The Slow Sinking of The Pierce Bainbridge Ship – And The Case of Its $9 Million Crew

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• $230bn in Five Days, Two Partners Out the Door – Wachtell’s High-Stakes Reckoning
  The firm that pays its partners $12 million a year just can’t stop losing them. Here’s why that paradox may be the most important story in Big Law right now. Wachtell Lipton broke every profitability record in Am Law 100 history in 2026 — and watched nine partners walk out the door to rivals offering something the numbers alone couldn’t match. What’s really driving the exodus from Wall Street’s most envied firm, whether the lockstep model can survive the age of the $80 million guarantee, and what it all means for the future of elite legal practice: it’s all inside. Log in to read the breaking Big Law story . .
• The Elite Law Pipeline to Prison And How a Decade-Long Insider Trading Ring Pierced Big Law’s Inner Circle
  A 30-person federal indictment has implicated attorneys from Wachtell, Latham, Willkie, Goodwin, Cleary, Sidley, Weil and DLA Piper in what prosecutors call one of the most sweeping M&A intelligence networks ever prosecuted on American soil. The access a law firm grants its attorneys is built on a simple, foundational covenant: what comes through the door stays within those walls. For a decade, federal prosecutors allege, a network of Ivy League-trained lawyers decided that covenant was negotiable — and that confidential merger data was simply a different kind of billable asset. L:og in to read more . . .
• Paul Weiss Sheds Litigation Associates Citing Performance Reviews as Firm Navigates Litigation Slowdown
  Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison has parted ways with several litigation associates following its annual performance review cycle, possibly marking a structural change from the relatively recently annointed firm chair Scott Barshay (pictured). According to reporting by The American Lawyer, the New York-based firm, which has long prided itself on avoiding public layoffs, including during the 2008 financial crisis and the 2022 financial correction . . Log in to read more . . .
• A&O Shearman Job Cuts Amidst Post-Merger Push For Tech-Driven Ops
• Average Lawyer Salary 2026: BLS Data by State, Practice Area & Experience
  If you are a lawyer reviewing your options in 2026, the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and major legal compensation surveys makes one thing clear: location, specialty, and experience still dictate everything. The national median lawyer salary stands at $151,160 as of the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey for May 2024 — the most recent official release — with approximately 747,750 lawyers in paid employment across the country. The national mean wage for lawyers is $182,760, reflecting how strongly the top earners pull the average upward. Log in for the full report . .
• $12 Million Paydays, a $10 Billion Firm, and Biglaw’s Best Run in Years
  A decade ago, $6 million was considered a breathtaking partner payday at a top US law firm. Today, that figure barely cracks the Am Law 100’s top ten. The 2026 Am Law 100 rankings, reflecting 2025 financial performance, tell the story of an industry that has fundamentally reset what “profitable” means: $178.95 billion in aggregate revenues, a $12.15 million average payout for equity partners at Wachtell Lipton, and Kirkland & Ellis becoming the first law firm in history to surpass $10 billion in annual revenue. The rich got richer, the gap widened, and almost nobody at the top is apologising for it. Read the LawFuel review of the AmLaw 100 – login
• Musk v Altman: The Lawyers Running the Biggest AI Trial on Earth | LawFuel
  The Musk v Altman trial is being sold as a grudge match between two tech billionaires over the future of artificial intelligence. But the real contest is between two skilled commercial litigators. Elon Musk has turned to New York trial lawyer Steven Molo of MoloLamken who delivered his opening statement in Oakland to a nine-person jury on April 28, 2026 with Morgan Chu of Irell & Manella’s Los Angeles office playing a supporting role having been lead counsel on Musk’s original state court filings. Log in to read the article . .
• Private Equity MSO Deal Lawyers – The Holland & Knight Lawyers Closing 15+ Law Firm Transactions in Six Months
• Lateral Hiring Surges 16.4% in 2025: Small Firms Crush It With 44% Growth as Talent Wars Accelerate
  The U.S. law firm lateral market shows healthy expansion and also provides a strategic shift toward senior leverage and a surprising surge at smaller firms. According to the National Association for Law Placement (NALP) 2025 Survey of Law Firms on Lateral and 3L Hiring (released April 22, 2026), total lateral hiring volume rose 16.4% year-over-year among the 305 offices/firms reporting comparable data. Log in to read more . .
• Sullivan & Cromwell Joins the AI Hall of Shame — and the Irony Is Exquisite
• LawFuel’s Legal AI Power List 2026
• Hogan Lovells Cadwalader Partners Approve Biggest Law Firm Merger Ever — Big Law’s Latest Power Play for Scale in a Shrinking World
  Partners at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft and Hogan Lovells have just delivered the final, resounding “yes” on what the industry is already calling the largest law firm merger in history. The votes closed this month, clearing the runway for the combined firm — Hogan Lovells Cadwalader — to open its doors on July 1 with a projected $3.6 billion in annual revenue and roughly 3,100 lawyers spread across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC. It’s the kind of deal that makes managing partners lose sleep and rainmakers salivate. Cadwalader, Wall Street’s oldest firm, brings its legendary finance, structured products, and capital markets firepower. Log in to read more . .