Dreier LLP
In 2006, Drier founded his own firm with offices in five cities, promising lavish compensation. The headquarters at 499 Park Avenue had $30 million to $40 million worth of art, including works by Picasso and a Warhol depiction of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.
Dreier operated like a corporation and not like a partnership. Marc Dreier was the sole equity partner owner, controlled all of the firm's finances, and handled all administrative functions. There was no executive committee and no partners meetings. All deals were structured so that only he knew all the specifics and had access to all accounts. Dreier convinced lawyers that such an arrangement was best by emphasizing that it would allow them to concentrate on law while he worried about running the firm. He hired lawyers on three-year contracts, fixing their salary and paying bonuses based on the fees each lawyer brought in. According to court filings, some lawyers received more than $50,000 in salary every two weeks.
In 2007, Mr. Dreier expanded to Los Angeles and brought in Hollywood superstar lawyer Stanton "Larry" Stein, whose clients included Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen and Hilary Duff. The expansion boosted Dreier LLP's revenue from $60 million in 2006 to $90 million in 2007. Despite the burgeoning volume of business, the office actually operated at a net loss of approximately one million dollars a month. On January 27, 2009, Paul S. Anik, a partner at Dreier Stein Kahan Browne Woods George, LLP died from a sudden stress-related heart attack at 54.
On September 28, 2008, New York Magazine stated that 20 attorneys of the firm and its affiliates were selected for inclusion in "New York Super Lawyers, 2008 Edition" by Law & Politics, the legal publisher and independent researcher of multiple nationwide surveys. In 2007, 16 attorneys were named.
Dreier's two children were on his payroll, and he spent $10-million of the firm's money at New York's Gagosian Gallery in 2008.
In March 2009, the law firm Fox Rothschild acquired Pastore Osterberg, a firm in Stamford, Connecticut that was founded by Dreier attorneys in late 2008. Joe Pastore and Eric Osterberg joined along with seven other Dreier attorneys. The practice focused on litigation, telecommunications, technology, securities, and intellectual property.
Read more about this topic: Marc Stuart Dreier