Salary/Benefits/Insurance/Bonus/Hiring Survey--Firm Health

It's that time of year again, folks. Time to do a survey of the Vegas legal industry.

As usual, we rely on reader tips to provide information on:

• starting salaries
• lockstep raises
• guaranteed salary increases
• benefits,
• insurance benefits,
• bonuses, and
• the state of hiring in Fall 2009 (how many were hired)

Please send in any and all information to nevadalegal@gmail.com. All information will be compiled into a spreadsheet and published later in Sept.

Also, this year, we are looking for information on all firms, legal businesses and government posts, no matter the size. So please send in any details you know to nevadalegal@gmail.com.

* for this round, we're just looking for information on attorney positions, but we will be working on a similar survey for support staff soon.

It's Get a Job Tuesday

With the down economy and the amount of people emailing us for work, WWL will be posting job openings from time to time. We won't post every job that comes across Craigslist, but will allow employers to send us their job opening announcements if they include salary, benefits and billable hours requirements (if a billable firm). With that preamble, here's our first offering sent in by our old friend Mr. Ross:

LITIGATION - INSURANCE DEFENSE

Ross Legal Search is seeking a candidate 3-6 years out. High Volume litigation experience only. This is a law firm Associate opportunity in Las Vegas. Law firm experience and NV Admission is required. Salary is 90K. Benefits include health insurance coverage for the associate beginning on the 1st of the month following 30 days of employment, productivity bonus starting at 1750 hours of up to 20K per year and entry into a 401K plan after one year. Must have a minimum of 2 years of Nevada Insurance Defense experience. Position includes work in First- and Third-Party Insurance Defense, Construction Defect, Insurance Coverage, Fraud and Bad Faith. Construction Defect experience as well as experience in trial, court appearances and depositions is desirable but not required as the client is willing to train in these areas.

If you wish to send us your resume, please e-mail it, as an attachment, to info@rosslegal.com, in Microsoft Word or Word Perfect format. We ask that resumes not be submitted in PDF format or in the body of an e-mail message.

Checking in with CL: Have things really gotten that bad?

We received a tip about a back and forth war of words on the Craigslist legal hiring board (chain of posts available here). It all started as a posting for an open Paralegal position, hiring at $9 an hour (post available here). A debate began over whether a decent paralegal could be found for $9 an hour, even in this economy.

Then the hiring law office shot back with this comment:

I never wrote that a paralegal was worth only $9 per hour or that it was a fair wage - what I said was that I posted on CL and that there were people requesting that much due to the economy - the average requested was probably in the $10-$12 range. I even had a couple of attorneys, who were having trouble finding work, ask for $10 per hour.

(Craigslist post available here)(emphasis added)

What do you think readers? Just a Human Resources person mouthing off to Craigslist detractors or has it gotten bad enough for attorneys to offer their services for $10 an hour?

If so, watch out Mr. Stokes. I'm pretty sure that price is even cheaper than a half-price lawyer.

Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

We've been getting a lot of emails from nervous job seekers, who we assume are studying for the bar exam, asking if anyone is hiring.

The following job-seeking advice editorial comes from WWL's professional etiquette editor:
1) if you're studying for the bar, focus on the bar exam and drinking and/or praying your way through it;
2) check out the Boyd School career services postings, craigslist legal jobs and the billboard Plaintiff's firms for work [may not lead to the best job in Vegas, but it's better than working at Denny's];
3) open up a solo practice and develop a niche area of practice (family law might work--people won't stop getting divorced in Nevada);
4) Alverson Taylor will be hiring in 3-6 months when it's current crop of new associates have escaped;
5) look to smaller construction defect and bankruptcy firms. They seem to still have a solid book of business;
6) network every day and night and inform everyone you know that you're still looking for work;
7) maybe Denny's is hiring. It beats being unemployed.

The Legal Economy: a View from Boyd Career Services

With all the discussions about the economy and how it's affecting hiring, WWL thought it would check in with the person who gets paid to keep an eye on the legal economy in Vegas: Cynthia Asher, Director of Career Services for UNLV's Boyd School of Law.

We asked her a few questions and she was kind enough to give us her thoughts:

What's your take on the state of the legal economy in Las Vegas?

The LV legal market as a whole has slowed down along with the rest of the economy but we seem to be doing better than the primary markets. We've
seen some layoffs and movement between firms but nothing like what we've seen in
CA, for example. Some practice areas are at a standstill but we're seeing a lot
of job postings by personal injury and insurance defense firms.

How are recent Boyd graduates doing finding work in the current market?

