- Quickdraw McLaw
- 67 Comments
- 84 Views
- Feds say doctors who illegally distribute opioids are no different than street dealers. [Las Vegas Sun]
- Attorney Eric Palacios discusses the Jussie Smollett case. [LasVegasNow]
- What else is going on out there today?
Does anyone know what the process will be to hire a new discovery commissioner? Any gossip on who it might be?
John Hunt and Kevin Speed will apply
I don't know who would want this thankless job.
Michael Lowry knows discovery, but I would hate to lose his blog.
As a family law practitioner, I'd like to put in an argument for Erin Truman to be the new discovery commissioner. If I never appear in front of her again, it'll be too soon. I'd love it if she went to the RJC and we got someone else.
I understand your sentiments, but it is a job(family Court Discovery Commissioner) where very often no one ever emerges happy(which makes it worse than most judicial positons where in many cases at least one side is satisfied).
In many cases one side walks out bemoaning that they must, within an extension of 10 days, respond completely to largely burdensome and irrelevant boiler-plate discovery requests(and, a lot of these requests in Family Court are in fact pointless and burdensome as they tend to ask for a massive amount of documents and info. which is as readily available to their own client as it is to the other side–e.g. joint bank accounts, joint debts, joint car and house ownership, and on and on).
And then the stayed sanction will be that if they don't respond completely in 10 days they will need to pay like $1,500. or $2,500. in attorney fees. Or, in some cases, part of the sanction is imposed right away, and the rest is deferred pending compliance.
So, this side is pissed because they still have to respond to what they perceive to be a lot of unnecessary material the other side already has, or can easily obtain from their own client, and they of course also resent having to pay the sanction/attorney fees.
And the other side is pissed because often attorneys who file these Family Court discovery motions have an unrealistically aggressive approach, and expect like $5,000. in sanctions, for defenses or causes of actions of the other side to be stricken as additional sanctions, etc.
So, before we condemn her as being horrible, let's consider that a lot of cases are variations of the above.
That said, there are legitimate disputes whereby someone is being obstructive as to limited, relevant, and proportional discovery requests, and the rulings are too lax and lack teeth.
And this mutual dissatisfaction seems real common.
11:18 here – I agree w 11:42's comments, but she adds an extra layer of pain to the process. Her attitude on the bench leaves much to be desired. She doesn't need to make a miserable situation worse, but she usually does.
I am old, fat, ugly as fuck, I am in hoc, and I think I rule the world. Congratulate me!
I am not in hoc, but I am ad hoc.
957, I think I know who you are referring to. That is funny.
I am a 1996 law grad. I began practicing that same year. For roughly 13 years, I practiced in insurance defense with three different firms. For the past 10 years, I've done plaintiff-side personal injury work as a solo (no billboards, no tv ads, just good work on good cases).
I graduated with ~$71k in student debt (law school debt only) and paid it off in my 14th year in practice. I did not pay it off with a windfall fee or anything like that; I made steady payments for 13 years (with one year of deferment the year my kid was born).
I recently had lunch with a friend who is of the same vintage as I. He confided that he has made only a small dent in the principal balance of his law school loans and still owes well over $100k. Besides feeling sorry for the guy, I wonder how this can be true. How can someone avoid paying their student loans for 23 years?
I propose a topic: student loans. What percentage of practicing attorneys are affected by their unpaid student debt? At what point in there careers are the loans being paid off? How can seemingly well-functioning lawyers not be retiring the principal balance on there loans after decades in practice? What effect do unpaid loans have on the way we practice law and what areas of law we practice? What are the strategies people gave used to pay them off and AVOID paying them off?
Paid off about $70k in loans in 3.5 years. It stung, but I just kept increasing my monthly payment to pay off additional principal every month (saving 6.8% annually on that decreased principal) until I was paying between $2k-$3k every month at the end. I made my last payment a handful of years ago. I really really like my life now. #studentloanspaidoffillionaire
I borrowed 56k, I'm at 26k now. Been practicing 3.5 years. Living like a pauper during law school helped. I definitely live a nicer lifestyle now, but haven't bought a house. Waiting to see how market plays out.
