LAW—Management Shift May Lead to Cuts In Associate Jobs

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Brobeck Phleger & Harrison LLP’s new chairman, L.A. partner Richard Odom, said if the San Francisco-based firm’s latest incentive package doesn’t ease its financial situation, layoffs may be necessary.

The firm named Odom the firm’s new chairman on Nov. 15. One day later, Brobeck announced it was offering associates in its business and technology group full salaries for five months if they opted to leave the firm.

The latest incentive program is aimed at the 100-or-so associates who will have billed fewer than 1,300 hours by the end of the year. The tech-oriented law firm has been scrutinizing its staff levels after the tech industry tanked and competing firms began layoffs.

Former chairman Tower Snow, who chose to resign after the end of the year, refused to lay off people. He already offered various incentive programs to associates, including an option in August for associates to take weeks-long sabbaticals without pay.

“Tower was right in the notion that the Brobeck culture does not like the concept of layoffs,” said Odom, who will remain in the L.A. office. “We’re trying this as a last chance effort.”

Odom was group leader of the firm’s complex litigation group before being named chairman.


Blotting Out

A tiny cosmetics company in Beverly Hills is targeting Mattel Inc. and a Seattle game developer over the rights to the “Think Blots” card game. The game, which uses ink blots on the playing cards, uses the same name, image and style as a line of greeting cards Raquel Inc. recently began selling.

The suit was filed against game maker Rainmaker Development Corp. of Seattle and Mattel, distributor of Think Blots.

Mattel executives declined to comment and Rainmaker executives could not be reached.

Raquel is the holding company for Raquel of Beverly Hills, which sells a line of cosmetics, skin care and fragrances for Latina women. The company recently began selling greeting cards called “Think Blots” that company owner Raquel Zepeda had been making since 1987, she said.

“It’s been a struggle,” said Zepeda, who originally began selling cosmetics in department stores in 1994, then shifted to two of its own boutique stores in Beverly Hills and downtown L.A., and now sells direct and over the Web.


Pro Bono

L.A. attorneys may not have filed any lawsuits over the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, but attorneys are available for anyone directly impacted.

Gov. Gray Davis announced Nov. 16 that various law firms and associations would offer pro bono legal services to California victims of the attacks. The partnership that organized the effort includes the Los Angeles County Bar Association and the State Bar of California. L.A. law firms involved include Latham & Watkins, McCutchen Doyle Brown & Enersen LLP, Munger Tolles & Olson LLP and Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP.

Staff reporter Amanda Bronstad can be reached at (323) 549-5225 ext. 225 or at [email protected].

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