The Super Lawyers Blog : Super Lawyers Blog : Information and Opinion on Legal Marketing and Lawyer Ratings

Howard Talenfeld Fosters Hope

2012-05-16T15:29:08Z

Civil rights attorney Howard Talenfeld, with Colodny, Fass, Talenfeld, Karlinsky & Abate in Fort Lauderdale, has focused his career on improving the lives of Florida's foster children. He talked with us about his work in the 2011 issue of Florida Super Lawyers & Rising Stars. In addition to fighting for their rights in the courtroom, he organized an advocacy group called Florida's Children First.

]]> "The only way advocates can make a difference is from the outside, working through advocacy organizations," he says. "The only consistency is to strengthen the child advocates, give them a unified voice, and teach lawyers how to file cases like we've filed. That's the only way these kids will ever be protected."

When he started his career, Talenfeld practiced commercial and personal injury law. Asked to defend the state in cases involving social services, he was drawn to that area of the law. "I couldn't defend the system, but I could defend the state's right to improve the system," he says.

Now he often takes on the state in court, on behalf of vulnerable children. Talenfeld is pleased with the direction of his career.

"I had reached a point in my young career where I just didn't see a purpose fighting about money in commercial cases," he says. "I had a chance to start fighting to improve systems for vulnerable persons."

Read the full story about Talenfeld here.

Pennsylvania Super Lawyers: By the Numbers

2012-05-11T15:13:39Z

The 2012 issue of Pennsylvania Super Lawyers will hit the streets in June. To tide you over, here are some stories we found in this year's list data.

1. We received more than 20,000 attorney nominations and evaluations for the 2012 Super Lawyers list
2. The attorney with the earliest bar admission on this year's Pennsylvania Super Lawyers list is Richard A. Sprague of Sprague & Sprague in Philadelphia, who was admitted in 1954.
3. More than 62 percent of attorneys selected to the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers list this year have been on the list each year since 2008.

]]> The list by firm size:
1-10                           30%
11-50                         23%
51-100                       9%
101+                          38%

The list by city:
Philadelphia: 1225 (51%)
Pittsburgh: 467 (19%)

The average number of years in practice for a listee is just over 30.

The list by law school alumni:
Temple University Beasley School of Law: 359
Villanova University School of Law: 325
University of Pittsburgh School of Law: 235
University of Pennsylvania Law School: 225
Duquesne University School of Law: 179

Being Atticus: Bearing the Name of America's Most Revered Lawyer

2012-05-09T15:52:45Z

Atticus Wegman of Aitken*Aitken*Cohn in Santa Ana, Calif., a listee in the 2012 issue of Southern California Rising Stars, has the distinction of being the first lawyer named Atticus on any of our Super Lawyers or Rising Stars lists. In part two of our two-part interview, Wegman talks about the positives and negatives of being named for the most famous and revered fictional lawyer of all time. (Part one can be read here.)

Were you named for Atticus Finch?
I was. I grew up in a small town in Iowa, 5,000 people. The county has about 30,000 people and my uncle is currently the county attorney there, and my grandpa was the county attorney before him. My great grandpa was the state treasurer of Iowa.

That was my mom's side of the family. She was always surrounded by law and she always wanted to go to law school but didn't. She loved "To Kill a Mockingbird" and decided to name me after Atticus Finch. I doubt she thought about how that would affect me if I entered the field of law. [Laughs]

And how has it affected you? What are the negatives of being named Atticus?
The obvious negative is being unable to live up to the expectations of anyone who has read the book. Living up to the expectations is both a negative and a positive, I think, because it holds me to a high standard.

A fictional standard.
Exactly. When I make initial appearances before judges, sometimes I'll get asked that question; and I'll have to say, "Yes, I was named after Atticus Finch." Then I'll put out a disclaimer about expectations and I usually get a laugh.

]]> What are some specific responses you've gotten? Because I've run into a lot of attorneys who became attorneys because of Atticus Finch and "To Kill a Mockingbird."
Yeah, I've run into a couple, too. They ask if it's from the book and then they stand back and think about it for a minute. They probably expect something spectacular--like a magic trick or something.

