In an order filed Tuesday, a San Francisco federal judge said litigation between the Heller estate and law firms that took on defecting partners belongs in bankruptcy court, finding that the firms didn’t establish cause for moving the cases to federal district court — at least not at this time.

Law students who spent summer 2011 as associates at some of the United States’ largest firms went into their jobs knowing the negative reputation that life at such firms can have.

Half the firms fighting the Heller estate’s claims over fees from unfinished business have settled their claims — but the U.S.

Jones, Walker, Waechter, Poitevent, Carrere & Denegre is expanding into Mississippi by acquiring 67 lawyers through a merger with Watkins Ludlam Winter & Stennis, the firms announced Tuesday. The deal follows recent expansion efforts by Jones Walker in Alabama and Louisiana.

None of the firms on The American Lawyer’s 2010 A-List returned to the same spot this year.