There are early indications that hiring at premier law firms for summer 2011 will jump — in some cases by a lot — after plummeting this summer, according to sources at law schools and firms. Cravath and Skadden are among the firms whose summer class for next year could grow.

The legal job market is waking from its doldrums, which may mean more opportunities to transition to new jobs, say consultants Valerie Fontaine and Roberta Kass. In this article, the first in a new series, the authors discuss the factors to consider when contemplating a move.

In their latest column, Joel Cohen and Katherine A. Helm turn their attention to the Gulf Coast oil spill and its impact on the perennial issue of when judges should recuse or be disqualified from hearing a particular case

A referee has ordered the ex-wife of Rolling Stones icon Mick Jagger to pay more than $700,000 in back rent and attorney fees to her former landlords after she lost a bitter five-year battle to keep her $4,600-a-month, rent-stabilized Park Avenue apartment. The ruling followed a 2008 decision by the New York Court of Appeals holding that Bianca Jagger and other foreign nationals in the country on tourist visas were not eligible for rent-stabilized units.

In a petition for writ of mandamus, Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Judge Sharon Keller has asked the state Supreme Court to vacate the public warning the State Commission on Judicial Conduct issued to her on July 16 due to her conduct in connection with the 2007 execution of convicted murderer Michael Richard. Keller alleges that the commission lacked authority under the state constitution to issue the public warning and asks the Supreme Court to dismiss all charges against her.