[Laughs] Or pearls of wisdom. About walking in another man's shoes.
Yes. But I'm really fortunate and grateful. And it is a great story.

How old were you when you first read the book?
My mom read it to me when I was really young; then I read it in grade school; then several times since. Aside from the legal standpoint of going against the grain and standing up for justice, it's a good childhood story, too. Reading about Jem and Scout's adventures makes us all want to be kids again.

Did you have that kind of childhood?
It was very similar. The small town in the book is similar in terms of landscape to Iowa. That's how it is there. My uncle, the county attorney, will still walk to work every now and then. My grandpa before him did that, too.

In 2003, the American Film Institute voted Atticus Finch the greatest hero in American cinematic history.

Donn Beloff on Buying Burger King

2012-05-09T13:35:35Z

Burger King is about to go public again, after being taken private about two years ago by 3G Capital. Donn Beloff, a mergers and acquisitions attorney in Fort Lauderdale, is heading up the Greenberg Traurig team representing Justice Holdings, a London investment firm. Justice is paying $1.4 billion to 3G Capital in a leveraged buyout for about 29 percent control of the fast-food chain.

Beloff tells how everything had to be hush-hush in the early stages:

]]> "Under [London Stock Exchange] rules, if information concerning the proposed transaction became public, trading in Justice's shares would have been suspended," Beloff explained. "In addition, Burger King wanted to advise its franchisees of the proposed transaction directly, rather than having them hear about it in a news report.

"In Washington, you quickly learn that, if more than one person knows about something, it's not a secret. Consequently, the number of people who knew about the transaction was strictly limited, code names were used, documents were password-protected, and most meetings involving Burger King personnel were held off-site. We did manage to keep the transaction secret until the formal public announcement in the UK on April 3."

Getting to that point was no easy feat. "The transaction was extremely complicated because of the structuring required to reduce the tax impact on the Justice shareholders," Beloff said. "That structuring included the creation of a Delaware corporation and Delaware LLC to complete the acquisition, the distribution of the shares of the Delaware corporation to Justice's shareholders, the listing of the Delaware corporation's shares on the New York Stock Exchange and the dissolution of Justice following the consummation of the transaction."

Justice was very happy with the deal. Bill Ackman, one of the company's directors and co-founders, said, "When I learned that Burger King was interested in a possible transaction with Justice, I brought the opportunity to my Justice founding partners to consider. They liked what I saw, a 58-year-old global brand, and a simple, predictable, free cash-flow growth franchise in the process of transformation into a pure brand royalty business. The results to date have been remarkable."

Burger King and 3G were represented by Kirkland & Ellis, whose team included New York Super Lawyers listees Stephen Fraidin, William Sorabella and Joshua Korff.

Atticus Wegman: How the Class of 2010 Found Work

2012-05-08T18:04:28Z

Atticus Wegman of Aitken*Aitken*Cohn in Santa Ana, Calif., a listee in the 2012 issue of Southern California Rising Stars, has the distinction of being the first lawyer named Atticus on any of our Super Lawyers or Rising Stars lists. In part one of our two-part interview, Wegman, a civil litigation attorney who graduated from Chapman University School of Law in May 2010, talks about how he found employment in this tough legal job market.

The last few years have been a particularly tough time for law school grads. How did you wind up at Aitken*Aitken*Cohn?
When I was in law school, the whole global financial crisis was happening and everyone could see that the legal market was changing. So I said to myself, "I'm not going to be able to rely solely on grades and submitting resumes; I need to get practical with the legal training and try to get as much experience as I can outside the classroom." So I put a lot of focus on trying to apply what I was learning as I was learning it.

I started at Aitken*Aitken*Cohn as a law clerk at the beginning of my second year and just worked as much as possible--trying to find a good balance between work and school. I worked my second year, and that summer, and all third year. The entire time I was hoping I could make some connections, and maybe that could transition into a full-time associate position.

Which is what happened.
Exactly. Get in and make as many personal connections as you can. And do a good job. I did anything and everything I could--whether it was helping the firm move files to storage, attending personal functions with other attorneys, or attending work events. I was always asking: "Is there anything else I can do?" You have to go out there and take on much more than you can handle.