I graduated in 2003 with about $50k in student loans, which included the $5,500 from my wife that I paid off with it. I believe my payment term is for 20 years–maybe 250. My payment is like $173 a month. My interest rate is literally like .8% so I'm not trying to pay them off. they are losing money with inflation on those terms. So I could have paid them off many times over at this point, but have chosen not because. I've worked at largish local and regional firms since my graduation and have well over quadrupled my salary as a first year associate and I feel lucky. So I pay other debt down.
Also, I don't post very often because it usually takes like 4 tries to pass the captcha test.
What I wouldn't give to be a pre-recession attorney. It cost me about $200,000 to go to law school after 2006. Congress sets the interest rate (if you don't privatize your loans). The rates can be as high as 7 to 8%. The monthly payment costs more than the monthly mortgage on my first house.
You can refinance out of your high interest rate loans. I got a rate below 5% with CitiBank.
Partners at insurance defense firms do not make $200k, unless named partners.
You are out of touch with reality, @5:03. Plenty of firms pay that to non partners. I make well over that and I'm just a lowly associate.
5:07 here…I should add that plenty of *insurance defense* firms pay that to non partners. I can name 10 just off the top of my head, some that are large national firms and some that are smaller local firms.
I am calling bullshit, too. I am a partner at one of those firms, they don't.
I have 50K in student loans and have been practicing for 3 years. I'm trying to do the Total Money Makeover plan and pay down my credit card debt before tackling the student loans.
@5:19, your firm must not be making any money. Someone mentioned Mike Lowry yesterday. He's making over 200k practicing insurance defense and he's not a named partner. Snell and Wilmer pays $120-140 to associates straight outta law school (even Boyd). Akerman pays its first year associates that if not more. Wise up, my friend. It's a myth that all insurance defense attorneys are paid squat.
Akerman does not pay that much. You on crack, joe.
Akerman pays its 1st years 120k-140k? LOL you are a funny human being. Trust me from the inside. Hell is not that well compensated. Hence why I am at my desk on a sunny Saturday.
Akerman is hell. You defend banks. I would rather work at the OBC than that shit hole with Darren Brenner.
Also neither Snell nor Akerman are ID firms. I don't know much about Akerman, but Snell isn't any different from BHFS or H&H, is it?
Non-named partners at insurance defense firms DO NOT make over $200. Maybe a few do, but that is very, very rare. It usually just does not make sense mathematically given ID rates.
There are quite a few insurance defense firms paying associates over 200k. But those attorneys typically handle coverage and bad faith work, which pays at 2x the standard insurance defense rates ($300-400/hr as opposed to $150). It makes sense to pay those attorneys more, they bring in more. If you don't make that much, you just aren't worth that much.
I think the majority of people commenting that ID attorneys can't possibly make over 200k unless a named partner either practice in a different area or are basing their conclusion on 10-15 years ago, not the present state of the market.
This all depends on your definition of ID work. I think most people think of first level insurance coverage in your typical personal injury or construction defect litigation. Low dollar amounts, low hourly rates. Sure, some firms handle higher dollar insurance claims, like when you get into excess policies that are much higher dollar amounts like from what I have heard Weinberg Wheeler handles, but I don't think many people think of those kinds of cases when someone mentions your typical ID work. So yeah, you can make plenty on some of the high dollar stuff, but you're not making $200k at the standard run of the mill personal injury/CD ID firm.
And no, Snell is not an ID firm.
Just do PAYE!
And then earn nothing! It's like magic!
Dumb, for a lot of reasons. First, you'll only ever pay principal. Second, Congress can revoke this at any time and then you're fucked. Third, you'll be taxed on any balance left at the end of the 20/25 years. If you couldn't make full monthly payments for 20 years what makes you think you can handle a tax liability on an extra $100k in reported income?
11:23 – Did you mean to say that under PAYE "First, you'll only ever pay INTEREST."? The PAYE programs seem scary for the reasons you state and also because they provide a disincentive to earn more money. Isn't earning more money the reason most of us borrowed that money to become lawyers in the first place? Why would I suppress my income over a 20-year period at a total cost of 300k-1m so that I can avoid paying off 100-150k in student loans? Seems like PAYE is a bad deal over the long term.
11:39, I think you are under the mistaken impression that the suppression of income was voluntary.
It is more likely that congress will forgive student loans than to get rid or programs like PAYE. I don't understand why anyone would pay back loans in this modern climate.
Not trying to be judgy, 1:47; but isn't having promised to do so sufficient reason?
