Big Law's hottest new job is a director of AI, and firms can't fill it

Director of AI has quietly become Big Law's hottest job, and one of its hardest to fill. Bloomberg reports more than a dozen firms are searching, with pay running into the mid six figures. The lateral wire was quiet ahead of the holiday: Marshall Dennehey added an appellate shareholder across its Harrisburg and Philadelphia offices.

On the business side, a Delaware judge ruled that JPMorgan must keep paying Charlie Javice's legal bills, now north of $74 million, after finding the bank could not show the fees were excessive. The full defense tab tops $144 million. Two Law.com investigations also landed this week: one raising conflict questions around Kirkland & Ellis's billion-dollar investment fund, and one finding that Perkins Coie's HR department became the gatekeeper for partner conduct complaints.