The 500 Lawyer Limelight: Nicholas Gravante

February 17, 2013 By
Photo by Jennifer Pottheiser

His lineage is one of the most important things to know about Nick Gravante. Certainly, his Italian-American heritage from Brooklyn, but also his pristine credentials as a trial lawyer. Not too many lawyers have been mentored by David Boies, Gerald Shargel, Charles Ogletree and, for good measure, Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski. It’s not just luck that led to that cast of all-star mentors. Gravante is one of the hardest-working lawyers around, and has made a career of taking risks to ensure he learned every skill possible and … [Read more...]

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Cravath Nabs Head of USPTO

February 6, 2013 By
Photo provided by Cravath

Cravath has hired the head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, David J. Kappos. The hire is the second major addition from the Obama Administration for the firm, following last year's addition of Christine A. Varney, head of antitrust for the administration. The New York Time's Deal Book has a glowing take on the hires. The firm has become legendary for its patent work since its founding in 1819. "In the 19th century, the firm handled the electric light bulb patent litigation for Thomas Edison and the telegraph patent … [Read more...]

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LA Archdiocese to Release Names in Abuse Cases

January 31, 2013 By

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles has agreed to release unredacted files showing the names of church leaders who made decisions that left abusive priests in positions of further harming children. The Associated Press reported the decision noting that 30,000 personnel files could be released in the next few weeks. Ray Boucher of Kiesel & Larson in Los Angeles, who made our 2012 Lawdragon 500 guide,  has fought an epic battle with the church for the files, following his role securing a $660 million settlement for … [Read more...]

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Law Schools of the Lawdragon 500

January 10, 2013 By

Our seventh annual Lawdragon 500 represents the best of the best, from Supreme Court justices to Fortune 500 General Counsel, White House counsel to law firm leaders and superstars of the plaintiff bar. As such, it's an interesting proxy of which law schools produce the standouts of the legal profession. This year's #1 law school is Harvard, which ran away with the list with 71 alum featured. Those include: 5 U.S. Supreme Court justices, including Chief Justice John Roberts; the general counsel of KKR, Blackstone, Clorox and Twitter; … [Read more...]

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Dickinson Wright Merges With Mariscal

January 3, 2013 By

Dickinson Wright, one of the most prominent firms in Michigan, has merged with Phoenix-based Mariscal Weeks. Among the leading attorneys at Dickinson Wright is Dennis Archer, former ABA President, Michigan Supreme Court Justice and Mayor of Detroit. Perhaps it's no coincidence that Archer is the Chairman of the Board of the Phoenix School of Law, the first private law school in Arizona. The addition of the 60 Mariscal Weeks lawyers brings to approximately 350 the lawyer corps at Dickinson Wright, according to Crain's Detroit Business. … [Read more...]

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Lawyer Gives House to Homeless

January 3, 2013 By

Tony Tolbert is an exceptional person. He teaches Street Law at UCLA Law School, where he's the associate director of outreach. In that capacity, he brings together students who hope to attend law school to teach them the ropes of getting into a school and making good choices. The kids love him because he's so enthusiastic about the law and students and their aspirations. Recently, he opened his arms even wider, giving his home to a homeless family. He decided to move back in with his mom and dad for a year, so a family of five … [Read more...]

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Cravath Partner Jebejian Jumps to Kirkland

December 17, 2012 By

Sarkis Jebejian, a top M&A lawyer at Cravath, has departed for Kirkland & Ellis. A prior member of the Lawdragon 500, Jebejian boasts an impressive dealmaking book, including Northrop Grumman, PSEG, Genpact, NextEra Energy, BAE Systems, British American Tobacco plc and the independent directors of General Motors. In the press release from Kirkland, he said, "It was a difficult decision to leave Cravath and I will always cherish my career there, but I am excited to join Kirkland & Ellis and its talented team of M&A … [Read more...]

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FDIC Wins $168M in IndyMac Failure

December 10, 2012 By

In the first case filed against bank executives who sold toxic loans in the recent financial collapse, a Los Angeles jury took just five hours to return the entire $168M sought by the government. D&O Diary has written extensively on the case, including the verdict. The Met News quoted Patrick Richard of Nossaman, lead counsel for the FDIC, as saying that the fundamental issue was "what kind of bankers do we want in this country?" He added, “The defendants tried to blame bank regulators and the economy, but the jury got it … [Read more...]

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Northwestern Law Dean: “Kick Me”

December 10, 2012 By

Daniel B. Rodriguez, the estimable Dean of Northwestern Law School, recently asked how to reform the stuffy American Association of Law Schools. The AALS is comprised of 170 law schools with the mission of improving the legal profession through improving legal education. It also represents the interests of law schools with the federal government. Given that tens of thousands of law grads are unemployed and existing students face no real job prospects, it's not a bad question whether the AALS has any plans for change. At PrawfsBlawg, … [Read more...]

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Another Delusional Law School Dean?

December 5, 2012 By

Did the class of 2011 at American University in Washington, D.C. enjoy a 79.6% "employment" rate, as its Dean Claudio Grossman, suggests?  Or are American grads stuck in the same morass as almost every other non elite school? Law School Transpancy reports that the 2011 grads are 35.8% employed and 42.4% undermployed; add on 1.7% in judicial clerkships, and you get 79.9%. Grossman's startling assertion came in a letter to the editor of the Washington Post, in which he beat the Dean drum that law school is … [Read more...]

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