Immigration

Expert Analysis

• Ethics Reminders As Employees Move To Or From Gov't

  

  Many organizations are making plans for executives to go into government jobs, or for government officials to join a private sector team, but they must understand the many ethics rules that can put a damper on just how valuable the former employee or new hire can be, say Scott Thomas and Jennifer Carrier at Blank Rome.

• 3 Fed. Circ. IP Cases For Gov't Contractors To Watch

  

  Nathaniel Castellano at Arnold & Porter discusses recent oral arguments at the Federal Circuit in three cases — Boeing v. Secretary of the Air Force, Bitmanagement Software v. U.S. and Harmonia Holdings v. U.S. — and the broad implications the decisions will have on government contractors and agencies dealing in proprietary data and software.

• A Key To Helping Clients Make Better Decisions During Crisis

  

  As the pandemic brings a variety of legal stresses for businesses, lawyers must understand the emotional dynamic of a crisis and the particular energy it produces to effectively fulfill their role as advisers, say Meredith Parfet and Aaron Solomon at Ravenyard Group.

• What To Expect From DOJ Enforcement Under Biden

  

  Companies shouldn't fear a rapid uptick in overall corporate enforcement actions by the U.S. Department of Justice under a new Democratic administration, but should anticipate a shift in focus away from immigration cases toward COVID-19-related fraud and civil rights reform, say Sandra Moser and Kenneth Polite at Morgan Lewis.

• Ethics Considerations For Law Firms Implementing AI

  

  Richard Finkelman and Yihua Astle at Berkeley Research Group discuss the ethical and bias concerns law firms must address when implementing artificial intelligence-powered applications for recruiting, conflict identification and client counseling.

• Picking The Right Location And Tools For Virtual Courtrooms

  

  Attorneys should consider the pros and cons of participating in virtual court proceedings from home versus their law firm offices, and whether they have the right audio, video and team communication tools for their particular setup, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

• Beware Atty Ethics Rules When Reporting COVID-19 Fraud

  

  Attorneys considering blowing the whistle on False Claims Act violations by recipients of COVID-19 relief may face a number of ethical constraints on their ability to disclose client information and file qui tam actions, say Breon Peace and Jennifer Kennedy Park at Cleary.

• Looking For Judicial Activists? Check The Footnotes

  

  U.S. Supreme Court nominees typically face intense questioning over potential judicial activism, but a better way to gauge judges' activist tendencies may be to look at the footnotes in their opinions, say Christopher Collier at Hawkins Parnell and Michael Arndt at Rohan Law.

• Best Practices For Legal Technology Adoption

  

  The pandemic has accelerated the need to improve the practice of law through technology, but law firms and in-house legal departments must first ensure they have employee buy-in and well-defined processes for new digital tools, say Dan Broderick at BlackBoiler and Daryl Shetterly at Orrick.

• The Pandemic's Long-Term Impact On Law Firm Operations

  

  Brian Burlant at Major Lindsey looks at how pandemic-era remote work has changed the way law firms operate — from shifts in secretarial functions to associate professional development — and explains why some alterations may be here to stay.

• How Biden Might Dismantle Trump-Era Regulations

  

  The Biden administration will likely take swift action to undo regulatory actions from the past four years with a variety of tools, including executive orders, the Congressional Review Act and legal challenges under the Administrative Procedure Act, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

• Opinion

  Congress Should Take Responsibility For Immigration Reform

  

  Lawmakers should stop relying on White House stopgap measures and drive systemic immigration reform by reassessing the current quota system, increasing family and employment-based visas, and creating a simplified temporary worker program to fill agricultural and skilled labor positions, says Rosanna Berardi at Berardi Immigration.

• Opinion

  Lack Of Access To Remote Court Proceedings Is Inexcusable

  

  Blanket rules that bar recording or dissemination of remote public court proceedings impede presumptive common law and First Amendment right of access, greatly expand courts' powers over nonparties, and likely run afoul of U.S. Supreme Court precedent, says Matthew Schafer at ViacomCBS.

• What The Sports Industry Can Expect Under Biden

  

  At the start of President-elect Joe Biden's administration, the sports industry should be prepared to comply with significant policy changes on hot-topic issues like COVID-19 management, immigration, and equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace, says Elizabeth Polido at Morgan Lewis.

• Opinion

  Why Attacks On Trump's Election Lawyers Are Problematic

  

  The vilification of Jones Day and Porter Wright for their involvement in President Donald Trump's election lawsuits is an attack on lawyers' duty to advocate for their clients' causes fearlessly and zealously within the bounds of the law, says Pierce O'Donnell at Greenberg Glusker.