The Sushi Memo

The New York legal community is abuzz over the so-called 'Sushi Memo' (viewable in PDF format via Gawker.com), a formal three-page memorandum, complete with exhibits and footnotes, written last July by a paralegal in the offices of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in response to a partner's request for lunch delivery options. It's so over the top it could well be a parody, the New York Times noted in a write-up today (registration required), but some folks are evidently taking it quite seriously as an example of 'the capricious and demanding behavior' of law firm partners. 'Some believe it illustrates the climate of a large law firm for many paralegals, who may feel compelled to give every assignment the single-minded vigor of a filing in a capital case, even if they are only helping to find some particularly fresh raw tuna,' said the Times. Then again, maybe it was just a joke — the jury's still out on that one.