By now, you’ve probably heard the news that Wildman Harrold Allen & Dixon is the latest firm to rescind offers to incoming associates. The Class of 2009 had already been deferred until at least January 15, 2010, but the firm has decided that their services won’t be needed even then.
After the jump, and compliments of a tipster, we’ve got a copy of the letter.
Text is below, and below that is an embedded scribd document of the PDF. Typos are probably the result of OCR.
Wildman, Harrold, Allen & Dixon LLP
225 West Wacker Drive
Chicago. Illinois 60606-1229
312-201-2000
312-201-2555 fax
www.wildman.com
Jonathan W. Young
[REDACTED]October 1, 2009
Dear [REDACTED]
Since we wrote to you last Spring, we have continued to monitor the economy, conditions in the legal industry, and the related staffing needs of our firm. We indicated we would follow up with you by January 15,2010 to provide an update on our hiring needs for the coming year and to confirm official start dates.
After thoroughly reviewing our business model and changes in the legal industry, assessing the needs of our clients, and carefully considering the amount of legal work that is available for first year associates to be productively employed here, we have determined a smaller class of incoming lawyers is appropriate. In light of this reduced class size, we are not able to employ you with the firm. We sincerely regret the impact these changes may have, especially considering the very talented individuals with whom we have had the pleasure of working and getting to know over the course ofthe summer program. We felt it important to give
you immediate notice upon making this decision, so you can plan accordingly during the next several months. You will continue to receive bi-monthly payments totaling $22,050; the first of these payments was made on September 15,2009 and will continue through February 28,2010.If you elected to participate in the firm’s health insurance benefits, continuation of that coverage can be elected through COBRA effective November 1, 2009. You will have 60 days from that date to elect COBRA, which can extend your insurance coverage for an additional 18 months after November 1,2009, assuming that you remain current with your premium payments, and subject to all the terms and conditions of the firm’s group health plan as may be in effect from time to time. The Economic Recovery Act provides for a subsidy to assist certain individuals with COBRA payments. You may want to consider that option and determine whether such an election is applicable to you.
We appreciate your patience and professionalism during this challenging time in our profession, and wish you the best in your career.
Sincerely,
Jonathan W. Young
Chair, Recruiting Committee
As our tipster noted, the timing is particularly unfortunate, as the calls came in on the same day that the recent graduates found out the results of the Illinois bar exam.
Best of luck to all the affected attorneys (which looks to be ten out of 14). Embedded PDF below.
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Evil, pure evil. But it seems that the incoming associates never had a firm start date — the letter implies that they always knew the offers were subject to the firm's "hiring needs". This is not as bad as revoking an offer with a set start date, even a deferred one.