We're still getting in data on this year's graduating class at Boyd but the
numbers appear to be right on track with last year's placement numbers. We'll
know for certain in February (the deadline for reporting placement data to NALP)
so please check back with me then and I'll be happy to share them. The number of
judicial clerkship placements for the Class of 2009 came up a bit with a few
more federal court placements than in prior years.

[Editor's note: according to Boyd's website, the Class of 2008 had a 93.6% employment rate 9 mo. after graduating with 77.9% having a job offer before graduation; 83% of the 2008 class was employed in Nevada (stats here thanks to Anon)]

Has Boyd's jump in US News rankings opened the doors to more employers or new markets for Boyd students?

I think it's too early to know if our improved US News ranking will cause
out-of-state employers to take notice. Larger out-of-state employers in the
region already interview on-campus but I'm interested in seeing if some of the
smaller firms start to do so as well. For the 2009-10 year, we are focusing our
efforts on creating opportunities for Boyd students outside of the state
(Portland, Seattle, SLC, Sacramento, Denver, etc.).

Seems like the verdict's still out on how hard it's been for 2009 Boyd grads to find work, but those looking for work should have take heart. Apparently, the inability of Vegas drivers to drink coffee, change the radio station, text their friend and drive all at the same time means personal injury and insurance defense firms are still hiring.

See, It's Not All Bad ...

We have a bit of good news today (although not for Boyd students). It looks like local firm Lionel Sawyer & Collins is actually adding attorneys. Wait! Don't all jump into your leased Beemer's and race to their office just yet ... the positions have been filled. LSC brought on five new associates recently:

Jing Zaho from Michigan;

Abigayle Dang from Washington University;

Greg Carlson from UC Hastings;

Brin Gibson from BYU; and

Elizabeth High, former D.C. Associate and Federal District Court Clerk.

If your name is not listed above, you may return to your job search ... sorry if we got your hopes up.

But seriously, it is good to see that LSC (for the time being, anyway) has shown an ability to manage itself in a financially responsible manner. When asked if there were changes taking place at LSC due to the current economic climate, our helpful tipster responded that there were "no real changes except for a smaller incoming class and smaller summer associate class." What? You mean to say that it isn't necessary to freeze salaries and nuke summer programs to stay profitable ... the hell you say!

When asked about the lack of Boyd hires, he responded:

While I'm not part of the hiring process, I think a large part of the Boyd thing is that there is a lot of competition among firms for the top of the class and not a lot for everyone else. So if we interview the top 10 - 15 students, probably 5 - 10 of them are a good fit, and those 5 - 10 probably have multiple offers. So it's not unreasonable to think that we might not end up with any Boyd students. And why dip lower in to the Boyd class when there are other well qualified
candidates out there (like the ones mentioned above)?

Ouch! That stings a little.

Come on, LSC ... let's show a little local love. Is there really that big of a difference between #15 and #30 at Boyd? Maybe you guys should drop the "law school grades = ability to practice" garbage and dig a little deeper for some local talent. You did, after all, hire their former dean.

(Thanks, VD)

Ask the "Shark Pimp"

In this (potentially) downward-spiraling market, we thought it would be a good idea to get another Q & A going with everyone's favorite law firm headhunter, Mr. Jordan Ross. This was very successful the last time we did it, and should be even more interesting now that the market has transitioned from "Vegas to 120" to "please sir, may I have some more?"

Jordan Ross is the only Nevada member of the National Association of Legal Search Consultants. He is the principal of Ross Legal Search, LLC and previously served four years as a Vice-President with John Kurosky & Associates, a legal search firm in Irvine CA. In layman's terms: he finds jobs for those looking to make a lateral move, and he's good at it.

If you have a question you would like us to pose to Mr. Ross about anything related to our Nevada legal market, please post it in the comments or drop us a line at nevadalegal@gmail.com. We will take submissions until Friday, then submit your questions to Mr. Ross. The responses will be included in a future post. 

Tuesday Roundup

Is there a legal specialty to be had in suing condo-hotels?  Gerard & Associates is apparently building one, handling lawsuits filed against the MGM Grand hotel-condo and Trump International Hotel & Tower.  (LV Business Press)

Congratulations to Valerie Del Grosso, who was hired as an Associate by Kummer Kaempfer after passing the 2008 Nevada Bar exam.  (KKBRF blog)

Meanwhile, In Business Las Vegas has a profile of Ellen Schulhofer is the managing shareholder for the Las Vegas office of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck. (In Business Las Vegas)

Roundup on a Tues

What the hell is this state coming to?  I thought it was a libertarian paradise, but apparently you can't leave your baby outside the casino for an hour while you go in and gamble.  wtf?!? (RJ)

