Law firm's rainmaker moves to competitor

Headline News

Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw, in the middle of a gut-wrenching restructuring, lost a high-profile Chicago partner and revenue generator to a competitor.

Alan Salpeter, a trial lawyer who has represented major banks and accounting firms, notified the firm Friday that he is moving to the Chicago office of New York law firm LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae. Salpeter, who joined Mayer Brown in 1972 out of Villanova University School of Law, is one of the highest-compensated partners at the firm, according to sources inside Mayer Brown, who declined to reveal his salary.

A partner at LeBoeuf's Chicago office confirmed the move. Salpeter did not return a phone call seeking comment.

The departure of a rainmaking lawyer comes at a difficult time for Mayer Brown, one of the nation's 10 largest law firms in terms of revenue. In March the firm said it was firing or demoting 45 partners to boost profitability, an unusually large retrenchment for a major law firm. The downsizing was announced after several partners from its New York office had already left.

The restructuring also includes management changes. Earlier this month, the firm eliminated the position of firm-wide managing partner, folding those duties into the new Office of the Chairman. Managing Partner Debora de Hoyos will have a new management role directing recruiting and client development. The firm also appointed a new partner-in-charge of the Chicago office.

The hiring of Salpeter is a coup for LeBoeuf Lamb, as it looks to bolster its Chicago presence. Salpeter brings the kind of lucrative corporate litigation work that firms desire in a competitive market. He currently represents Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce in a lawsuit connected to the demise of Enron Corp.

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Grounds for Divorce in Ohio - Sylkatis Law, LLC

A divorce in Ohio is filed when there is typically “fault” by one of the parties and party not at “fault” seeks to end the marriage. A court in Ohio may grant a divorce for the following reasons:
• Willful absence of the adverse party for one year
• Adultery
• Extreme cruelty
• Fraudulent contract
• Any gross neglect of duty
• Habitual drunkenness
• Imprisonment in a correctional institution at the time of filing the complaint
• Procurement of a divorce outside this state by the other party

Additionally, there are two “no-fault” basis for which a court may grant a divorce:
• When the parties have, without interruption for one year, lived separate and apart without cohabitation
• Incompatibility, unless denied by either party

However, whether or not the the court grants the divorce for “fault” or not, in Ohio the party not at “fault” will not get a bigger slice of the marital property.

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New York & New Jersey Family Law Matters We represent our clients in all types of proceedings that include termination of parental rights. >> read