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Expert Analysis

• Analyzing Upward And Downward Trends In Legal Tech

  

  Advances in legal technology are often accompanied by bombastic overstatements, but it is important to separate the wheat from the chaff by looking at where various technologies stand on the hype curve, says Lance Eliot at Stanford Law School.

• How Congress May Bail Out FERC On Tolling Orders

  

  The D.C. Circuit's recent ruling in Allegheny Defense Project v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission deals a major blow to FERC's use of tolling orders to forestall judicial rehearings, but Congress may soon come to the agency's aid, say Sandra Rizzo and David Skillman at Arnold & Porter.

• Climate Change Litigation Looms Over Trump Enviro Overhaul

  

  Updated regulations from the White House Council on Environmental Quality likely preclude government agencies from considering climate change in most National Environmental Policy Act analyses, making litigation over the revisions all but certain, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

• Opinion

  ABA's New Guidance On Litigation Funding Misses The Mark

  

  The American Bar Association should revise its recently approved best practices on third-party litigation funding as they do not reflect how legal finance actually works and could create confusion among lawyers, says Andrew Cohen at Burford Capital.

• What Firms Should Ask Before Hiring Attorneys From Gov't

  

  In the final year of any presidential administration, there is an undeniable appetite on the part of large law firms for government-savvy legal talent, but firms need to first consider how they will actually utilize their new star hire, says Michael Ellenhorn at Decipher.

• The Ethics Of Using Chatbots For Legal Services

  

  Delegating legal work to robots involves several risks, including running afoul of statutes dictating unauthorized practice of law, but with the right precautions, law firms can lawfully employ artificially intelligent chatbots that can imitate human conversations, say attorneys at Haynes and Boone.

• Opinion

  ABA Must Seize Opportunity To Respond To Bar Exam Chaos

  

  The challenges of administering bar exams this year have put the future of the profession in jeopardy, but the American Bar Association at its ongoing annual meeting can adopt a resolution that would urge jurisdictions to take emergency actions with respect to licensure of new attorneys, says Nicholas Allard, former president of Brooklyn Law School.

• How Pandemic Is Affecting The Pace Of Judicial Opinions

  

  The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way judges work, but how has it impacted the volume of work product they generate? Ben Strawn and Omeed Azmoudeh at Davis Graham investigate using data from the PACER federal courts registry.

• 6 Steps For Law Firms Looking To Improve Their Culture

  

  The COVID-19 crisis represents an inflection point for law firm culture, and smart firm leaders will take advantage of this moment to build innovation-welcoming environments that support partners, associates, business services teams and clients alike, say Jennifer Johnson at Calibrate Legal and Kathleen Pearson at Pillsbury.

• Virtual Courts Amplify Lawyers' Corporate Spokesperson Role

  

  Greater access to virtual court proceedings during the pandemic means an increased likelihood that legal arguments will jump from the courtroom to the court of public opinion, so counsel must tailor statements with the client's reputation in mind, says Mike Dolan at Finsbury.

• Law Firms Must Note Pandemic's Outsize Impact On Women

  

  In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, gender roles in many families have reverted to scenes from the 1960s, and law firms have a huge opportunity — indeed a business imperative — to avoid the mistakes of the past, say Roberta Liebenberg at Fine Kaplan and Stephanie Scharf at Scharf Banks.

• Opinion

  Calif. Housing Approval Law Is A Strong Tool For Developers

  

  Two recent California Superior Court decisions substantially reinforce the strength of a state law requiring swift approval of housing production, allowing the law to work as intended and preclude lengthy litigation challenges, say attorneys at Coblentz Patch.

• The 'Rocket Docket' Show Goes On Despite Setbacks

  

  After 11 years as the fastest civil trial court in the land, the Eastern District of Virginia rocket docket is now tied for second place among the nation's 94 district courts, but the court has moved swiftly to adapt to the COVID-19 crisis and continues to dispense justice safely and efficiently, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

• Water Reg Suits May Offer Preview Of Likely NEPA Challenges

  

  The ongoing litigation over the Trump administration's repeal and replacement of the Obama-era Clean Water Rule provides a road map for what to expect in likely forthcoming lawsuits challenging the White House Council on Environmental Quality's new National Environmental Policy Act regulations, says Christopher Thomas at Perkins Coie.

• Opinion

  Pandemic Lays Bare The Inequities Inherent In The Bar Exam

  

  The outrage over the life-altering consequences of decisions being made around state bar exams during the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the classism built into the exam, and the legal profession should take this moment to reevaluate how new attorneys are licensed, say Naomi Shatz and Katherine Dullea at Zalkind Duncan.