NEW YORK (November 12, 2009) – This month, The American Lawyer unveils the results of its fourteenth annual survey of technology directors at the nation’s largest law and the news is not good for clients or industry vendors. One-third of the 110 Am Law 200 firms participating in the survey reported that their capital budgets were down more than 10 percent this year. Staffing levels and salaries have taken hits, and equipment purchases and software upgrades have been deferred. And, in this month’s “In-House” column, editor in chief Aric Press challenges law firms to run their private partnerships as institutions built for the long run and outlines seven key issues partners must face in making that happen. For these stories, visit www.americanlawyer.com.

NEW YORK (November 10, 2009) – ALM’s upcoming LegalTech New York 2010, the nation’s largest and most prestigious legal technology conference and trade show, will feature a full-day, comprehensive workshop on Electronically Stored Information (ESI) litigation technology by Kroll Ontrack, the industry’s largest provider of legal technologies solutions. The workshop, which will take place Tuesday, February 2, will cover litigation preparedness techniques; data management and early case assessment tools for litigators; and ethical challenges raised by the preservation, collection, and production of ESI. LegalTech New York will take place February 1-3 2010 at the Hilton Hotel in New York City. Complete conference information is available at www.legaltechshow.com.

NEW YORK (November 9, 2009) – The National Law Journal, an ALM publication, today reported the biggest drop ever in total employment at the NLJ 250, the nation’s 250 largest law firms ranked by headcount. The total number of attorneys for the group declined by 4.0 percent this year, from 131,928 in 2008 to 126,669 in 2009. This is only the third time that attorney totals have declined since The National Law Journal started tracking census numbers of the largest law firms in 1978. Additional results and analysis from the 32nd annual survey are available in today’s issue of The National Law Journal and on the Web at www.nlj.com.

NEW YORK (November 3, 2009) – The American Lawyer/Corporate Counsel Litigation 2009 special report reflects the deep challenges faced by litigators in light of the recession: client cutbacks, reduced fees, the growth of alternative billing arrangements and layoffs for the underemployed. The report also profiles big-firm litigators who struck out on their own, the city of Baltimore’s closely-watched suit against Wells Fargo for alleged predatory lending practices and new thinking about creation of a world financial court to handle Madoff-scale fraud cases or cross-border disputes between the world’s biggest banks. For these and other stories, visit www.americanlawyer.com/2009.

NEW YORK (October 20, 2009) – ALM’s upcoming LegalTech New York 2010, the nation’s largest and most prestigious legal technology conference and trade show, will feature a day one keynote presentation by Russell Stalters, information technology and services (IT&S) head, information and record architecture, BPAmerica Inc. Stalters’ presentation will open the event, which will take place February 1-3 at the Hilton Hotel in New York City. Complete conference information is available at www.legaltechshow.com.

NEW YORK (October 20, 2009) – Law Technology News is now accepting law firm and legal department nominations for its 7th annual LTN Awards, recognizing industry leaders in both technology innovation and implementation. Categories include “IT Director of the Year,” “IT Champion of the Year” and “IT Consultant of the Year,” as well as “Most Innovative Use of Technology” in a trial, a law firm, a law department and for pro bono projects. Category winners will be decided by a three-judge panel from LTN’s Editorial Advisory Board. A new category, “Lifetime Achievement” (limited to nominees age 55+) will be judged by Monica Bay, editor in chief of LTN.

NEW YORK (October 19, 2009) – Median U.S. chief legal officer total cash compensation (salaries plus bonuses) increased by almost 4 percent this year to $485,200, according to the 2009 Law Department Compensation Benchmarking Survey by ALM Legal Intelligence, a leading source of business intelligence for the legal profession. But, the rate of increase slowed considerably from last year’s increase of 13 percent. In addition, general counsel/CLO was the only job title out of nine surveyed that had positive changes from 2008 to 2009 in all three categories—salary, bonus, total cash compensation. The study analyzed compensation data for more than 5,300 lawyers in 218 corporate law departments across the country. For further information, or to purchase a copy of the survey, visit www.almlegalintelligence.com.

NEW YORK (October 13, 2009) – The New Jersey Law Journal has released its fifth survey of New Jersey lawyers’ ratings of the quality of the 350 Superior Court judges on the state’s trial bench. Essex County’s Civil Presiding Judge Eugene Cody topped this year’s overall competence rankings. It was the first time since the Law Journal began publishing judicial surveys in 1989 that a civil presiding judge led the list. The survey results, designed to assess the comparative strengths and weaknesses of judges, their demeanor and their potential biases, are available in a special magazine supplement in this week’s issue of the New Jersey Law Journal and are also available on the Web at www.njlj.com.

NEW YORK (October 12, 2009) – ALM, an integrated media company, today announced the promotion of Fabio Bertoni to the new position of vice president, deputy general counsel. Bertoni, who has served as counsel in the company’s legal department since 2006, will expand his role in overseeing legal activities related to corporate affairs, financing, litigation, editorial liaison and intellectual property matters. Bertoni will continue to be based in New York City and to report to senior vice president and chief legal officer Allison Hoffman.

NEW YORK (October 7, 2009) – The American Lawyer Fall 209 Student Edition, now available digitally and on the publication’s Web site, underlines the growing job market uncertainty facing law school students. According to the publication’s annual survey of those associates lucky enough to land summer jobs at the nation’s largest law firms this year, almost half said they were not sure if they would receive a job offer, up sharply from just 17 percent last year and 12 percent in 2007. According to law firm and law school leaders interviewed, cutbacks in jobs, salary levels and perks for new associates are likely to persist, even after the economy recovers. And, many in the industry fear that diversity hiring and promotion efforts at law firms will also fall victim to the recession. To read the entire Fall Student Edition online, visit www.americanlawyerse.com.