DC Pulse


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    Holland & Knight Adds Ex-House Speaker's Adviser In DC

    Holland & Knight LLP has added the former senior policy adviser and counsel to Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., as a public policy and regulation practice group partner.

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    Katten Exceeds Market Bonus Scale, Orrick Matches

    Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP has joined a select few law firms that have gone beyond the BigLaw norm for year-end and special bonuses.

  • Voir Dire: Law360 Pulse's Weekly Quiz

    The legal industry kicked off December with another action-packed week as BigLaw firms continued bonus season and announced partner promotions. Test your legal news savvy here with Law360 Pulse's weekly quiz.

  • Senate Impeachment Hearing On Judges Likely In January

    The Senate hearing on impeachment of "rogue" judges is likely going to be rescheduled for January, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who will be chairing the hearing, told Law360 on Thursday.  

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    Eversheds Sutherland Names Partners In Atlanta, DC And NY

    Eversheds Sutherland has elevated six attorneys in Atlanta, Washington, D.C., and New York to serve as partners starting Jan. 1, a slight decrease from the 10 attorneys promoted to partner at the start of this year.

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    Cahill Gordon Offers Associates 'Super Bonus' Of Up To $200K

    Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP won't just match BigLaw's prevailing scale for year-end bonuses — the firm will also reportedly offer outsized special bonuses, or super bonuses, up to $200,000 for high-performing associates.

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    2025 DC Partner Market Driven By Appeals Spike, Gov't Moves

    The number of partner moves within the Washington, D.C., litigation market continued to grow this year, driven by factors including increased demand for appellate lawyers and a steady flow of government attorneys leaving for private practice, according a report released Thursday.

  • Democracy Forward Announces New Leadership Hires

    Democracy Forward, a progressive nonprofit that has lodged some 85 actions against the Trump administration, announced Thursday it hired new staff, including a new deputy managing attorney and a new director of a collaborative initiative focused on reshaping the federal government with community-driven policies and public servants.

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    Foreign Investment Office Leader Joins DLA Piper In DC

    The former leader of a Commerce Department office that does national security reviews of foreign investments, and who has more than a decade of working in senior roles in government, has joined DLA Piper LLP's Washington office as a partner, the firm announced Wednesday.

  • Blank Rome's 2026 Partnership Class Is Biggest In 7 Years

    Blank Rome LLP will elevate 14 attorneys to partner in the new year, its highest partnership class in seven years.

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    Appeal Of US Atty Invalidations May Be 'Devastating' To DOJ

    As the list of interim and acting U.S. attorneys found to be unlawfully appointed under President Donald Trump grows, so too does the pressure on his administration to make the next move, which could force a risky strategic decision on whether to push the issue up to the U.S. Supreme Court, experts said.

  • Law Firm Real Estate Report

    The East Coast logged plenty of law firm real estate activity in November, as several firms, including Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz PC and Porzio Bromberg & Newman PC, moved into new offices in New Jersey, New York, Florida and Washington, D.C.

  • Street Preacher Goes Up Against Heck At High Court

    U.S. Supreme Court justices on Wednesday heard arguments over whether a street preacher convicted of a Mississippi state crime can use a federal civil rights lawsuit to challenge the constitutionality of the law used to convict him.

  • Trump Would Prefer Jack Smith Testify In Public

    Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, subpoenaed former counsel Jack Smith on Tuesday for a closed-door deposition, to which President Donald Trump said he would rather see a public testimony.

  • Troutman Atty Is 3rd NC Federal Judge Confirmed This Week

    The Senate voted 57-41 on Wednesday to confirm Matthew Orso, a partner at Troutman Pepper Locke LLP, to the Western District of North Carolina as a federal district judge.

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    Virginia Bar Declines To Investigate Interim US Atty Halligan

    The Virginia State Bar has declined to investigate whether Lindsey Halligan should face discipline over her scandal-plagued tenure as the interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, just days after a federal judge ruled she was not properly appointed to that post.

  • OCC Taps Ex-DC Civil Division Head As Deputy Chief Counsel

    The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency said Wednesday that it has hired a longtime litigator with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia to be a senior official in the banking agency's legal department.

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    ABA Urges Attys To Guard Confidentiality In Withdraw Motions

    The American Bar Association on Wednesday advised attorneys that they must leave information about their representation of a client out of any motions they file to withdraw as their counsel unless they have an explicit exception to existing confidentiality rules or the client's consent.

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    Wiley Adds Another Federal Atty In DC, This Time From DOJ

    A U.S. Department of Justice attorney who was staffed on one of the agency's high-profile monopolization cases against Google, has joined Wiley Rein LLP as a partner, the firm announced Wednesday.

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    Wilson Sonsini To Switch Leaders For 1st Time Since 2012

    Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati PC announced plans for its first top leadership transition in more than a decade on Wednesday, tapping a Palo Alto, California-based litigator and a New York-based corporate lawyer to begin co-leading the firm at the start of next August.

  • Former Gov't Workers Challenge Trump's DEI Firing Spree

    The Trump administration unlawfully targeted perceived political enemies, women and people of color when it fired all federal employees who served in roles related to diversity, equity and inclusion, former government workers said Wednesday in a proposed class action.

