LJN Newsletters

J.W. Toothman and W.G. Ross, Legal Fees: Law and Management. Carolina Academic Press, April 2003, 350 pp. plus appendix, cloth, ISBN 0-89089-068-4, $85.00.

This three-part article will summarize that discussion. Part One is a general overview and comparison of the major surveys currently available for U.S. law firms. Part Two will advise further on how to select a survey, and Part Three will explain how to get the most out of survey participation.

Most law firm partners react skeptically to the suggestion that their capital contributions should go up in 2003. After all, with the cost of borrowing at its lowest level in over 40 years, why should partners invest more capital in the firm, thereby delaying or reducing personal cash flow? Nevertheless, even well managed firms are now likely to need more partner-contributed capital than they did just a few years ago.

With the compromise-laden Federal tax cut now law, what if any are the implications for law firms? Members of this newsletter's Editorial Board and several other recent contributors were asked to address that question.

Recent rulings of importance to your practice.

Last month's article concluded with 'Surviving a Motion to Dismiss or Suspend,' which discussed the exact boundaries of international comity, and explained that these boundaries are not clear. Therefore, a court's decision on a motion to dismiss or suspend a non-U.S. debtor's bankruptcy case under section 305(a)(2) (which invokes the 304(c) factors) will depend heavily on the case's specific facts.

For the reader who has been involved in more debtor-in-possession(DIP) financings than he or she can remember, please treat this article as the opportunity to impress yourself with just how much you know about it. Check off each category if you can truthfully say 'I knew that!' A sum of eight or more checks makes you a big dipper.

Analyses of the latest rulings of importance to your practice.