by
Daniel
Acker/Bloomberg
via
Getty
Images)
Getting
your
ears
pierced
at
Claire’s
is
almost
a
rite
of
passage
for
adults
of
a
certain
vintage.
Your
mother
either
brought
you
to
Claire’s
to
get
it
done,
or
your
mother
yelled
at
you
after
you
went
to
Claire’s
to
get
it
done
with
your
friends.
Either
way,
it’s
highly
likely
that
you,
or
someone
you
know,
got
their
ears
pierced
at
Claire’s.
The
trend
continues
on
today,
but
unfortunately,
with
sales
declining
and
the
brand
filing
for
its
second
bankruptcy
in
seven
years,
America’s
youth
may
be
deprived
of
the
chance
to
get
their
ears
pierced
at
Claire’s.
Thankfully,
one
enterprising
Biglaw
partner
pledged
to
solve
that
problem
by
literally
“putting
some
skin
in
the
game”
to
get
it
done.
Kirkland
&
Ellis
bankruptcy
partner
Joshua
Sussberg
knew
that
no
one
wanted
to
see
Claire’s
go
under,
and
he
was
willing
to
go
to
extremes
to
stop
that
from
happening.
The
American
Lawyer
has
details
on
what
happened
next:
[L]iquidating
the
64-year-old
retailer
wasn’t
what
anyone
at
the
August
first
day
hearing
wanted.
Kirkland
partner
Alexandra
Schwarzman
said
she
got
her
ears
pierced
at
Claire’s;
so
did
Shannon’s
daughter,
the
judge
said.
Then
the
Kirkland
team
held
up
a
picture
of
Sussberg
circa
1995,
when
he
had
his
ears
pierced
at
Claire’s
as
a
high
schooler.“At
the
end
of
the
hearing,
I
said,
‘Your
honor,
we
are
focused
on
preserving
jobs
and
keeping
stores
open
for
a
long
time
so
many
people
can
get
their
ears
pierced.
If
we
can
get
a
deal
done,
I
am
willing
to
get
my
ears
pierced,’”
Sussberg
recounted.
“The
judge
said,
‘I’m
going
to
hold
you
to
that.’
He
threw
down
the
gauntlet.”
Not
only
did
Sussberg
find
a
buyer,
but
he’s
a
great
sport
and
stayed
true
to
his
word
to
get
his
ears
pierced.
During
a
recent
hearing,
Sussberg
got
his
left
ear
pierced
in
court
by
a
Claire’s
store
veteran.
He
even
got
to
wear
a
celebratory
Claire’s
crown
while
it
happened.
Click
here
to
see
the
piercing
in
action.
Congratulations
to
Joshua
Sussberg
for
helping
to
save
the
tradition
of
the
youth
of
America
getting
their
ears
pierced
at
Claire’s.
Kirkland
Partner’s
Ear
Piercing
Marks
Turning
Point
for
Bankrupt
Retailer
[American
Lawyer]
Staci
Zaretsky is
the
managing
editor
of
Above
the
Law,
where
she’s
worked
since
2011.
She’d
love
to
hear
from
you,
so
please
feel
free
to
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