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WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

REDUX? As much of the economy remains shut down, it's hard not to compare the situation law firms find themselves in right now with the 2008 recession. With some firms laying off staff, delaying summer programs or implementing hiring freezes, the current scenario feels all too familiar. But there are distinctions that could mean good news for a rebound down the road. Keith Wetmore, MoFo chairman from 2000 to 2012 who guided his firm through some tough years, and Bill Brandt, a restructuring and insolvency expert who's handled some of biggest law firm failures in the last 35 years, break it down on our latest Legal Speak podcast.

HELPING - A group of 34 law firms, including Kirkland & Ellis, Willkie Farr, Goodwin Procter and Covington & Burling, are joining together with the Lawyers for Good Government Foundation to help small business owners make sense of how to secure support through the federal government's COVID-19 stimulus package. At the same time, the New York State Bar Association has announced the launch of a pro bono network, inviting lawyers all over the state to help respond to a surge in legal needs related to the coronavirus pandemic and its effects on the economy.

UP CLOSE - Want to avoid looking like a dork on camera now that you're working remotely like millions of other lawyers? For starters, look at the camera, not your screen, says Jamie Moss, long-time PR pro. When you're listening, remember that your expressions are amplified since your face takes up the screen or is framed in a box. Put genuine energy and enthusiasm into your voice, and remember that lighting should come from the front. Read more here.

EDITOR'S PICKS

Boies Schiller's Natasha Harrison Has Moved to the U.S.—And It's Been Rough

David Lat Transferred Out of ICU, Taken Off Ventilator in Coronavirus Fight

Working Through a Crisis at Home: What 5 General Counsel Are Learning

'It's Going to Be Extraordinary': Predictions and Advice from Neil Barofsky for Coronavirus Recovery Oversight

For Some Law Firm Support Staff, Pandemic Brings New Uncertainty

 

WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING

PAUSED – U.K. law firms Slaughter and May and Linklaters have stopped associate recruitment due to the uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic, as other U.K. firms consider their recruitment strategies. Meganne Tillay and Krishnan Nair report that CMS is currently moving ahead with "some key hires" but has stopped recruitment that was in the early stages.

WHAT YOU SAID

"We literally had 18 hours to get it together. We took our clothes and toiletry—that's it."

— Natasha Harrison, co-managing partner at Boies Schiller Flexner, on her quick decision to move from London to Florida with her children and husband as flights were canceling amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

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