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Business of Law

The 2021 Regional Powerhouses

The law firms on Law360's list of 2021 Regional Powerhouses are handling some of the biggest deals and most high-profile courtroom battles across eight states, offering clients regional expertise and making a lasting impact on the law at the state and local level.

Law360 Names 2021's Top Attorneys Under 40

We're pleased to announce Law360's Rising Stars for 2021, our list of 180 attorneys under 40 whose legal accomplishments transcend their age.

COVID Takes A Toll On Women's Legal Careers

Women in the legal industry cut down their hours, took leave, or quit when the pandemic toppled the precarious balance of work and life. Will the coronavirus exacerbate gender inequities in BigLaw, even when life returns to normal?

Biden Appointments, BigLaw Hires Signal Hot Antitrust Scene

Recruiting efforts both inside the federal government and among major corporate defense firms are beginning to provide a snapshot of what the antitrust space could look like during President Joe Biden's tenure in the White House.

October 15, 2021
In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360

For those who missed out, here's a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.
October 15, 2021
Opioid Inquiry Faults Arnold & Porter But Rejects Some Relief

Arnold & Porter engaged in sanctionable conduct by failing to divulge key documents from Endo Pharmaceuticals before and during a New York opioid trial, but certain requests for harsh discipline aren't warranted, a retired judge wrote in a court-commissioned report released Friday.
October 15, 2021
Biden Group Split Over Draft Report Knocking Court-Packing

A draft report criticizing court-packing proposals has divided President Joe Biden's bipartisan commission studying possible reforms to the U.S. Supreme Court. Liberal commissioners were caught off guard by the draft report, while conservatives thought it didn't go far enough in condemning the idea.
October 15, 2021
Pro Say: Lessons From The First 'Varsity Blues' Guilty Verdict

The first jury trial stemming from the "Varsity Blues" admissions scandal ended last week with a guilty verdict, marking an important win for prosecutors who pursued a bold witness strategy that ultimately paid off.
October 15, 2021
Rosen Law Firm To Lead Class In Robinhood MDL

A Florida federal judge appointed the Rosen Law Firm PA on Friday to lead multidistrict litigation that alleges stock-trading app Robinhood caused more than $10 billion in market capitalization losses after its customers were hit in January with trading restrictions on certain stocks.
October 15, 2021
GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

It was a give-and-take week. A Michigan mortgage company claims to have accepted the nation's first cryptocurrency mortgage payment, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is re-proposing rules to claw back executive compensation. These are some stories in corporate legal news you may have missed in the past week.
October 15, 2021
NYSBA President To Lead Pot Co. Ascend In Empire State

T. Andrew Brown, president of the New York State Bar Association, has been appointed to lead the New York division of multistate cannabis operator Ascend Wellness Holdings, the company has announced.
October 15, 2021
Student Debtors Lose Fla. Fraud Cases — For Now

A federal judge has dismissed three consolidated cases accusing a student debt relief operation of fraud and racketeering but left the door open for debtors to file an amended complaint, while permanently dismissing malpractice claims against Florida law firm Berger Singerman over its role in the creation of the alleged scam.
October 15, 2021
BakerHostetler Latest To Target January Office Reopening

BakerHostetler is planning to fully reopen its offices in January 2022, the firm told Law360 on Friday, joining a slew of BigLaw firms that have moved their official return dates to the next calendar year.
October 15, 2021
Vote On 1st Circ. Pick Tees Off Week's Action On Judges

Democrats have teed up Senate floor and committee action on several judicial nominees the week of Oct. 18 as they seek to maintain the quick pace of confirmations for President Joe Biden's court picks.
October 14, 2021
11th Circ. Denies Lin Wood's Sanctions Bid Against Ga. Bar

The Eleventh Circuit on Thursday shot down a sanctions bid from controversial right-wing attorney L. Lin Wood Jr., who'd accused State Bar of Georgia disciplinary board members of "frivolously" trying to dismiss his challenge to their request that he undergo a mental health evaluation.
October 14, 2021
Court-Packing Brings 'Considerable' Risk, Biden Group Warns

The commission created by President Joe Biden to study possible "reforms" to the U.S. Supreme Court issued a warning against one of the more extreme measures being pushed by some progressive and Democratic activists, saying that adding seats to the court to offset the current conservative majority is a strategy that brings "considerable" risks.
October 14, 2021
The Term: Reinstating The Boston Bomber's Death Sentence

