Around the Firms

Last month, sources revealed that Cooley Godward and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe have abandoned merger talks. The firms had been in discussion since the beginning of 2003. Firm leaders would not give a confirmation either way. As far as the search for merger partners goes, Orrick is thinking about acquiring Venture Law Group, a corporate boutique based in Menlo Park, CA, with which it has had a client-sharing agreement for approximately 4 years. Though the status of discussion between the two firms is unclear, last May, a United Kingdom publication was told by Craig Johnson, Venture Law's co-founder, that the two firms had discussed a possible union.

But Cooley Does Have New Counsel

Late in July, Cooley Godward LLP, of Palo Alto, CA, let it be known that it has instituted a new position: The firm's first pro bono counsel is Maureen Alger, a resident in the Palo Alto office. She is responsible for the expansion and improvement of the firmwide pro bono practice. A Columbia Law School graduate, she joined the firm four years ago having previously held a clerkship with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Cooley Godward's chairman and chief executive officer, Stephen Neal praised Alger's efforts, and said that the growth of the practice will strengthen the firm's pro bonus services ' an vital part of Cooley's dealings and culture.

Chicago's Altheimer & Gray, 88 years old, is due to close its doors by Nov. 1. However, there has been some speculation regarding the reason for the firm's demise. Staff memos have placed the blame on a slackening of corporate mergers. But another view comes from six attorneys connected in one way or another with the firm, and this is that while the economy has caused suffrage, it is not entirely the reason for the closing. It seems that although the firm had been trying to trim, too many long-term partners who were failing to yield sufficient profits were being retained at payment levels that were too high. A former partner, who departed early this year, said that Altheimer faced the recent loss of many good attorneys ' some who were just the kind the firm needed in order to advance. Altheimer also faced the departure of several key partners during the past few years and also had a poor overseas performance. But although 24 equity partners left between 1998 and 2002, there was an increase in profits per partner ($410,000 in 1998 to $570,000 in 2000). According to affiliate publication The American Lawyer, last year this evened out at $505,000. An attorney privy to the firm's business dealings revealed that 2 years ago, Altheimer tried unsuccessfully to effect a merger partner in New York. A firm partner stated that while Altheimer had sufficient assets to cover its debt – said to be $30 million ' the cash flow was not enough to meet monthly payroll for approximately 9,000 employees. There was another theory reported in The American Lawyer and elsewhere, though current and former partners downplayed it. This was that partner Gerry Chico's shift in focus from firm business to politics (his 2004 Senate campaign) caused attrition in the firm's government relations practice. Supposedly this particular practice had an advantage with the political connections of Chico, who once was chief of staff to Richard M. Daley, Chicago's mayor.