Advice for young attorneys from former politician and longtime Vegas litigator: "As Brian Wilson says, 'Hold onto your ego.'  Whenever you see an attorney performing in court, it’s not helping the client. The client might like it, but he’s really losing the case."  (LV Sun)  [advice for Mr. Callister: choose a job and stick to it]

Congratulations to:

Joe Schrage, who was hired as an associate by McDonald Carano Wilson.  (LV Business Press)

Brin Gibson, Greg Carlson and Abigayle Dang, who were hired as associates by Lionel Sawyer & Collins. (LV Business Press)

Friday Roundup

This story's been all over the legal blogs, but it's worth repeating due to the inventiveness of federal government IP attorneys: the feds now hold the trademark on the Mongols Motorcycle gang's logo and are trying to prevent the gang from displaying the logo.  (LV Sun) 

Because people asked for links on the proposed new ethical rules: Appealing in Nevada offers links to the proposed amendments.  (Appealing in Nevada)

Congratulations to Jacqueline Gilbert, Joseph Goldman, Christopher Pastore, Quinton Singleton and Nikkya Williams, who were named as associates at the growing Vegas heavyweight Lewis and Roca.  (Jaffe Legal News Service)

Mid-week Roundup

News that Dr. Needles Desai and friends may have [allegedly] infected more people in the Valley, bringing the number of people infected with Hep-C [allegedly] by Endoscopy up to 105.  (Las Vegas Now)  [free Hep-C infection is so much better than a free lollipop, don't you think?]

Congratulations to:

Seetal Tejura, who was named a partner at the Vegas legal sweatshop of Alverson, Taylor, Mortensen & Sanders.  (RJ)  [do you think she still only gets paid by the billable hour?

Brian Anderson, who was hired as an associate by Santoro, Driggs, Walch, Kearney, Holley & Thompson. (RJ)

Midweek Roundup

Attention sex offenders, move to Nevada!  We care about your rights.  (Las Vegas Now)

The defendant who asked "am I my brother's keeper" in front of Judge Wall found out that apparently, he was and stabbing his brother to death = 10-25 yrs.  (RJ)

Congratulations to Christina Mallatt, who was named an associate at Fisher & Phillips.  (RJ)

And congrats to Kummer Kaempfer Bonner Renshaw & Ferrario, which was named Nevada's top law firm for land use and zoning law, mergers and acquisitions, government relations law, energy law and corporate law by the 2009 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. (LV Business Press)

Midweek Roundup

Looks like this Construction Defect Home Owners' Association/politician/attorney scandal is heating up and will be high drama. A retired Las Vegas police officer named in the allegations of corruption committed suicide yesterday. (Review-Journal)

In the Endoscopy/Dr. "Needles" Desai civil matter, Judge Earl ordered that Dr. Needles and the other [alleged] scumbag greedy physicians who handed out free Hep-C to their patients will be deposed. (RJ) Although, I am guessing there will be a record number of times a deponent takes the 5th in each deposition.

Congratulations to Laura Bielinski, Christopher Kircher, Erin Lewis and Zachary Takos, who were named associates at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck. (RJ)

Meanwhile, Harmful Error continues its coverage of the impending judicial election [now 100% Halverson free!] (Harmful Error)

End of the Week Roundup

Don't piss off your wife. She might install internet filters and report you for watching child porn. (Review-Journal) [come to think of it, maybe you just shouldn't watch child porn]

Apparently, kidnapping children (even if the motive is to teach a school a lesson about child safety) will get you jailed. The two women who engaged in their version of impact litigation through kidnapping (see crazy-looking picture of one on the right) had bail set at $50k. (Review-Journal)

The Nevada Supremes are giving criminal defense attorneys more leeway to prove their clients are crazy. (Las Vegas Sun)

Meanwhile, good news: strip clubs in casinos may not be far off! (In Business)

Congratulations to Alyssa Fischer and Jonathan Blum, who were hired as Associates by Santoro, Driggs, Walch, Kearney, Holley & Thompson. (Inside Business)

Weekend Roundup

The RJ reports about the Innocence Project at the Boyd School and the law student, Lucy Flores, who helped start it. (Review-Journal) Through the program, students investigate the crimes for which a defendant has already been convicted in the hopes of proving the person's innocence.