]]> How did the law clerk position come to you in the first place?
I applied. And the first words out of the interviewer's mouth were, "We're not looking for any permanent position here; it's a temporary law-clerk position." But it's such a great firm that I couldn't pass up the experience and education I was going to get. In fact, the firm's founding partner, Wylie A. Aitken, has the Chapman University School of Law courtroom named after him.

Your first name--did that help at all?
I think that opened the door a bit.

Seriously?
Accompanied with the interview itself.

TOMORROW: Being Atticus

Dorsey & Whitney Turns 100

2012-05-07T13:50:15Z

Venerable Minneapolis-based law firm Dorsey & Whitney turned 100 over the weekend with a panoply of festivities, including a walleye-and-steak dinner for 1,000 Saturday night at the Minneapolis Convention Center. Gives us occasion to look back at our wide-ranging discussion last year with the managing partner of the firm, Marianne Short, which you can find here.

Alan B. Schaeffer's Secrets to Success

2012-05-01T18:25:11Z

Real estate attorney Alan B. Schaeffer at Pickrel, Schaeffer and Ebeling in Dayton, Ohio offered some tips for success -- even in challenging times -- in our 2011 issue of Ohio Super Lawyers & Rising Stars.

]]> "If you're going to be in the private practice of law, if you're going to be successful at what you do, your workday typically starts before 8 and ends after 5. There are very, very few, if any, wildly successful lawyers who can do this between 8 and 5 p.m. It's a lot of work. It's a lot of work. You simply have to be willing to make the sacrifice. And it impacts your life. It impacts your family relationships, and that's a real balancing act. You have to do your very best to find a happy medium.

"Also, attention to detail is critically important, and if you're going to do something you have to be prepared. Truly, a key to my success, if it's been nothing else, has been being prepared to the extent that I know more than the person I'm working with. In many cases I'm working with public officials, and knowledge is power. If you don't have the knowledge, you're at a disadvantage from the get-go."

Read the full article here.

Carter Phillips Takes the Reins at Sidley Austin

2012-05-01T15:47:16Z

It was announced today that Carter Phillips, renowned Washington, D.C., appellate lawyer, and owner of the current record for most stand-ups before the U.S. Supreme Court (71 at last count), has been named head of the executive committee at Sidley Austin. Congrats to Phillips, and to read our interview with him from last year, just go here.

San Diego Super Lawyers: By the Numbers

2012-04-30T17:37:13Z

The 2012 issue of San Diego Super Lawyers will be out in June. In the meantime, here are some of the numbers we crunched from among the listees.

We received more than 5,500 nominations and evaluations.
Sixty percent of lawyers selected this year have been on the list each of the last five years.
Three attorneys have been listed in the Top 10 each of the last five years:

George S. Howard Jr. of Jones Day

Virginia C. Nelson of Law Offices of Virginia C. Nelson, who was profiled in the article, "Unstoppable," in the 2008 issue

Dennis A. Schoville of Schoville & Arnell, who was profiled in the article, "King of the Long Shots," in the 2008 issue

The average number of years in practice for a listee is just over 29. The earliest year of admittance for a listee is 1953, while the most recent, shared by two lawyers, is 2001.

Here are the top 10 practice areas:

]]>

PRACTICE AREA

COUNT

PCT. OF TOTAL

Business Litigation

12.9%

Family Law

9.1%

Criminal Defense

6.5%

Employment & Labor

6.3%

Personal Injury Plaintiff: General

5.6%

Real Estate

5.4%

Intellectual Property Litigation

4.5%

Estate Planning & Probate

4.3%

Appellate

3.6%

Construction Litigation

2.9%

Finally, the list by firm size:

1-10: 47.7%
11-100: 21.5%
101-500: 12.0%
501-1,000: 12.3%
1,000+: 6.5%

Colorado Super Lawyers: By the Numbers

2012-04-25T23:11:53Z

The latest issue of Colorado Super Lawyers is out this month. Here are some of the numbers we crunched from among the listees:

