Expert Analysis

• What's Next After High Court Stay On Abortion Pill Ruling

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent stay of a Texas federal court's order invalidating mifepristone's U.S. Food and Drug Administration approvals provides a welcome antidote to the flurry of litigation surrounding the abortion drug, but its ultimate fate hinges on how the Fifth Circuit and Supreme Court will rule on the merits, says Eric Alexander at Reed Smith.

• Opinion

  Thomas Report Is Final Straw — High Court Needs Ethics Code

  

  As a recent report on Justice Clarence Thomas' ongoing conflicts of interest makes evident, Supreme Court justices should be subject to an enforceable and binding code of ethics — like all other federal judges — to maintain the credibility of the institution, says Erica Salmon Byrne at Ethisphere.

• Structured Settlements In Workers' Comp Cases: A Win-Win

  

  With interest rates rising, workers' compensation benefits decrease in price, so structured settlements in personal injury litigation may benefit both injured workers and the employer or carrier, and ultimately help settle complicated cases by bridging the gap between the demand and offer in negotiations, says Julio Martinez at Gilson Daub.

• How Cos. Should Navigate State AGs' Partisan ESG Approach

  

  As the politicization of the environmental, social and governance debate reaches new heights, general counsel should discuss issues affecting their company or industry with attorneys general on both sides of the aisle to minimize corporate risk, say Meghan Stoppel and Emily Yu at Cozen O'Connor.

• Joint Representation Ethics Lessons From Ga. Electors Case

  

  The Fulton County district attorney's recent motion to disqualify an attorney from representing her elector clients, claiming a nonconsentable conflict of interest, raises key questions about representing multiple clients related to the same conduct and highlights potential pitfalls, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Grace Wynn at HWG.

• Benefit Plan Sponsors Must Plan For COVID Emergency's End

  

  With the help of recent agency guidance, health plan sponsors must carefully navigate this transitory period between the abrupt end of the COVID-19 national emergency declaration and the upcoming end of the public health emergency, say Finn Pressly and Edward Leeds at Ballard Spahr.

• Lawyer Discernment Is Critical In The World Of AI

  

  In light of growing practical concerns about risks and challenges posed by artificial intelligence, lawyers' experience with the skill of discernment will position them to help address new ethical and moral dilemmas and ensure that AI is developed and deployed in a way that benefits society as a whole, says Jennifer Gibbs at Zelle.

• What 2 Texas Lawsuits Mean For Health Care Access

  

  In the last month, Texas federal courts have seen movement in two lawsuits that could, in the long run, potentially upend a widely accepted health care benefit and pose problems for important health care funding mechanisms around the nation, says Susan Harris at Norton Rose.

• Don't Forget Alumni Engagement When Merging Law Firms

  

  Neglecting law firm alumni programs after a merger can sever the deep connections attorneys have with their former firms, but by combining good data management and creating new opportunities to reconnect, firms can make every member in their expanded network of colleagues feel valued, say Clare Roath and Erin Warner at Troutman Pepper.

• Considerations For 2024 Proxy Season After Exec Pay Rules

  

  Companies for the first time this proxy season faced uncertainty in the wake of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's new pay-versus-performance rules and compliance-and-disclosure interpretations, but a proactive review of these rules will ensure companies can comprehensively satisfy their disclosure obligations, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

• Without Stronger Due Diligence, Attys Risk AML Regulation

  

  Amid increasing pressure to mitigate money laundering and terrorism financing risks in gatekeeper professions, the legal industry will need to clarify and strengthen existing client due diligence measures — or risk the federal regulation attorneys have long sought to avoid, says Jeremy Glicksman at the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office.

• Abortion Pill Rulings Will Hinder FDA Authority

  

  Although the Fifth Circuit recently stayed a Texas federal court's ruling that invalidated the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's approval of a commonly used abortion medication, several points made by the courts are worth considering for their potentially chilling effect on FDA authority and the challenges they may create for the life sciences industry, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• Every Lawyer Can Act To Prevent Peer Suicide

  

  Members of the legal industry can help prevent suicide among their colleagues, and better protect their own mental health, by learning the predictors and symptoms of depression among attorneys and knowing when and how to get practical aid to peers in crisis, says Joan Bibelhausen at Minnesota Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers.

• Building On Successful Judicial Assignment Reform In Texas

  

  Prompt action by the Judicial Conference could curtail judge shopping and improve the efficiency and procedural fairness of the federal courts by implementing random districtwide assignment of cases, which has recently proven successful in Texas patent litigation, says Dabney Carr at Troutman Pepper.

• Investor Proposals Show Abortion A Rising ESG Concern

  

  The 2023 proxy season's wave of shareholder proposals about abortion-related issues signals that the post-Dobbs world expects companies to seriously consider and articulate comprehensive strategies for addressing how abortion and other environmental, social and governance issues affect investors and employees, say Carrie Byrnes and Megan Juel at Michael Best.