Expert Analysis

• Notable Q1 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

  

  Notable insurance class action decisions from the first quarter of the year included reminders about the statute of limitations as a key defense for claims relating to allegedly deficient forms, the importance of focus on the specific contract at issue and further guidance on the contours of Rule 23, says Kevin Zimmerman at BakerHostetler.

• Safeguarding RWI Coverage As Materiality Focus Persists

  

  As first-quarter broker claims reports reveal that materiality disputes remain a key driver of representations and warranties insurance claims, the scarce case law in this area indicates that including a materiality scrape provision in an RWI policy may aid policyholders with recovery, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

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  Speed Jigsaw Puzzling Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  My passion for speed puzzling — I can complete a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle in under 50 minutes — has sharpened my legal skills in more ways than one, with both disciplines requiring patience, precision and the ability to keep the bigger picture in mind while working through the details, says Tazia Statucki at Proskauer.

• Documenting Business Purpose After IRS' 10th Circ. Win

  

  Following the Tenth Circuit’s recent Liberty Global v. U.S. decision, which held the economic substance doctrine does not require a threshold relevancy determination, taxpayers can prepare for potential audits by maintaining contemporaneous documentation and taking other steps that demonstrate the business purpose of transactions, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

• AI Data Center Boom May Spur Wave Of Toxic Tort Suits

  

  Nascent litigation matters against data center operators, set against limited government regulation and a growing body of public health research, suggests we may be on the cusp of an era of mass toxic tort claims, with a liability framework firmly rooted in precedent from other industries, says Benjamin Heller at RFZ Law.

• How Geopolitical Risk Affects Data Center Coverage

  

  Escalating tensions with Iran risk disrupting the energy and infrastructure inputs that support data center operations, raising insurance coverage concerns for operators affected by events far outside their physical footprints, say attorneys at McGuireWoods.

• 2 AI Snafus Show Why Attys Can't Outsource Judgment

  

  The recent incident involving Sullivan & Cromwell where citations in a filed motion were fabricated by artificial intelligence, as well as a punitive ruling from the Sixth Circuit in U.S. v. Farris, demonstrate that the obligation to supervise AI has belonged and always will belong to lawyers, says John Powell at the Kentucky School Boards Association.

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  Playing Magic: The Gathering Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  The competitive card game Magic: The Gathering offers me a training ground for the strategic thinking skills crucial to litigation, challenging me to adapt to oft-updated rules, analyze text as complicated as any statute and anticipate my opponent’s next moves, says Christopher Smith at Lash Goldberg.

• State Of Insurance: Q1 Notes From Illinois

  

  Matthew Fortin at BatesCarey discusses notable insurance developments in Illinois, including the state Supreme Court's highly anticipated Griffith Foods v. National Union Fire Insurance ruling, two bulletins from the Department of Insurance directed at public adjusters and a Seventh Circuit decision precluding a "super excess" tier of coverage.

• Improving Well-Being In Law, 10 Years After Landmark Study

  

  An important 2016 study revealed significant substance abuse and mental health issues among lawyers, and while the findings helped normalize the conversation around these topics, a decade later, structural change is still needed, says Denise Robinson at PLI.

• State Of Insurance: Q1 Notes From Pennsylvania

  

  From causation standards in first-party property claims, to the scope of statutory bad faith liability, to the enforceability of arbitration provisions in underinsured motorist disputes, three recent cases illustrate how Pennsylvania courts continued to refine the boundaries of coverage and dispute resolution, says Todd Leon at Marshall Dennehey.

• What DOL Proposal Signals For 401(k)s, Alternative Assets

  

  The U.S. Department of Labor recently published a highly anticipated proposed rule that could establish more defined pathways for 401(k) plan fiduciaries to consider investment options with greater alternative asset exposure, and help fund sponsors and investment managers develop such options, say attorneys at Cleary.

• Reel Justice: 'No Other Choice' And Moral Rationalization

  

  In the satirical thriller "No Other Choice," the main character rationalizes his decision to kill business competitors by creating a narrative of necessity, illustrating for attorneys the dangers of treating strategic litigation decisions as inevitabilities rather than choices, says Veronica Finkelstein at Wilmington University.

• 5 Trial Lessons You Learn By Losing

  

  Exploring insights that are usually gained only after trial loss can expose the gaps between what we intend to communicate and what lands with the fact-finder, including why being right isn't always a win and how winning a cross‑examination can help you lose your case, says Allison Rocker at Baker & McKenzie.

• GHG Endangerment Finding Repeal Brings New Legal Risks

  

  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2009 determination that greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare anchored a matrix of regulation across multiple sectors — and the recent repeal of that finding has fundamentally destabilized the legal landscape governing industrial emissions, corporate liability and climate-related risk management, says Tanya Nesbitt at Thompson Hine.