Expert Analysis

• Antitrust Crime Enforcement May Escalate Under New Chief

  

  While the recent departure of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division chief created uncertainty about enforcement priorities, the debut speech from the new acting division head revealed that companies can only expect the division’s focus on vigorous criminal prosecution and offender deterrence to grow, say attorneys at Sidley.

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  Podcasting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Podcasting has changed how I ask questions and connect with people, sharpening my ability to listen without interrupting or prejudging, and bringing me closer to what law is meant to be: a human profession grounded in understanding, judgment and trust, says Donna DiMaggio Berger at Becker.

• Strategies For Retailers, Landlords In M&A Portfolio Reduction

  

  With more retailers likely to merge or be acquired in 2026, both landlords and companies looking to renegotiate their real estate footprints can strike successful deals through advance planning, understanding rights allocations and maintaining realistic leverage assessment, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

• Lessons From Justices' Split On Major Questions Doctrine

  

  The justices' varied opinions in Learning Resources v. Trump, which held the International Emergency Economy Powers Act did not confer the power to impose tariffs, offer a meaningful window into the U.S. Supreme Court's perspective on the major questions doctrine that will likely shape lower courts' approach to executive action challenges, say attorneys at Venable.

• How The New Tariff Landscape May Unfold

  

  To replace tariffs formerly imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, the administration will rely on a patchwork of statutes, potentially leading to procedural challenges and a complex tariff landscape with varying levels, durations and applicability, says Joseph Grossman-Trawick at King & Spalding.

• The Cautionary Tale Of A Supply Chain Inquiry 'Made In Italy'

  

  Legal probes into the Italian luxury fashion supply chain reflect the need for effective buy-side diligence with a variety of tools and through a variety of lenses to avoid an issue after an M&A transaction, says Jesse Silvertown at Hesparus.

• Del. Justices' Upholding Of SB 21 Gives Cos. Needed Clarity

  

  The Delaware Supreme Court's recent unanimous decision in Rutledge v. Clearway Energy — upholding 2025 corporate law amendments enacted through S.B. 21, which clarified safe harbor protections and key terms — may help stem the DExit movement, whose proponents have claimed unpredictability in Delaware courts, say attorneys at Nelson Mullins.

• PFAS Risks In M&A Amid Litigation, Legislative Developments

  

  Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances have become a significant M&A concern amid new trends in settlements and state laws, and potential buyers must find ways to evaluate potential related risks, say attorneys at Debevoise.

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  Volunteering With Scouts Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Serving as an assistant scoutmaster for my son’s troop reaffirmed several skills and principles crucial to lawyering — from the importance of disconnecting to the value of morality, says Michael Warren at McManis Faulkner.

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  Law School's Missed Lessons: In Court, It's About Storytelling

  

  Law school provides doctrine, cases and hypotheticals, but when lawyers step into the courtroom, they must learn the importance of clarity, credibility, memorability and preparation — in other words, how to tell simple, effective stories, say Nicholas Steverson and Danielle Trujillo at Wheeler Trigg, and Lisa DeCaro at Courtroom Performance.

• How Recent Del. Rulings Clarify M&A Deal Fraud Carveouts

  

  Two recent Delaware decisions have provided clarity regarding when a party can or cannot rely on representations made during the course of an M&A transaction, particularly on the scope and enforceability of antireliance provisions, and on representations they knew or should have known were false, says Anthony Boccamazzo at Olshan Frome.

• Aligning Microsoft Tools With NYC Bar AI Recording Guidance

  

  The New York City Bar Association’s recently issued formal opinion, providing ethical guidance on artificial intelligence-assisted recording, transcription and summarization, raises immediate questions about data governance and e-discovery for companies that use Microsoft 365 and Copilot, say Staci Kaliner, Martin Tully and John Collins at Redgrave.

• FTC Focus: Antitrust Spotlight On 'Acqui-Hires,' Noncompetes

  

  A recent Federal Trade Commission focus on labor issues, like 'acqui-hire' deals, in which only a company's workforce is acquired, and noncompetes, shows that the agency is scrutinizing these issues on a case-by-case basis, necessitating a meaningful look at these transactions, particularly in the technology and artificial intelligence industries, say attorneys at Proskauer.

• A Single DOJ Corporate Enforcement Policy Raises Questions

  

  The U.S. Department of Justice's soon-to-be-released uniform corporate criminal enforcement policy could address the challenges raised by the current decentralized approach, but it will need to answer a number of potential questions amid scant details, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

• 5 Different AI Systems Raise Distinct Privilege Issues

  

  A New York federal court’s recent U.S. v. Heppner decision, holding that a defendant’s use of Claude was not privileged, only addressed one narrow artificial intelligence system, but lawyers must recognize that the spectrum of AI tools raises different confidentiality and privilege questions, says Heidi Nadel at HP.