A divided U.S. Supreme Court appeared to lean in favor of reinstating the death penalty for Boston bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev during a lengthy hearing Wednesday over whether the trial judge gave him a fair trial. Law360's senior Boston courts reporter Chris Villani joins The Term podcast to discuss the case.
October 14, 2021
Mutual Funds Could Salve Fed. Judiciary's Conflict Headaches

The recent revelation that more than 130 federal judges didn't exit hundreds of cases involving companies in which they or a family member owned stock is triggering new interest in an elementary market solution: the mutual fund.
October 14, 2021
Lawmakers Demand Chief Justice Act On Recusal Report

Two Democratic lawmakers have asked U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. for the judiciary's response to an explosive Wall Street Journal report documenting hundreds of cases in which federal judges failed to recuse themselves despite stock conflicts and questioned his role in the controversy as the head of the judicial branch.
October 14, 2021
Milbank Wants Junior Attys In Office More Post-Reopening

Milbank LLP is the latest BigLaw firm to announce it will reopen its offices in early November and let employees enjoy remote work during the holidays — but it's also calling on junior attorneys to put in extra time in the office, according to a Thursday report.
October 14, 2021
Conn. Atty Accuses Criminal Justice Body Of Age Bias

A senior assistant state's attorney in Connecticut filed a discrimination suit against the state's Criminal Justice Commission on Wednesday, alleging that its denial of interviews for multiple high-ranking state's attorney positions amounted to age discrimination.
October 14, 2021
Orrick, Cleary Hit With $310M Malpractice Suit

Renewable energy company TerraForm Power slapped Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP with a legal malpractice suit Wednesday, alleging the firms botched an M&A deal resulting in damages worth more than $300 million.
October 14, 2021
Fed. Judiciary Invites Probes Of Websites For Vulnerabilities

The U.S. federal courts system has declared open season on its own websites, rolling out a new policy that allows cybersecurity researchers to test for vulnerabilities to strengthen defenses against malicious actors, a move that's part of a broader adoption of those tactics across the federal government.
October 14, 2021
Troubles Mount For Atty Murdaugh With $4M Theft Charges

Embattled South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh was arrested Thursday for allegedly swiping $4.3 million in settlement money from the sons of his former housekeeper, who died at his home.
October 14, 2021
NYC Courts Ease Back Into In-Person Housing Proceedings

Housing courts in New York City's most populous borough had few people present Wednesday, a day after a judiciary directive took effect mandating certain kinds of appearances be held in person for the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
October 13, 2021
Girardi Keese Trustee Wants To Investigate Legal Lenders

Girardi Keese's bankruptcy trustee wants to investigate several litigation lenders who poured tens of millions of dollars into the firm in recent years, even as it appeared that founder Thomas V. Girardi was spending the money improperly, according to a document filed Wednesday in Los Angeles bankruptcy court.
October 13, 2021
ITC Lifts Restrictions On LG Attys In Solar Safeguard Review

The U.S. International Trade Commission granted LG Electronics lawyers full access to confidential materials in an ongoing solar safeguard review Wednesday, quietly resolving a legal dispute over restrictions placed on senior attorneys at Curtis Mallet-Prevost Colt & Mosle LLP.
October 13, 2021
Rule To Strengthen Fla. Judges' Bar Complaints Worries Attys

A proposed new Florida Bar rule that would give additional weight to attorney misconduct complaints from judges appears poised for approval by the Florida Supreme Court, despite concerns from bar defense counsel about lengthening the already arduous disciplinary process and the potential for abuse.
October 13, 2021
Burford Capital Earmarks $100M To Bolster Law Firm Diversity

Litigation funder Burford Capital is earmarking an additional $100 million as part of the launch of the second phase of its initiative to use economic incentives to increase diversity in the legal profession, particularly in leadership and partnership positions.

