The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s new power to take over and liquidate nonbank companies whose failure would jeopardize the financial system is intended as a "third way" between bankruptcy and bailout. But the prospect of a new regime for dissolving megacompanies -- one with almost no judicial oversight and in which creditors' rights are few -- is sending shockwaves through the bankruptcy bar. The FDIC is tackling nearly 40 major rulemakings to flesh out the details of the law, and Wall Street is waiting anxiously.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics' monthly employment report for August was released Friday and the news was still a bit glum overall -- the U.S. economy lost a total of 54,000 jobs. But the news for lawyers and legal industry employees was a bit brighter. The legal sector handed out 1,000 jobs last month, marking the second straight month of improved numbers for the industry. The country's overall unemployment rate inched up, from 9.5 percent to 9.6 percent.

Claiming breach of contract and other charges, five former partners from the defunct Boca Raton, Fla., office of Hodgson Russ are suing top partners of the Buffalo, N.Y.-based law firm. The former Boca Raton partners insist they were blindsided by the firm's decision last year to close the office, which they claim violated their rights under the firm's partnership agreement. The shutdown came in the midst of mass layoffs at law firms nationally as the recession took its toll on client demand and legal fee collections.