Mergers & Acquisitions

Expert Analysis

• NY State Flexes Muscles With Energy Service Co. Restrictions

  

  The New York State Public Service Commission's new regulations for energy service companies — imposing enhanced eligibility criteria, price caps, and limitations on products and services — raise concerns about how the commission might impose similar restrictions in the broader distributed energy resource markets, say Thomas Puchner and Kevin Blake of Phillips Lytle.

• How Associate Life Has Evolved Over The Past Decade

  

  During the last 10 years, the need to embrace change was fundamental for law firms, and that change affected associates in many ways — most, but not all, for the better, says Brad Kaufman, co-president of Greenberg Traurig.

• Tribune Ruling Charts Course For Bankruptcy Safe Harbor

  

  In upholding the dismissal of fraudulent conveyance claims against former shareholders of the bankrupt Tribune Company, the Second Circuit may have laid out a path for parties looking to stay within a crucial Bankruptcy Code safe harbor provision, say attorneys at Cadwalader.

• What's Changed And What's The Same In Final CFIUS Rules

  

  The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s final rules implementing the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act complete the revamp of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which will be more complex and better resourced to address evolving national security risks that arise in the context of foreign investments, say attorneys at Akin Gump.

• 8 Executive Pay Considerations For An Economic Downturn

  

  Amid forecasts of economic volatility, employers should address executive compensation and performance awards progressively and with quick adjustments when disruption hits, say Mark Poerio and Dan Brandenburg at The Wagner Law Group.

• Series

  Judging A Book: Dyk Reviews 'Democracy And Equality'

  

  In their new book "Democracy and Equality: The Enduring Constitutional Vision of the Warren Court," Geoffrey Stone and David Strauss provide valuable context for U.S. Supreme Court decisions under Chief Justice Earl Warren that have profoundly affected the country, but their overly protective attitude sometimes obscures reality, says Federal Circuit Judge Timothy Dyk.

• SEC's Audit Proposal May Bolster Compliance, Competition

  

  A newly proposed rule from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on public companies' relationships with their auditors could make the current auditor independence framework easier to comply with, and mitigate competition pressure from issues that should not reasonably threaten an auditor’s objectivity, say Charles Smith and Andrew Fuchs at Skadden.

• The Biggest Changes In China's Draft Anti-Monopoly Law

  

  China's State Administration for Market Regulation recently published for public comment a draft for the revised Anti-Monopoly Law, which, if adopted, brings with it procedural and substantive changes that will likely have a significant impact on companies operating or investing in China, say Wei Huang and Fan Zhu of Tian Yuan.

• 7 Insider Tips For Working With In-House Counsel

  

  For outside firms wondering how to best support busy in-house lawyers, several practices can help navigate critical legal issues and novel business challenges while strengthening the working relationship, says Virginia Hudson, associate general counsel at Capital One.

• 50 Years Later, Interpretive Challenges Remain For RICO

  

  In the 50 years since the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act was passed, courts' attempts to clarify the statute have had some success, but many interpretive dilemmas remain unresolved, says Randy Gordon of Barnes & Thornburg.

• Health Care AI Increasingly In Crosshairs Of State, Fed. Gov't

  

  Given the recent investigation by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services into Google and Ascension's Project Nightingale, and an investigation by the New York Department of Health into UnitedHealth Group's hospital care algorithm, companies in the HealthTech space should prepare for growing scrutiny, especially of partnerships, say attorneys at Debevoise.

• 7 Ethics Tips For Lawyers' Pretrial Social Media Use

  

  As ethical constraints on pretrial social media use evolve, the American Bar Association's Model Rules and several court opinions provide guidance on avoiding violations when collecting evidence, researching jurors and friending judges, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Mark Davis at Harris Wiltshire.

• Opinion

  States Should Not Follow ABA On Attorney Conduct Rules

  

  Because the American Bar Association's new rule on diversity continues to use the Model Rules of Professional Conduct as a cultural bludgeon, states should create independent codes limited to constitutionally valid purposes of attorney regulation, says Bradley Abramson of Alliance Defending Freedom.

• How Courts And Litigants Can Benefit From Special Masters

  

  As we approach the first anniversary of the American Bar Association's adoption of guidelines for the appointment and use of special masters in civil litigation, retired U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin, now at Stroock, explains how special masters can help parties and courts with faster decision-making and subject matter expertise.

• Uber Policy Calls For Refresher On ABA Confidentiality Rules

  

  Uber's recent policy update allowing drivers to audio-record passenger rides is a reminder for lawyers to observe the highest standard of care in protecting client information under the American Bar Association's confidentiality model rule, says Paul Boehm at Williams & Connolly.