We received more than 14,500 nominations and evaluations for the 2012 Colorado Super Lawyers list.
Average years in practice for lawyers on the list: 30
Percent of lawyers selected this year who have been on the list each of the last five years: 51

Four attorneys have been listed in the Top 10 each of the last five years. They are:

Jeffrey A. Chase of Husch Blackwell
William L. Keating of Fogel Keating Wagner Polidori Free, our 2009 cover subject
James M. Lyons of Rothgerber Johnson & Lyons, our 2007 cover subject
Malcolm E. Wheeler of Wheeler Trigg O'Donnell, our 2011 cover subject

The earliest year of admittance for any lawyer on the list is 1952: Lawrence Litvak, of Litvak Litvak Mehrtens and Epstein, our Q&A last year.

Here are the top 10 practice areas:

]]>

PRACTICE AREA

COUNT

PCT.

Business Litigation

134

12.5%

Real Estate

8.5%

Family Law

5.4%

Employment & Labor

4.9%

Estate Planning & Probate

4.6%

Personal Injury Plaintiff: General

4.0%

Criminal Defense

3.7%

Civil Litigation Defense

3.0%

Construction Litigation

2.9%

Environmental

2.8%

Finally, the list by firm size:

1-10: 37.5%
11-100: 32.0%
101-500: 21.7%
501-1,000: 7.8%
1,000+: 0/9%

Raymond A. Gill Jr.'s Tips on Connecting With Juries

2012-04-25T18:04:00Z

Raymond A. Gill Jr., founder of Gill & Chamas personal injury firm in Woodbridge, is known for his impassioned connections with jurors. In the latest issue of New Jersey Super Lawyers & Rising Stars, we asked him how he does it.

]]> A large part, clearly, is due to Gill's personality and persuasiveness--and his steadfast belief in each client's case. He also puts technology to good use.

"Jurors remember 80 percent of what they see and 20 percent of what they hear," Gill says. "The more you can integrate visuals into your presentation, the better the chance the jurors are going to recall what happened." He has a digital recording studio in his office building, and hires professional video producers. His staff videotapes every witness. Instead of asking for transcripts to be read back at trial, Gill clicks a remote control for video replays.

Still, Gill says lawyers who credit his success to technology are missing the point. "This is not rocket science," he says. "It's just preparation. Preparation and imagination and the drive to succeed."

Introducing the Legal Marketing Professional's Guide

2012-04-25T15:28:50Z

An Inside Look at Super Lawyers

Super Lawyers magazine is proud to unveil its Legal Marketing Professional's Guide. The 32-page guide provides an inside, behind-the-scenes look at what makes the Super Lawyers selection process tick-and how, when armed with this knowledge, a firm's marketing contact will be primed to offer their attorneys optimum exposure to Super Lawyers.

The information within the pages includes an in-depth examination of exactly what Super Lawyers is, how selection works, how the editorial content is generated, how Top Lists are created, how to refer to Super Lawyers and Rising Stars in communication, and most important, how both an attorney or a firm's marketing contact can best take advantage of and participate in the Super Lawyers selection process. We've also provided quick links to your state pages where you can find state-specific information like key dates, publishing information, magazine and list distribution and top lists.

Are you an attorney interested in increasing your visibility to Super Lawyers?

This guide will provide you with information to help you understand the nomination and selection process for Super Lawyers, and show you how you can effectively participate in that process. View our demonstration video for My.SuperLawyers.com, the online tool for nominations and data verification, where you can also update your profile as well as comment on and evaluate other lawyers.

Do you manage your firm's marketing initiatives?

You will find information and a demonstration video on the Firm Management Tool, which we've developed to help make your job easier. The Firm Management Tool allows you to update attorney information, complete data verification forms and track nominations at your firm. You'll also find helpful tips to maximize exposure when an attorney from your firm is selected to a Super Lawyers list. Conveniently distributed in an electronic format, the guide provides the most up-to-date Super Lawyers information.

Be sure to bookmark the Legal Marketing Professional's Guide. The answer to your next Super Lawyers question will be just a click away.

