State of the Market July 2015

  • Law

It’s the middle of the calendar year year again, the state bar convention is going on, the July bar exam is only a few weeks away, and it is as good as time as any to take a moment and ask for your input on the state of the legal market in Las Vegas. Are things better or worse than they were a year ago? Is your firm growing or laying off? Is what’s happening at Gordon Silver a sign of the times? Are you seeing any trends that you think indicate where things are going? Has your civility improved? Is it time to switch practice areas or careers?


Generally speaking, compared to this time a year ago, rate the state of the Las Vegas legal market.


31 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 4:46 pm

I am still interested in which firms are handling the Project Neon condemnation cases.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 6:22 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

I think Sylvester & Polednak is one. I'm not sure who some of the other firms are.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 4:47 pm
Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 7:43 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

Now that unemployment has dropped, people realize that they don't want to be a lawyer.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 8:01 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

Unemployment dropped because of the underemployed and people stopped looking for work. This economy is in the tank.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 11, 2015 1:34 am
Reply to  Anonymous

Every time someone bemoans the plight of the under employed, I am reminded of a family member in another state. A few years ago he was laid off from an industry that had obviously been dying for at least 15 years. Decided his next career HAD to be as a college professor (despite the fact that he has only a masters degree and there's probably a zillion qualified Phds applying for every opening). He was shocked–shocked! I tell you–when he couldn't get a professor job. Now he works in a low-level non-professional part-time job at a college and blames Obama and everyone else for his being underemployed because he does not have a job befitting his education and obvious brilliance.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 5:39 pm

Any comments about some of the details in the Vegas Inc. article on Gordon Silver at http://vegasinc.com/business/legal/2015/jul/09/after-falling-behind-rent-gordon-silver-sued-owner ?

1. Why did the managing partner say the monthly lease is roughly $100,00, but the law suit and the lease agreement say about $160,000? Isn't this a black & white number?

2. What about the $1.53M still owed by GS to Nevada State Bank as of June 30th?

3. Interesting that GS owed so much cash value life insurance. It looks like they used some of it to pay the bank loan down to $1.53M and probably the rest to pay expenses. Might there be some taxable gain (sales proceeds less income tax basis)? Now what?

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 5:58 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

The lights are out: http://www.gordonsilver.com/

Let's show some respect for the dead. These were once proud and venerable Nevada lawyers. Who among us has not, at some point in his or her life, overspent? And isn't overspending really the issue here?

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 6:24 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

When asking about the state of the economy, I suppose we should look at Lionel Sawyer and Gordon and Silver, although that was more or less a byproduct of poor management.

How long until GTG goes under? Three years? Shouldn't some the account receivables it took from GS belong to GS and its creditors?

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 7:47 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

Do you think GTG took some account receivables? That would surprise me because it would really open up the new entity to lawsuits from the creditors.

I was surprised reading that Vegas, Inc. article because it looked like all the partners just left Dzarnoski with a huge pile of sh*t to deal with. Did they really hate him that bad? Is there no honor amongst law firm partners?

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 7:55 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

Please, have respect for G&S? You are funny. I pay all my bills on less income, and you want me to respect you? You are delusional.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 7:57 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

I have no respect for people who do not pay their bills.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 9:38 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

If they were having trouble paying their bills as GS, then how are GTG going to pay their bills after having lost the name value that GS had? Or are the 13 who left to form GTG the better lawyers who left the problem lawyers behind? Given that the Managing Partner is one of the GTG lawyers, depending upon his amount of control, wouldn't it be safe to at least assume that if he manages GTG the same way, then there's going to be a problem.

Especially given the lawsuits they are dealing with. How do you practice law when that is going on?

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 10:01 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

I heard that GS's BK practice was dying and not producing any income. From the transfer, it looks like they brought the deadweight with them to the new firm; theoretically, with the same people make the same benefits. Why would having the same cost and the same model make the new firm more likely to succeed? Did the criminal defense division weigh down the firm? Did the IP department only make enough money to cover the IP expenses?

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 10:02 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

Has Nevada State Bank sued them?

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 10:09 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

When's the bankruptcy property auction? Hope their stuff is better than what was available at Lionel Sawyer.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 11, 2015 1:28 am
Reply to  Anonymous

I would think the criminal was bringing money in

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 11, 2015 4:52 am
Reply to  Anonymous

While they are all going out of business, and National firms are digging in … and the high end dollars seek out the boutique national firms … how many of you will be crying in your beer because you're out in the cold? Not good enough for the national firms and forced to put a shingle on your own door with no clients or the clients who are so cheap that they haggle every billable .1 hours? We used to be a community. Now we are a commodity. Enjoy that.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 11, 2015 7:13 am
Reply to  Anonymous

What's a "boutique national firm"?

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 11, 2015 8:45 am
Reply to  Anonymous

9:52,,,why don't you pay your judgments instead of being a philosopher.
You cannot even run a business. Adam Laxalt worked at big law firm, didn't he? I am not impressed with 90% of big firm legal talent, you included.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 11, 2015 3:02 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

12:13 one that specializes in a certain area (e.g. Ogletree Deakins)

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 12, 2015 5:48 am
Reply to  Anonymous

IF Dzarnoski was left with a big pile of $$ sh** then it's his karma coming around, as he/his clients have done to others.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 12, 2015 4:30 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

I remember when OCI rolled around, all I wanted was to work for GS. I'm so glad I didn't get hired.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 12, 2015 6:03 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

"Running a Business 101" should be a required core class in every law school. After watching what happened with LSC and GS, I am convinced that very few attorneys have basic business skills.

These bank lines of credit are preposterous. I can see the use of a small one for a large firm that just has a cash flow problem for a few days, but to run them up like that means the firms are being mismanaged.

My parents taught me at a young age that you always pay off your credit card bill every month. It's used as a convenience and if you don't have the money to pay it off, then you shouldn't have bought whatever you just bought. Same thing for a credit line. If you aren't netting enough money to make that partner distribution, then don't make the distribution. Pay your creditors!!!

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 10, 2015 10:11 pm

It seems like the LS staff was left out in the cold, but I haven't heard much about GS's secretaries and other non-lawyer employees. Any word on how they are doing?

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 14, 2015 8:31 pm

I've always thought the professionals of every stripe are foolish to run their own businesses. Doctors, Lawyers, Therapists….nothing about having a high level of intelligence and education means that you're necessarily competent to make strategic business decisions and every minute you spend managing the business is time that you're not practicing….which of course is the ONLY thing that happens in a professional office that actually brings money in. Hire a professional manager.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 14, 2015 8:33 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

Amen! Praise be to common sense and wisdom.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 14, 2015 8:42 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

Somebody's read the E-Myth. Maybe even E-myth for Attorneys.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 14, 2015 8:49 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

E-myth website looks impressive. Have you tried it? Worth an hour or two of admin time?

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 25, 2015 5:33 pm

I'm happy with the NV job market. I moved here after law school in NYC. I had zero connections here. I was hired 2 weeks after being admitted to practice in NV.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
July 25, 2015 6:23 pm
Reply to  Anonymous

When I came here a long time ago around 5 B.B. (Before Boyd), you could have no resume and a weak class ranking fresh out of law school and still bag a good starting position. It's a bit tougher now, but still way better than the east coast.