RBCT Chapter 149 Wenger Law Firm
Chapter 149 Wenger Law Firm
Chapter 149 Wenger Law Firm
The afternoon sun in Los Angeles was warm and pleasant. Ernst tapped the pen between his fingers rhythmically on the armrest of the sofa, his gaze shifting from the swirling coffee in his cup.
"By the way, how's the law firm doing?"
After Google's Series A funding round ended, Ernst encouraged Wenger to switch jobs and open his own law firm.
In the United States, all major powers have their own affiliated or funded law firms behind them; this is an indispensable presence.
The main role of these law firms is not to engage in heated debates and lawsuits in court; more often, they are responsible for handling various complex contract details.
In fact, very few cases in the American business system actually end up in court.
99.999% of cases end in a settlement, and often the matter doesn't even escalate to the level of a case; it can be resolved amicably through negotiation during the initial contact between the parties.
The reason behind this is largely due to the outrageously high legal fees in the United States, and the way they are charged is somewhat ridiculous.
Typically, if the plaintiff's lawyer wins the case, they will receive one-third of the winning fee.
The defendant's legal fees, on the other hand, ticked like a stopwatch, with money flowing in every minute.
Hourly rates are the norm in the legal profession, and relevant laws in various states and bar associations encourage this fee structure.
On the contrary, cases where you don't charge by the hour often mean you're facing a bigger lawsuit.
The standard fee for top American law firms is about $1000 per hour, which may not seem too expensive at first glance, but when you calculate it carefully, the cost is shockingly high.
Because this $1000 is just the lawyer's fee, not including all the other miscellaneous expenses.
Take material costs, for example. In the United States, law firms will charge clients even for a simple piece of paper.
Lawyers need to prepare a lot of information for a case, and this information needs to be provided by the firm that handles the defense and then printed out.
The quantity can range from a few hundred sheets to enough to fill an entire room. All of these are subject to a fee, and it's not the normal price.
The cost of reading these materials is the real bulk of the lawyer's fees.
A commercial lawsuit can take several days just to read materials and prepare a defense. In complex cases, it can even take several months, and all of this time is charged by the hour.
Even more incredibly, storing these documents in a law firm incurs a host of fees, including storage and organization fees.
Taking half a month as an example, the total cost of lawyer fees, material fees, assistant lawyer fees, and other miscellaneous expenses would easily amount to two or three hundred thousand US dollars.
If a one-time fee is charged, it often means that this is going to be a major lawsuit, because the hourly rate is too low for such cases.
Therefore, American lawyers focus most of their work on contract matters rather than the lawsuits themselves.
The United States has a very sound commercial legal system. In many cases, when two companies have a conflict, it is only necessary to carefully study the relevant information and contracts of both companies to basically determine the outcome of the potential lawsuit.
This is precisely where the value of a lawyer lies: whether they ensured the contract was detailed and comprehensive when it was drafted.
For example, whether a product's patents and all related technology patents have been filed are details that lawyers should consider in their work.
Therefore, lawyers play a crucial role in the United States, and major corporations have their own top-tier law firms to protect their business interests.
Another point is about individuals; there are too many and too complicated laws in the United States.
For centuries, capitalists have enacted various laws to protect their interests, so many that they are completely overwhelmed and cannot understand them. This is where the value of lawyers comes in.
"Don't even mention it." Wenger sighed heavily, his voice filled with helplessness. "The hardware is simple, after all, the five million dollars you provided solved all the problems, but we're now encountering considerable trouble in talent recruitment."
He paused, his brows furrowing even more. "I can't poach the good lawyers, and I don't think much of the ordinary junior lawyers, so I'm in a bit of a dilemma."
Although Wenger has some reputation in the Los Angeles legal community, he is far from being able to command the voluntary following of well-known lawyers.
To put it bluntly, those lawyers with a bit of prestige and a small reputation in the industry look down on his fledgling law firm, feeling that there is no future for them there, let alone the possibility of realizing their career ambitions.
"Then let's expand into the larger circle." Ernst's tone was relaxed, as if this were just a trivial matter.
Wenger looked at Ernst in surprise, his eyes full of doubt, as if to say: Did you not understand what I said?
Even recruiting talent is a thorny issue now, how can a law firm aspire to become a major firm?