Meanwhile, one defendant who was pronounced innocent, but most people think is guilty (O.J.) is ready for his second trial. (Review-Journal). His co-defendant, however, is appealing to the NV Supremes for a separate trial or a delay in the hopes that either procedural maneuver would prevent his being found guilty by association with O.J. (Review-Journal)

Congratulations to Jason Jeskey, who was hired as an associate by Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck (Review-Journal) and Deanna Brinkerhoff who was hired as an associate by Holland & Hart (Review-Journal).

End of Week Roundup

Congratulations to Deanna Brinkerhoff, who was named an associate by Holland & Hart. (Review-Journal)

Speaking of Holland & Hart, congratulations to the firm itself, which was named law firm of the year by the Las Vegas chapter of the National Bar Association. (Holland Hart Blog)

And Vegas has another celebrity trial on the way: former Hip-Hop mogul and longtime thug, "Suge" Knight, is in the Clark County Detention Center after police found him holding a knife and standing over a woman in the western Las Vegas Valley today. He is charged with assault with a deadly weapon, battery domestic violence, possession of a controlled substance and possession of dangerous drugs without a prescription, police said. (Las Vegas Sun) Update: Suge Knight is out on bail. (AP)

Weekend Roundup

No delay for the upcoming trial on charges of armed robbery and kidnapping for O.J. Simpson and his co-defendant. (AP)

The highest profile divorce in the country continues with the lawyer for first lady Dawn Gibbons saying that Gov. Jim Gibbons has violated an agreement with his estranged spouse by speaking to the media about his wife and their pending divorce. (Review-Journal)

Congratulations to Assistant Clark County District Attorney Robert Teuton who has been appointed to fill the Family Court judge's position left vacant by retiring Judge Gerald Hardcastle. (Review-Journal)

A federal class action lawsuit has been filed in Massachusetts against Perini Corp. of Framingham alleging violations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Act. The suit, on behalf of holders of Perini Corp., alleges that Perini failed to tell stock holders about financial problems with its Las Vegas projects. (Worcester Business Journal)

Nevada may soon get rid of the duty to retreat within a home. So get your shotguns ready homeowners. (Fox 5 Vegas)

Chicken Ranch girl makes good? A former porn star/prostitute works her way through the 1L year at a SoCal law school. (Bitter Lawyer)

Congratulations to Christopher Stephens who was named a shareholder by Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck. (Review-Journal)

Friday Roundup

Congratulations to Adam Smith, Xenophon Peters and Joseph Schmitt who were hired as Associates at Christensen, Glaser, Fink, Jacobs, Weil & Shapiro LLP. The firm also named Tony May as Of Counsel. (Review-Journal) Looks like Adam Smith is one of the Associates Lance Coburn stole from Lionel Sawyer when Coburn left.

Harmful Error has a link to Jon Ralston's interview of the judicial candidates for Dept. O. (Harmful Error)

[thanks to VD for the tip]

End of the week Roundup

In Endoscopy news, District Attorney David Roger says the County Prosecutor's office has begun using a county grand jury as "an investigative tool” in the probe of how Dr. Needles Desai and other Endoscopy personnel [allegedly] handed out free infection with Hep-C to patients at their clinic. (Las Vegas Sun--2nd story)

Congratulations to Stacy Harrop, Samuel Kern, Howard Kim and Robert Reid, named as Associates by Santoro, Driggs, Walch, Kearney, Holley & Thompson. (Review-Journal)

Harmful Error details the race for Family Court Dept. K between Ellen Bezian, Nicholas Del Vecchio, Cynthia Giuliani and Vincent Ochoa (Harmful Error) as well as the race for Family Court Dept. N between Mathew Harter, John Jensen, Terrance Marren and Gayle Nathan. (Harmful Error)

Mid-Week Roundup

Bad news for the Hep-C victims of Dr. Needles Desai and Endoscopy Clinic: Judge Earl ruled this week that the victims could not sue Endocscopy's insurance company for failing to police the company's injection policies. (Las Vegas Now)

Congratulations to Stephen Mayfield, who was hired as an Associate by Hutchison & Steffen. (Review-Journal) and congratulations to Michael Dayton, named Vice President of Government Affairs by McDonald Carano Wilson. (Review-Journal)

Harmful Error profiles the race for the seat in Family Court Dept. I between Cheryl Moss, Gregory Gordon and Greta Muirhead (Harmful Error) and the race for the position in Family Court Dept. J between Jamie Kent, Lisa Kent, Michele Mercer, Kenneth Pollock and Morrisa Schechtman. (Harmful Error)

Meanwhile, the state Judicial Selection Commission chose attorneys Bryce Duckworth, Charles Hoskin, and Robert Teuton as nominees to fill the Family Court seat left vacant by retiring Judge Gerald Hardcastle. (Review-Journal)