Why Big Law Leaders Aren't Sweating Big Profit Drops: The Morning Minute
The news and analysis you need to start your day.
March 29, 2023 at 06:00 AM
4 minute read
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WHAT WE'RE WATCHING
LOWER PROFIT? NO PROBLEM - By now it's no secret that several members of the Am Law 200 weren't able to duplicate the jumps in profits they recorded in 2021 and in many cases saw sizable decreases in their bottom line. Though these double-digit percentage decreases still allowed partners to take home equity profits that in many cases exceeded $1 million, firms' financial results put into question one mandate to firm leaders from many partnerships: grow profits year after year. But law firm leaders told Law.com's Justin Henry that the deal slowdown wasn't the only factor dragging down 2022 profits. Leaders whose firms saw double-digit decreases in profitability say they were a necessary consequence of travel expenses for much-delayed in-person meetings and growth investments expected to pay off in the long-term.
RAISING THE STAKES - A judiciary committee will further look into federal appellate Judge Ralph Erickson's suggestion to tweak current recusal disclosure procedures, stemming from his concern that those on the bench who have holdings in Berkshire Hathaway may face conflict-of-interest issues. As Law.com's Avalon Zoppo reports, the Committee on Civil Rules decided Tuesday to do more research on whether corporations named in lawsuits should be required to share its parent organization as well as "grandparent" organizations that own stake in the parent. Currently, the latter isn't required, and Erickson has said that judges can be unaware they have a financial interest in a case as a result, especially if they hold stock in conglomerates like Berkshire Hathaway or Citigroup that have controlling interest in many smaller companies.
ON THE RADAR - Retail Services WIS Corp., a provider of marketing, inventory and other retail sector services, sued Contract Datascan Holdings Inc., Contract Datascan LP and Gwyn Nicole Snead on March 28 in Texas District Court for Tarrant County. The suit, brought by Winston & Strawn and Kelly Hart & Hallman, alleges claims for unfair competition, theft of confidential information and interference with contractual relations. WIS accuses the defendants of poaching the plaintiff's managers and other employees as part of a campaign to compete against the plaintiff and leverage WIS trade secrets. Counsel have not yet appeared for the defendants. The case is 348-341198-23, Retail Services Wis Corporation Vs Contract Datascan Holdings, Inc. Stay up on the latest deals and litigation with the new Law.com Radar.
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