I agree that it's possible congress might some day bail the whole thing out. But I'm not holding my breath. And I doubt there'll be a wipe-out of debt for lawyers and doctors who went to accredited schools and received a degree. This country is slouching toward socialism; but we're not there yet.
Best of luck with your plan to wait for a gub'mint bailout. I like the fact that I have a law degree and can make a good income. If paying back my creditors is the price I pay, so be it.
Agreed, 2:10. Sure, it might happen. I give it a 2% chance. There's just too much opposition on the right to a nationwide full-scale forgiveness, and I think rightfully so. I'm not gonna keep racking up 7% annually on a big chunk of debt on a long-shot that probably won't pan out.
Borrowed $48K. Consolidated in my 20s and did not read the fine print. 30-year note at 7% with total balance of $330,000 and change. I've been paying for 20 years and am just approaching the principle. Tried the public program they had which meant I had to pay the loan off in 10 years. Total crock of a program.
Wait… what? That $48K must have been just for law school, and you consolidated that with a whole bunch of other debt… otherwise there's no way $48K @ 7% for 30 years is over $330K.
Borrowed $81k. I've paid it down to $50k. Initially, with the feds I had an interest rate of 7%. Consolidated recently to just below 5%. My monthly payment is really small. I am debating whether to pay down my debt or invest my extra cash. Plus, student loans are a de facto insurance policy. They are wiped out if you die. With my luck, I would pay it off and die the next week.
Alternatively, the relief of having them paid off might help you live LONGER.
I paid my state law school student loans in less than 10 years. In my late 30s, have a net worth of close to 900k. Haters say what????
I am envious. I bet you do not even know you have money. It is the silent millionaire next door who drives the old cars.
12:56, are you single? Will you contribute to my campaign relief fund?
Yes, happily single with a child. Someone posted earlier about campaign debut. I ran office for office, city wide, and lost. Yes, the debt follows you personally. No, not interested in a relationship, especially with a debt ridden lawyer.
My ex girlfriend, who is a lawyer now, her parents were loaded. Not sure if still the case. She does not advertise it. I will not share her name. Nice girl, cute. Have not seen her in years.
Cool story bro.
You could have received a $25k for your campaign at least, judge, but you are an asshole. Just in one campaign cycle. Now that money is going to be used to work against you, you dumb….
Damn, how do I get a hold of you?
If it is the Judge who has a DEPARTMENT that has given me FIFTEEN good reasons to make sure he never serves another term at any level of the judiciary, I will put every nickel I have towards seeing that result achieved.
Mid-30s. Borrowed about $30k total for undergrad and law school (state schools, with significant scholarships). Paid that off in the first 3-4 years of practice. Just about to finish paying off my mortgage. Concur with 1:02's observations, on average the cars my spouse and I drive are about 11 years old.
Need some advice, fucked on appeal, facts and law. Co defendants are gung go see the appeal through bc appellant is unlucky. Suggestions?
Find the nearest bus and chuck co-defendants under it. Settle.
Where is the appeal now?
Opening brief coming soon. Tried to settle it.
Stayed with Supreme.
If it stayed with Supreme, you screwed boy. You owe a duties to your client. Settle high, settle now.
That sounds like malpractice. If appell. already put that much work in, you better act like yesterday.
Unless you are marmaduke, I would call your generous offer in instead of email. Listen to the wise advice above.
Why are waiting that late to settle? Hate to be you.
NSC is being held to task for ignoring evidence and law now more than ever. Settle.
How much does a partner at an insurance defense firm make? Like Bremer Whyte?
The partners at the national insurance defense firms such as Lewis Brisbois and Wilson Elser could make low six figures, but also much more if you have your own book. A recently departed lawyer with a book at Wilson Elser was making $500k. So it depends. It also depends as to whether they are defending insureds, or defending the insurers (bad faith). Insurers pay the lawyers defending them around $100 an hour more, i.e. maybe $200/hr for liability defense lawyers, but probably around $300/hr for bad faith defense. So making more as a bad faith lawyer usually does pencil out.
Also, fuck you stupid captcha bullshit that never works on this website.
However much Nelson Cohen can get out of the door.
Speaking of Mr. Cohen, anyone know how he's been earning a living?
120 to 140
Andrew Craner made 90k buying coffee creamer for us at Bremer.