The so-called "big circle" law firms are actually elite law firms, where every employee is an elite among elites, and they adhere to the strict 25 rule.
All employees graduated from the top 25 universities in the United States and ranked in the top 25 in their respective majors.
In such law firms, every employee is a renowned elite in their respective legal fields in the United States.
Ernst picked up his coffee cup, took a small sip, and then gestured for Wenger to calm down. "I'll take care of the talent issue. The doors of Harvard Law School are always open to us."
Wenger's hand, which was holding the coffee cup, froze in mid-air, the steam from the coffee blurring his glasses.
He mechanically turned his head and looked at Ernst in disbelief, his face filled with shock.
Harvard Law School is practically a god-like institution in the American legal community, a dream destination for countless law students.
What did I just hear? Ernst actually said that the doors of Harvard Law School are always open to their law firms?
This is not as simple as their law firm recruiting from Harvard Law School. It means that Harvard Law School will support their law firm, such as arranging internships for outstanding students and making recommendations from renowned mentors.
Such treatment is something even large law firms would covet.
There are no more than thirty law firms in the United States that have reached this kind of strategic cooperation with Harvard Law School, and each of them is a well-known firm.
"Don't forget, we have our advantages." Ernst crossed his legs, his face radiating confidence.
"Our advantage lies in the scale of projects we can access. Whether it's MGM or Google, the legal matters they handle are invaluable experience for these top students."
He looked intently at Wenger and continued, "So what if you're a Harvard student? Many people, even if they get into a top firm, won't get to work on projects of this caliber for a year or two."
"And if you want to lead such a project, you can't even think about it without three to five years of experience; you can only be a deputy doing odd jobs."
This is where Ernst's confidence comes from. The entire business empire he has built is a solid backing for Wenger's law firm, providing a continuous stream of high-quality resources and cases.
Wenger nodded slowly, his doubts gradually dissipating.
This is why he listened to the other party's advice and chose to go solo. With Ernst supporting him, his law firm would never lack business or opportunities to work on big projects.
"So we're going to expand our business scope?" Wenger asked tentatively, a hint of anticipation in his eyes.
There are many different types of lawyers in the United States, including criminal defense lawyers, civil litigation lawyers, family lawyers, business and corporate lawyers, intellectual property lawyers, environmental lawyers, bankruptcy lawyers, immigration lawyers, constitutional lawyers, and more, totaling more than ten types.
Wenger himself is a business and corporate lawyer, specializing in legal matters related to business and enterprise.
The current Wenger law firm has only 11 employees besides himself, and only three lawyers including him.
In addition to him, a business and corporate lawyer, there is also an entertainment lawyer who specializes in providing legal services such as intellectual property protection and contract negotiation for celebrities, athletes, and other stars.
The other one is an intellectual property lawyer, whom Wenger poached from a medium-sized law firm in Los Angeles.
Because business matters and intellectual property rights are often closely linked, the two had collaborated many times before, and Wenger highly valued his professional abilities.
Now that Harvard Law School has provided such a huge opportunity, it's clear that the firm is looking to expand its business scope.
It's worth noting that a Harvard Law School graduate can start with a salary of $7 to $10 a year, and with various bonuses, the average annual salary can easily reach $10.
Although being a lawyer is a profession that relies mainly on speaking, and even the cost of a single piece of paper is reimbursed, the cost of human resources is enough to offset all other expenses.
With high costs, it's natural to balance them by expanding the business.
We can't just keep these lawyers on our payroll for nothing, can we? We have to squeeze as much business as possible out of them.
"You make the decision yourself. Your priority now is MGM's next round of financing."
This was Wenger's second purpose for coming here: MGM was about to launch a financing round.
However, the entity receiving this round of financing is not MGM Resorts International, but rather the newly registered MGM Resorts International.
"I've already spoken to Harvard, and one of their professors is willing to bring students to participate in these negotiations. You should seize this opportunity," Ernst added, a meaningful glint in his eyes.
"Don't worry." Wenger immediately understood what the other person meant, and a knowing smile appeared on his face.
Seize the opportunity, but what opportunity?
Of course, the goal is to keep as many of the Harvard Law School students who came to participate in the negotiations and are about to enter the workforce as possible at Wenger Law Firm.
This presents an excellent opportunity for the law firm's talent pool and future development.
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