transactions practice group in Kansas City, Mo. (Bloomberg Law).
- Chris Wootten has taken a new role at Jones Walker as a partner in the tax practice group in New Orleans (Bloomberg Tax).
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