Construction

Expert Analysis

• Fed. Circ. Limits Gov't Contractors' Litigation Cost Claims

  

  The Federal Circuit's July 16 decision in Bechtel National v. United States upholds the precedent set in Geren v. Tecom, making it harder for contractors to argue government agencies indicated their willingness to reimburse them for third-party litigation expenses through contract terms, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

• The Potential Effects Of Calif. Contractor Reclassification Bill

  

  If enacted, California’s Assembly Bill 5 would codify the so-called ABC test for independent contractors established in the California Supreme Court's Dynamex decision. Notably, the bill goes beyond the scope of Dynamex and could have an extraordinary impact on the state's economy, say attorneys at Littler.

• Remembering Justice Stevens As A Law Firm Leader

  

  Rothschild Barry's John Coffey, who joined Justice John Paul Stevens' law firm in 1965, shares what it was like to watch Justice Stevens practice law, mentor younger lawyers and land a malfunctioning plane.

• The Latest Executive Order On Buying American Has Teeth

  

  Earlier executive orders aimed at strengthening compliance with the Buy American Act were essentially position statements. Monday’s executive order differs, however, because it proposes a textual change to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, one that would have wide-ranging, potentially disruptive effects on government contractors, say attorneys at Covington.

• Answers To Key Legal Finance Ethics Questions

  

  While there is discussion in some quarters about new regulations on commercial legal finance, the hands-off approach taken by the majority of courts and legislatures is an implicit recognition that it is already sufficiently regulated, says Danielle Cutrona of Burford Capital.

• Federal Agencies Need A Uniform Record-Keeping Process

  

  The administrative record is very important to federal agency litigation — as showcased in last month's U.S. Supreme Court decision concerning the addition of a citizenship question to the 2020 census — yet there is no set of consistent principles to guide agencies in compiling these official records, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

• The Role Of Dictionaries In Last Term's High Court Decisions

  

  Since 32 of the 67 decisions issued by the U.S. Supreme Court during its October term cite dictionaries, it’s worth reviewing the opinions to learn which dictionaries the justices consulted and how they used them, say Bruce Wessel and Brian Weissenberg of Irell & Manella.

• How To Evaluate The Rise In Legal Employment

  

  Although the rate of employment for law school graduates — which had been falling steadily — saw a small increase over the last year, other factors, such as fewer graduates overall and potential future job growth stagnation, temper the good news for those pursuing law degrees, say Tiffane Cochran and Tyler Grimm of AccessLex Institute.

• How High Court FOIA Ruling Will Help Gov't Contractors

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent Food Marketing Institute v. Argus decision will make it easier for government contractors to protect financial information from Freedom of Information Act requests even though the new standard for obtaining a FOIA exemption is somewhat unclear, say James Boland and Christopher Griesedieck of Venable.

• Opinion

  The Business Case For Championing Diverse Legal Teams

  

  Leveraging the collective strengths of a diverse workforce is not only the right thing to do, it’s a strategic imperative for any successful firm or business, says Louise Pentland, executive vice president and chief business affairs and legal officer of PayPal.

• Rethinking The Tech-First Approach To Law Firm Solutions

  

  When a lawyer complains about some workflow inefficiency they are having, the knee-jerk reaction of many firms is to look for a technology-based workaround. This overlooks the importance of human psychology and behavior, which may be the root of the problem, says Ryan Steadman of Zero.

• Top 10 Techniques For Crafting A Dazzling Brief

  

  Legal writing often falls flat not because it’s unorganized, but because it’s technically unsound and riddled with gaffes that cheapen and degrade it. Avoiding the most common mistakes will keep judges interested and, most importantly, make them trust you, says Daniel Karon of Karon LLC.

• High Court's Knick Ruling Is A Big Win For Property Rights

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Knick v. Township of Scott puts an end to a Catch-22 that left property owners with no way to challenge violations of the Fifth Amendment's takings clause, and will likely trigger an increase in federal takings claims across the country, says Paul Beard of Alston & Bird.

• Q&A

  A Chat With Ballard Spahr Diversity Chief Virginia Essandoh

  

  In the final installment of this monthly series, legal recruiting expert Carlos Pauling from Major Lindsey & Africa talks with Virginia Essandoh about the trends and challenges she sees as chief diversity officer at Ballard Spahr.

• Series

  Judging A Book: McMahon On 'Roosevelt For The Defense'

  

  In "Theodore Roosevelt for the Defense," authors Dan Abrams and David Fisher meticulously chronicle the forgotten high-profile 1915 libel trial of Teddy Roosevelt, capturing the interesting legal customs of an era before things like notice pleading and pretrial discovery, says Chief U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon of the Southern District of New York.