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    High Billers At McKool Smith To Pocket Extra Bonus Money

    McKool Smith is the latest BigLaw firm to announce extra cash for attorneys who went above and beyond with billable hours in 2025, according to an internal memo obtained by Law360 Pulse.

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    Fed. Circ. Pushes DC Circ. Not To Rethink Newman Decision

    The Federal Circuit has urged the D.C. Circuit to ignore Federal Circuit Judge Pauline Newman's request to rehear a decision upholding the dismissal of her suit against the colleagues who suspended her, saying the judiciary has the right to police its own internal matters.

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    Cooley Names Largest Partner Class In 4 Years With 23 Attys

    Cooley LLP will add 23 lawyers to the firm's partnership when the new year starts, up slightly from the number of new partners added last year.

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    Fed. Judges' Public Spat With Justices May Undermine Courts

    Public criticism being traded back and forth in recent months between U.S. Supreme Court justices and lower-court federal judges over the justices' emergency orders is highly unusual in itself, but it also raises the risk of eroding public trust in the judiciary.

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Expert Analysis

  • Talking Mental Health: The View From Life After BigLaw Author Photo

    Life coach and author Wendy Tamis Robbins discusses why she left a career in BigLaw to work in the professional well-being space after finding freedom from anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder and substance use disorders, and highlights two changes the legal industry should implement to address attorneys' mental health.

  • 6 Essential Skills For Summer Associates To Land An Offer
    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    With full-time offer rates at the lowest point since 2012, summer associates must do all they can to distinguish themselves, starting with a few fundamentals — from the importance of asking clarifying questions to being honest about mistakes, says James Argionis at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Making Legal Cents: How Law Firms Can Innovate Faster Author Photo

    To meet the demands of an evolving legal market and changing client expectations, law firms must not only embrace innovation, but also find ways to accelerate adoption and mitigate risks in an industry historically resistant to change, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Strategic Consulting.

  • Ask A Mentor: How Should Departing Partners Approach Pay? Author Photo

    Sabina Lippman at CenterPeak discusses steps BigLaw partners can take when considering a move or announcing their departure to help navigate tricky compensation issues and remain on good terms with their current partners.

  • How 2 Litigators Decided Dad Would Stay Home With The Kids Author Photo

    Jennifer Hoekstra at Aylstock Witkin shares the tough conversations about timing, goals, logistics and values involved in her family's decision that she would build her career as a litigator and law firm partner while her husband stepped back from his own litigation role to stay home with their children.

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    My Nonpracticing Law Job: Legal Commentary Ghostwriter Author Photo

    Wayne Pollock at Copo Strategies shares how he went from overworked Am Law 50 associate to owner of a legal thought leadership ghostwriting service, and provides four lessons for anyone who might be considering launching a business within the legal industry.

  • Ask A Mentor: As Trials Grow Rarer, How Do I Hone My Skills? Author Photo

    Gary Parsons at Brooks Pierce offers advice for young lawyers seeking trial experience in an environment where fewer cases make it to trial, including how to build their reputations, set their expectations and pick the right firm.

  • Talking Mental Health: Managing Depression As A Co. Founder Author Photo

    New Era ADR co-founder Collin Williams discusses his journey navigating a clinical depression diagnosis, how this experience affected his leadership style, and what the legal industry can do to better support attorneys with mental health conditions.

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    My Nonpracticing Law Job: Career And Wellness Coach Author Photo

    Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea shares how she went from BigLaw partner to legal industry career and wellness coach, and explains how attorneys can use their capabilities, knowledge and professional networks to pursue coaching themselves, or bring refreshed meaning and purpose to their current roles.

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    Talking Mental Health: Tackling Stress As A Practice Leader Author Photo

    Constance Rhebergen at Bracewell discusses how she handles the stress of being a practice chair, how sources of stress have changed in the legal industry over the past decade and what law firms can do to protect attorney mental health.

  • Making Legal Cents: Engaging A Remote, Evolving Workforce Author Photo

    In the face of a dispersed and changing workforce with Generation Z entering the scene, law firms should consider some practical strategies to revitalize their cultures, provide meaningful mentorship and safeguard their knowledge bases, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Strategic Consulting.

  • How Firms Can Effectively Evaluate Their Summer Associates Author Photo

    One of the most effective ways firms can ensure their summer associate programs are a success is by engaging in a timely and meaningful evaluation process and being intentional about when, how and by whom feedback should be provided, say Caroline Cimei and Erica Fine at Shutts & Bowen.

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    Talking Mental Health: Life As A Lawyer With OCD Author Photo

    Kelly Hughes at Ogletree discusses what she’s learned in the 14 years since she was diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder, recounting how the experience shaped her law practice, what the legal industry and general public get wrong about the disorder, and how law firms can better support employees who have OCD.

  • 3 Innovative Ways AI May Be Used In Legal Practice
    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Artificial intelligence tools will increasingly be used by outside counsel to better predict the outcomes of litigation — thus informing legal strategy with greater precision — and by clients to scrutinize invoices and evaluate counsel’s performance, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

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    My Nonpracticing Law Job: Librarian Author Photo

    Lisa A. Goodman at Texas A&M University shares how she went from a BigLaw associate who liked to hang out in the firm's law library to director of a law library herself in just over a decade, and provides considerations for anyone interested in pursuing a law librarian career.

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