Top US law firm partners now billing at $US1,500 an hour, plus … “Colourful” DLA Piper partner says, “We just raise them every year” … The rise and fall of a New York rainmaker … How many blenders does a lawyer need? 

The Wall Street Journal reports that the $US1,500 an hour lawyer has arrived – that’s $Aus2115.  

Partners at the top New York law shops are regularly billing out their time at the new benchmark rate, and in some cases higher. 

Fees at this end of the market have been climbing three to four percent a year since the economic downturn. 

He added that because he does a lot of his work at a fixed-fee basis, hourly rates are really “anachronistic – but we still do it”. 

Mr Altorelli is nothing if not colourful. 

He came from the bankrupt firm Dewey & LeBoeuf, where he was regarded as a huge rainmaker. However, a check of his other credentials makes for fascinating reading. 

In April 2012, Rupert’s New York Post reported that Altorelli had been living with a Russian spy called Anna Chapman.  

Chapman was arrested by the FBI and charged with being a member of a spy ring in the US – the media dubbed her “the red under the bed”. 

She pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge and was deported to Russia in July 2010 as part of a prisoner exchange. 

Altorelli had the task of informing his major clients that the “woman in his life” was an agent of the FSB. 

In June last year, Above The Law reported that Altorelli sent a nasty email to Suzanna Sanchez, the then client relations manager at Dewey & LeBoeuf.  

She had the temerity to tell him that he’d missed his September 2009 collection target by $US1.6 million. Here’s his response:  

“I am the reason you have a job. You obviously have no clue about what is appropriate. I am going to talk to Steve DiCarmine and insist that you be fired if you ever send me an email or call me again. If he does not, I will seek other opportunities at a firm that gets it.” 

In November 2014 he filed for bankruptcy to avoid the creditors of Dewey & LeBoeuf chasing him for $US12.9 million.  

The judge overseeing Dewey’s bankruptcy ruled that any money paid to the partners while the firm was insolvent could be clawed back. 

Altorelli listed assets of around $5.1 million and liabilities of $27.6 million – including loans owed to Citibank, Barclays, JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo. 

His bankruptcy statement details a monthly income of $134,611, which is swallowed up by more than $190,000 in expenses. 

There’s $19,000 monthly rent for an apartment on Manhattan’s Upper West Side and $11,756 a month in mortgage payments for a seven-bedroom home in New Milford, Connecticut. He’s also forking-out for two other Connecticut properties plus $7,450 a month for a car service, nearly $25,000 in alimony and hefty tax obligations. 

Personal items include 32 suits, 70 ties, seven blenders, a 2008 Cadillac Escalade and a $16,000 watch. 

DLA Piper also lent him $3.7 million to help him over the hump, which he has to pay back. 

The New York Times pulled together the rise and fall of Dewey’s rainmaker in a comprehensive piece, here.  

He’s quite the guy.