Expert Analysis

• NYC Office Tower Ch. 11 Shines Light On Blocking Provisions

  

  PMW Management's Chapter 11 filing, which recently received extra time to submit a restructuring plan, highlights courts' increasing skepticism of bankruptcy blocking provisions and favoritism toward leaving bankruptcy restructuring plans in the hands of the debtor, say Jeff Marwil and Ashley Weringa at Proskauer.

• What's At Stake In Justices' FCA Qui Tam Dismissal Review

  

  The Supreme Court's decision next term in U.S. v. Executive Health Resources could hold that the government cannot dismiss a qui tam action in which it initially declined intervention, which would mean the government must expend more resources vetting False Claims Act cases and give relators free rein as prosecutors of their cases, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

• Beware Arbitration Clauses That May Bar Inter Partes Review

  

  Recent decisions show that the Federal Circuit and district courts are moving toward recognizing that standard arbitration clauses can bar inter partes review at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, a new landscape that will require careful consideration for parties negotiating patent-related contracts, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

• Opinion

  Now's The Time To Address Archaic Law School Curricula

  

  With law school enrollments jumping significantly ahead of a potential recession and more students graduating than the market can absorb, law schools should turn to creative solutions to teach students how to negotiate, work with clients, specialize and use technology to practice their craft more efficiently, says University of Colorado adjunct professor Jason Mendelson.

• State Natural Resource Damages Suits: What Cos. Must Know

  

  With numerous states currently following New Jersey's lead in stepping up litigation seeking natural resource damages, defendants face unique challenges, and must consider unique approaches to case management to limit liability, says Matthew Conley at Archer.

• Lessons From Lawyer Fee-Sharing Agreements Gone Wrong

  

  The recent fee-sharing dispute between Edelson and Girardi Keese is a reminder that lawyers who do not strictly follow the applicable rules may risk a disciplinary complaint, lose their share of the fee, or wind up in costly litigation with co-counsel, says David Grossbaum at Hinshaw.

• LeClairRyan Bankruptcy Highlights Pass-Through Tax Issue

  

  A Virginia bankruptcy court's recent ruling in the case of defunct law firm LeClairRyan shows there may be serious tax consequences for pass-through entity partners who give up their ownership interest without following operating agreement exit provisions and updating bankruptcy court filings, say Edward Schnitzer and Hannah Travaglini at Montgomery McCracken.

• Circuits' Remand Of State Climate Suits May Mean Big Liability

  

  Federal circuit courts across the nation have recently affirmed that state and local governments can sue energy companies in state courts over harms attributed to climate change — and if the U.S. Supreme Court does not step in, the energy sector could soon face a deluge of liability claims, says Todd Thacker at Goldberg Segalla.

• 8 Steps To Creating A Legal Ops Technology Road Map

  

  Legal departments struggling to find and implement the right technologies for their operations should consider creating a road map that summarizes their approach to technology changes, provides clearly defined metrics for success, and serves as the single source of truth for stakeholders, says Melanie Shafer at SimpleLegal.

• Latest SPAC Trends Point To Risk Of Negative Outcomes

  

  Interest in initial public offerings of special purpose acquisition companies has reached its apex, and in the second half of this year we anticipate sustained levels of SPAC shareholder redemptions, increased liquidations for those unable to consummate an initial business combination and increased litigation risk, say attorneys at The Brattle Group.

• Parsing Chancery's Novel Director Liability Ruling In Garfield

  

  The Delaware Chancery Court's cautious acceptance of a novel director liability theory in Allen v. Garfield, that a board's failure to act on a problem identified in a litigation demand letter may constitute a breach of fiduciary duty, shows that a kitchen sink approach to defending against fiduciary claims may not be optimal, say attorneys at Fried Frank.

• The Importance Of Data And Data Analysis In Litigation

  

  Understanding, analyzing and effectively presenting large data sets is an increasingly important skill in litigation as it allows plaintiffs to dramatically scale up the scope of cases and is often critical to defeating motions to dismiss and motions for summary judgment, says David Burnett at Motley Rice.

• 2 New Defenses To Federal Shareholder Derivative Claims

  

  Increasingly, plaintiffs are bringing Securities Exchange Act claims in derivative suits because they perceive these claims to have advantages compared to traditional fiduciary duty claims, but there are several reasons why plaintiffs are wrong and the flawed assumptions underlying these claims should be tested in court, say Brian Lutz and Michael Kahn at Gibson Dunn.

• Turnover Provision Ruling Is Warning For Junior Creditors

  

  The recent Third Circuit decision in CoFund v. Hitachi serves as a useful reminder to junior and senior creditors as to how their dealings in an intercreditor arrangement may play out following a debtor's bankruptcy, and provides insight into the consequences a junior creditor may face after breaching a turnover provision, say attorneys at Cadwalader.

• Steps Companies Can Take To Mitigate Privilege Labeling Risk

  

  Although Google prevailed on a recent privilege labeling sanctions motion, an important takeaway from the decision is that companies should assess their in-house procedures and employee training programs regarding privileged communications to mitigate risks of the potential appearance of bad faith privilege claims, say Gareth Evans at Redgrave and e-discovery attorney James Hertsch.