As part of our annual Midlevel Associates Survey, we asked more than 3,600 midlevel associates in Big Law to speak candidly about their firms. Strap in.

"It's unbelievably difficult to work with tools like these," one associate laments.

This year's Midlevel Associates Survey indicates a return to pre-pandemic norms isn't cutting it for the first full generation of midlevels to launch their careers during COVID-19.

Which firms kept their midlevel associates happiest over the past year? Below is our ranking of firms based on a combined score across 12 different categories.

The events this week featuring former acting U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates are expected to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for the presidential candidate who honed her legal and political chops in California.

U.S. District Judge Pamela Chen of the Eastern District of New York issued a preliminary injunction against Shkreli preventing him from streaming or disseminating copies of the one-of-a-kind Wu-Tang Clan album he forfeited as part of his criminal fraud conviction in 2017.

While many artists have publicly complained about use of their songs by political campaigns, the case filed by the estate of Isaac Hayes is one of the few to reach a courtroom.

"Based on her enthusiasm about labor, she will continue the Biden administration's efforts to use antitrust to protect against anti-poaching agreements that suppress wages or noncompetes, or the use of merger law to go after mergers that harm labor," said University of Pennsylvania law professor Herbert Hovenkamp.

A group of nine Hunton Andrews Kurth trial partners and five associates joined Houston trial boutique on Tuesday, reuniting many with longtime friends and former colleagues at the midsize firm.

In eight months at the helm, Loren Barron of Kaufman Dolowich has hired one partner, two associates, two staff members and an intern and said she plans to keep growing the team, although it's running out of office space in its current location.

Linda Sun was arrested at her Long Island home on Tuesday. She stands accused of violating and conspiring to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act, visa fraud, alien smuggling, and money laundering conspiracy.

"This will be important for people to look at because I think it will be one of those test cases in the blockchain space," said Dr. Tonya M. Evans, a tenured law professor at Penn State Dickinson Law.

All told, Big Law firms announced at least 10 hires in New York, mostly partners, the day after Labor Day.

On Aug. 27, U.S. District Judge Edmund Sargus granted summary judgment after concluding that Ancestry.com hadn't used plaintiff John Wilson's photos for a commercial purpose.

Patrick O'Connor spent over 18 years at the Big Four firm, most recently advising companies on their financial reputations.

"Putting a price tag on a dream is not an easy task. In the instant case the jury considered the evidence presented to reach their verdict and it does not shock the conscience where plaintiff went from a dream job in the NFL to a lifetime of pain and disability resulting from the improper repair and rehab of his knee injury."

Lauren Fisher's exit as chief legal officer comes on the heels of Tegna replacing the CEO who had hired her for the role.

"The greatest gift you can give yourself when you're up at that lectern is those hours that you've put in in advance," Jonas Wang advised fellow attorneys preparing for their first oral argument.

"[T]here is a difference between an individual having the freedom to pursue and obtain safety and happiness and the state having an obligation to guarantee the safety and happiness of its citizens," Christopher Porrino, an attorney for the Casino Association of New Jersey, said at a hearing in the case.

Flora Go spent her entire legal career at Fried Frank, reaching partner in 2022.