Expert Analysis

• Ky. BIPA Copycat Bill Could Usher In Class Action Tsunami

  

  A new Kentucky bill replicating Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act may trigger a wave of class actions, and momentum for similar legislation in other states, but companies can get ahead of it by taking several proactive compliance measures, says David Oberly at Blank Rome.

• How AI Can Transform Crisis Management In Litigation

  

  Attorneys should understand how to use rapidly advancing artificial intelligence technology to help clients prepare for potential catastrophic events and the inevitable litigation arising from them, from predicting crises before they occur to testing legal theories once they arise, say Stratton Horres at Wilson Elser and David Steiger.

• Supervisor Relationships Are Key To Beating Atty Burnout

  

  In order to combat record attorney turnover and high levels of burnout, law firm partners and leaders must build engaging relationships with supervisees, fostering autonomy and control, enabling expression of values, and building a sense of community and belonging, says Anne Brafford at the Institute for Well-Being in Law.

• Online Subscriptions Face New Calif. Arbitration Standard

  

  After a California state appeals court's recent ruling in Sellers v. JustAnswer against a website's so-called sign-in-wrap agreement that bound consumers to individual arbitration, companies offering recurring subscriptions to California consumers should reevaluate their enrollment processes, says Joseph Addiego at Davis Wright.

• The Rising Demand For Commercial Litigators In 2022

  

  Amid broken supply chains, pandemic-induced bankruptcies and a rise in regulation by litigation, strong commercial litigators — strategists who are adept in trying a range of tortious and contractual disputes — are becoming a must-have for many law firms, making this year an opportune moment to make the career switch, say Michael Ascher and Kimberly Donlon at Major Lindsey.

• When Fair Notice Precludes Punitive Damages

  

  The ongoing pandemic has done little to slow the continued proliferation of novel theories of tort liability, but even when courts approve, the U.S. Constitution's requirement of fair notice may prohibit punitive damages, says Mitchell Morris at Butler Snow.

• Opinion

  FTC Should Rethink Market Issues In Facebook Case

  

  The Federal Trade Commission's antitrust prosecution of Meta Platforms, formerly Facebook, may have survived the initial litigation stage this week, but the case still does not embrace the markets it purports to fix, says David Reichenberg at Cozen O'Connor.

• 5 Advertising Law Trends To Watch

  

  For the world of advertising, 2022 will bring new compliance challenges and considerations shaped by legal developments in everything from nonfungible-token commerce in the metaverse to the ever-growing impact of social media on young users, say Jason Gordon and Deborah Bessner at Reed Smith.

• How In-House Counsel Can Make The Case For Settling Early

  

  Following the recent settlement in McDonald's v. Easterbrook, in-house counsel should consider decision-tree analyses and values-driven communications plans to secure effective, early resolutions in litigation, saving time and money and moving the company mission forward, say Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein and Richard Torrenzano at The Torrenzano Group.

• To Retain Talent, GCs Should Prioritize Mission Statements

  

  With greater legal demands and an increasing number of workers resigning during the pandemic, general counsel should take steps to articulate their teams' values in departmental mission statements, which will help them better prioritize corporate values and attract and retain talent, says Catherine Kemnitz at Axiom.

• Retailers Must Start Preparing For New Business Privacy Laws

  

  Miriam Farhi and Kelsey McIntosh at Perkins Coie describe the key features of new comprehensive privacy laws in California, Virginia and Colorado that take effect in 2023, with a particular focus on how they affect businesses in the retail industry.

• 5 Privacy Law Predictions For 2022

  

  To prepare for increased state, federal and international privacy regulation and enforcement this year, companies should focus on sufficient data security measures, fair and transparent use of artificial intelligence and biometrics, and integration of new contractual clauses into cross-border data transfer agreements, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.

• Key 2021 Cases On Standing In Product Defect Class Actions

  

  Class actions claiming product defects often turn on questions about who has standing — and key decisions over the past year by the U.S. Supreme Court and other federal courts have helped to clarify who is entitled to bring such claims in federal court, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

• Recent Bias Suits Against Law Firms And Lessons For 2022

  

  2021 employment discrimination case filings and developments show that law firms big and small are not immune from claims, and should serve as a reminder that the start of a new year is a good time to review and update salary, promotion and leave policies to mitigate litigation risks, says Hope Comisky at Griesing Law.

• Minn. Big Oil Climate Suit Follows Big Tobacco Blueprint

  

  The theory behind Minnesota's litigation against major oil companies is that the petroleum industry has known for decades that use of fossil fuels causes climate change — and the parallels with the state's successful 1990s litigation against the tobacco industry are instructive, say Dennis Anderson and Jason Reeves at Zelle.