Illinois

Expert Analysis

• Will COVID-19 Transform The Cannabis Industry?

  

  With marijuana deemed essential in many states during the COVID-19 crisis, regulators are relaxing prohibitions on cannabis home delivery and curbside pickup services. These short-term fixes could become lasting mainstays, say attorneys at Goodwin.

• Opinion

  FTC Should Leave Regulation Of Noncompetes To States

  

  If the FTC must use its rulemaking authority to regulate employee noncompete agreements, it should tread cautiously and let states make policy decisions for their citizens and economies, say Russell Beck and Erika Hahn of Beck Reed.

• Benefits Of Pandemic-Prompted Court Extensions Are Limited

  

  State and federal courts are canceling proceedings and pushing out deadlines in response to the novel coronavirus pandemic, but the relief is complex and necessarily incomplete in its power to relieve parties from jurisdictional deadlines, says Neil Lloyd at Schiff Hardin.

• Opinion

  Judicial Shaming Of Attys Is Troubling Even During Pandemic

  

  Judges have recently rebuked attorneys for wasting judicial resources to resolve minor issues during the COVID-19 crisis, including in a trademark lawsuit over unicorn drawings. But it is unfair to publicly flog lawyers for doing what they are trained to do, says Ronald Minkoff, chairman of Frankfurt Kurnit's professional responsibility group.

• Don't Be Social Media Distancing: LinkedIn Tips For Lawyers

  

  While we need to be physically apart at this time, lawyers and firms should be leaning into social media to reinforce and build relationships, and help guide clients through the coronavirus crisis, says marketing consultant Stefanie Marrone.

• Tips For Executing Contracts Electronically Amid Pandemic

  

  While COVID-19 has created unprecedented challenges for even commonplace tasks like contract execution, federal and state legal frameworks offer practical alternatives to manual signing, say attorneys at Cleary.

• Opinion

  It Is Time To Make Virtual Trials A Reality

  

  The COVID-19 crisis is rapidly teaching us that there is surprisingly little legal work that requires everyone to be in the same room — and that’s equally true for trials and other court proceedings, says Jeffrey Blumenfeld at Lowenstein Sandler.

• Remote Depositions: Coming To A Home Office Near You

  

  Recent Texas state court orders indicate judges are increasingly requiring parties and nonparties to submit to remote depositions amid the pandemic. However, there are inherent drawbacks to such depositions, including limitations on attorneys’ ability to assess witness credibility, says Edward Duffy at Reed Smith.

• State Telemedicine Rules Remain Murky Amid COVID-19 Crisis

  

  In the vast majority of states, the regulatory environment remains unclear or hostile to telemedicine services by out-of-state physicians, limiting their capacity to help during the coronavirus pandemic, say attorneys at Polsinelli.

• Ways Lawyers Can Support The Most Vulnerable Right Now

  

  In this global health and economic crisis, it is essential that lawyers recommit to inclusion, and fight for colleagues, clients, community members and friends who are most at risk, says Dru Levasseur, head of the National LGBT Bar Association's inclusion coaching and consulting program.

• Opinion

  Cannabis Exclusion From COVID-19 Relief Must Be Remedied

  

  Marijuana businesses — deemed essential in several states — are not able to tap into the $360 billion in U.S. Small Business Administration loans being made available in response to COVID-19, amplifying the disconnect between federal and state treatment of cannabis. Something can and should be done to fix this, says Zachary Kobrin at Akerman.

• Confronting The Challenges Of Virtual Mediation

  

  Conducting mediation via videoconference amid the ongoing pandemic poses significant challenges, including the difficulty of reading people when you are not with them in person. Daniel Garrie at JAMS shares six tips to overcome the limitations.

• Renewable-Plus-Storage Projects: Bridging Regulatory Gaps

  

  Increasing demand for projects that combine renewable energy generation with energy storage — sometimes called renewable-plus-storage — may prompt the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to address regulatory issues that make such projects difficult, says Seth Lucia at MoFo.

• Shelter-In-Place Orders Raise 5 Business Operations Issues

  

  State and local authorities' COVID-19-related orders to shelter in place raise several critical questions that businesses must address in order to protect their employees, data, information technology infrastructure and operations, say Erin Illman and Steve Snyder at Bradley Arant.

• Keeping Trucks Moving During The Coronavirus Outbreak

  

  Federal and state authorities have taken action to ensure motor carriers can continue delivering vital goods and supplies during COVID-19 lockdowns and closures, but drivers should carry documentation to show why their services are essential, says Brandon Wiseman at Scopelitis Garvin.