Expert Analysis

Girardi Scandal Provides Important Ethics Lessons

The litigation and media maelstrom following allegations that famed plaintiffs attorney Thomas Girardi and his law firm misappropriated clients' funds provides myriad ethics and professional responsibility lessons for practitioners, especially with regard to misconduct reporting and liability insurance, says Elizabeth Tuttle Newman at Frankfurt Kurnit.
Series

Embracing ESG: Jabil GC Talks Compliance Preparation

Tried-and-true compliance lessons from recent decades can be applied to companies’ environmental, social and governance efforts, especially with regard to employee training and consistent application of policies — two factors that can create a foundation for ESG criteria to flourish, says Robert Katz at Jabil.
3 Ways CLOs Can Drive ESG Efforts

Chief legal officers are specially trained to see the legal industry's flaws, and they can leverage that perspective to push their companies toward effective environmental, social and governance engagement, says Mark Chandler at Stanford Law School.
How Law Firms Can Rethink Offices In A Post-Pandemic World

Based on their own firm's experiences, Kami Quinn and Adam Farra at Gilbert discuss strategies and unique legal industry considerations for law firms planning hybrid models of remote and in-office work in a post-COVID marketplace.
Series

Embracing ESG: Baker Hughes CLO Talks Sustainability Team

For businesses focused on addressing environmental, social and governance considerations, a legal team that can coordinate sustainability efforts across the company can help to manage risk and compliance issues, anticipate and prepare for change, and identify new opportunities, says Regina Jones at Baker Hughes.
What Mainstreaming Of Litigation Finance Means For Industry

The rush of new capital and investors into the litigation funding space is expected to bring heightened competition on price and other key deal terms, but litigants will need to be more in tune with individual financiers' proclivities, says William Weisman at Therium Capital Management.
What 9th Circ. Privilege Test Means For Dual-Purpose Advice

While the Ninth Circuit's recent ruling in In re: Grand Jury confirms that courts should use the primary-purpose test to determine whether communications with both legal and business purposes are shielded by the attorney-client privilege, questions on the application of the test remain, says Scott Tenley at Michelman & Robinson.
Lifting The Veil On The Supreme Court's Shadow Docket

Following headline-making U.S. Supreme Court emergency orders on Texas’ new abortion law, COVID-19 restrictions and more, Vetan Kapoor, counsel to Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, examines the court's so-called shadow docket and its decision-making procedures, including questions around transparency, timing and precedential effect.
Series

Embracing ESG: United Natural Foods GC Talks Bottom Line

In prioritizing environmental, social and governance initiatives as strategic value drivers, corporate general counsel can leverage meaningful ESG progress to benefit both the business's bottom line and the wider world, says Jill Sutton at United Natural Foods.
3 Attorney Ethics Considerations For Litigation Funding

The growth of the litigation finance industry has generated questions on the obligations of counsel when their clients are seeking outside capital to fund litigation, which litigators must understand when providing information to a third-party funder and discussing legal strategy with a client, says Matthew Oxman at LexShares.
How ABA Opinion Shifts Alternative Biz Structure Landscape

A recent American Bar Association opinion approving lawyers' passive investment in nonlawyer-owned firms eliminates a hurdle for law firms wishing to scale their practice through alternative business structures, but aspiring investors should follow a few best practices, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Deepika Ravi at Harris Wiltshire.
Series

Embracing ESG: HPE Counsel Talk Effective Board Oversight

Governance teams can more effectively shape board oversight of environmental, social and governance issues by ensuring organizationwide agreement on the most relevant issues, building a materiality framework that reflects stakeholder input, and monitoring the integration of ESG into operations, say Rishi Varma and Derek Windham at Hewlett Packard Enterprise.
Opinion

Justice Gap Demands Look At New Legal Service Models

Current restrictions on how lawyers structure their businesses stand in the way of meaningful access to justice for many Americans, so states should follow the lead of Utah and Florida and test out innovative law firm business models through regulatory sandboxes, says Zachariah DeMeola at the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System.
Series

Embracing ESG: Leidos GC Talks Social Responsibility

Recent criticisms of corporate commitments to stakeholders such as employees and communities — implicitly opposing environmental, social and governance initiatives — are fundamentally flawed and display a serious misunderstanding of contemporary investor priorities and dynamics, says Jerald Howe at Leidos.
Lessons In Crisis Lawyering 20 Years After 9/11

Dianne Phillips at Holland & Knight recounts her experiences as in-house counsel at a liquefied natural gas company in the tumultuous aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, and details the lessons she learned about lawyering in a crisis, including the importance of careful forethought and having trusted advisers on speed dial.