Michael A. Gill: Lessons From the Ring

2012-04-18T22:30:00Z

Family law attorney Michael A. Gill, with Goldenberg Mackler Sayegh Mintz Pfeffer Bonchi & Gill, spoke with us earlier this year in New Jersey Super Lawyers & Rising Stars about his boxing days as a teenager, and the life lessons he learned in the ring.

]]> "I think it gives you an inner strength when you box, but I was always very nervous before every fight," he says. "I didn't box in a cavalier manner. Before every fight, I remember thinking, 'Why do I do this? Why do I put myself through this, fight someone in front of all these people?' But I got such an emotional high off it, I'd always want to do it again. It built up an inner toughness in me; gave determination and self-confidence. It gives you some kind of edge when you can get into a ring with just one other person; it's just you and him, and there's no one to help you."

That inner toughness translates to courtroom success for Gill's clients. But another lesson he learned is that fighting outside the ring -- especially for the wrong reasons -- is not the way to go.

"I say to clients at the first meeting that they're going to have to do things my way," Gill says. "I don't want a father making custody an issue if he doesn't really want custody and is just trying to hurt his ex-wife. I tell people, 'My job is to minimize your exposure and get a fair amount.'"

Read about other amazing New Jersey attorneys in the 2012 edition of New Jersey Super Lawyers & Rising Stars.

Michelle Hartmann on the Natural Strengths of the Working Mother

2012-04-18T16:30:58Z

Last year in Texas Rising Stars we had occasion to ask Michelle H artma n n, a partner in the commercial litigation group at Weil, Gotshal & Manges, about the best advice she ever received. What she told us speaks to her role as both a lawyer and working mother, and how the two identities complement each other.

"I clerked for two judges, Judge Barbar Lynn and Chief Judge Carolyn King. They were both these really strong advocates and strong women. They really stressed to me to be yourself and capitalize on your natural strengths as a working mother. And I tried to emulate the model they created. I try not to, as a working mother, bring in business on the golf course, which does not fit me (laughs). But use natural relationships and my connections with the community that my kids are involved in to develop business, and also use those natural strengths in care for client service. To care for client service is something you can do in a lot of different ways. And really getting to know your client on a personal level helps you understand what a win is for them. That's something that I think we as women are good at: asking the questions and really getting to know people on a personal level."

Judging Her Judicial Career: What Jean Dubofsky learned on the Colorado Supreme Court

2012-04-13T18:23:43Z

Earlier this year we spoke with Jean Dubofsky, of Boulder, Colo., who, in 1979, became the first female justice on the Colorado Supreme Court. She returned to private practice in 1988, and is now in the midst of winding down her storied career.

Below is an audio excerpt of what Ms. Dubofsky learned as a judge on the Colorado Supreme Court, and how those lessons played into her subsequent role as an appellate lawyer.

Here's the transcript:

]]> Because you watch for long enough and you see how cases get resolved. And these are resolutions not just by one person-those are harder to predict-but by a group of people. And normally you'll come up with something that is not on either extreme, and usually closer to the middle, so you begin to see where compromises are made, and after a while people deciding things in groups tend to not push their own personal views quite as much.

This may not be true of the U.S. Supreme Court right now but certainly when I was on the Colorado Supreme Court people looked for ways to accommodate. And an opinion written by one person might very well include ideas from others. And so the cases resolved in a fashion that, if you thought about it, usually made sense. So my theory, in practicing appellate law, has been, in putting a case together, trying to figure out what is the more likely way a court is going to rule in your favor? And there's lots of rules of the road. Like: You don't usually raise questions of fact on appeal; you don't say that the trial court was wrong in terms of interpreting what witnesses said or their credibility, and you don't usually try to go against a trial court's findings of fact. That just doesn't work.

But you do have to find some legal issues that are significant enough for the court but at the same time you've got a good theory going for you. This isn't just a rule, some case you picked out and started quoting, you understand why the rule was developed. So from my standpoint you go back and look at some of the treatises, and figure out where the rule you're talking about came from and why. Then you can start putting together an argument that you can make appealing to a court. You can make it appealing in the sense that they're not going out on a limb in order to rule your way.

Our entire Q&A with Ms. Dubofsky, "Lone Ranger," can be read here.