Pennsylvania

Expert Analysis

• Opinion

  The Case For A Nonpolitical Federal Judiciary

  

  For the last 20 years, at the insistence of both parties, U.S. Supreme Court nominations have been fierce ideological battles — which is bad for the country and bad for the public's perception of the legitimacy of the court, say Judge Eric Moyé, Judge Craig Smith and Winston & Strawn partner Tom Melsheimer.

• Anthem-Cigna Merger Ruling Highlights Post-Deal Issues

  

  The Delaware Chancery Court's recent decision to halt the Anthem-Cigna merger on antitrust grounds is most notable for not holding Cigna liable for breaching its obligation to support the transaction, and underscores the vulnerability of merger-of-equals transactions to post-signing issues, say attorneys at Fried Frank.

• The Keys To A Better Privilege Logging Paradigm

  

  Current privilege logging practices to identify what information is being withheld from discovery often lead to costly disputes, so practitioners should adopt a system based on trust and good faith, similar to the presumptions embedded in the business judgment rule for corporate directors and officers, say Kevin Brady at Volkswagen and Charles Ragan and Ted Hiser at Redgrave.

• Law Firm Hiring Considerations In A COVID-19 Economy

  

  Financially robust law firms are entering the recruiting market aggressively knowing that dislocations like the COVID-19 crisis present rare competitive opportunities, and firms that remain on the sidelines when it comes to strategic hiring will be especially vulnerable to having their best talent poached, says Brian Burlant at Major Lindsey.

• Djokovic's 'Accident' Through The Insurance Case Law Lens

  

  The conflict between how tennis pro Novak Djokovic and U.S. Open organizers characterized his striking a line judge with a tennis ball has parallels with one of the most litigated questions in insurance coverage cases — whether an injury was caused by an accident, says Randy Maniloff at White and Williams.

• Streamlining Power Transmission Siting To Help Renewables

  

  It can take years and cost millions of dollars to secure state regulatory approval for electric transmission system upgrades needed to facilitate clean energy development, so it is important for states to create abbreviated siting processes for projects with limited anticipated impacts, says Andy Flavin at Troutman Pepper.

• Opinion

  Lawyers Must Act To Preserve Democracy This Election

  

  COVID-19 concerns and glaring gaps in registration threaten to dampen voter turnout in the 2020 election, so attorneys should take on the problem by leveraging their knowledge and resources in seven ways, says Laura Brill at Kendall Brill.

• Opinion

  State AG Enforcement Is Important For Workers' Rights

  

  A recent increase in state attorney general labor and employment enforcement — including a challenge that prompted a New York federal judge to strike down the U.S. Department of Labor’s joint employer rule last week — sends an important message that worker protections are not easily revoked, says Catherine Ruckelshaus at the National Employment Law Project.

• How To Effectively Defend Witnesses In Remote Depositions

  

  When a witness is isolated from the defending lawyer during a remote deposition, carefully planning the logistics and building witness confidence are critical to avoiding damaging admissions, say Jessica Staiger at Archer Daniels and Alec Solotorovsky at Eimer Stahl.

• Whether And How To Compel Remote Arbitration

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  As the pandemic delays in-person arbitration hearings, mediator and arbitrator Theodore Cheng provides arbitrators with a checklist to examine the rationale and authority for compelling parties to participate in remote hearings.

• Series

  AGs In A Pandemic: James Talks NY Response

  

  New York Attorney General Letitia James highlights her office's efforts to ease financial burdens for New York residents and businesses struggling during the pandemic by fighting fraud, policing employers, assisting with debt relief and more.

• The Unique Challenges Of Protecting A Law Firm Brand

  

  Recent law firm trademark disputes highlight how the tension between legal ethics rules and trademark law can make it difficult for firms to select brands that are distinctive and entitled to protection, say Kimberly Maynard and Tyler Maulsby at Frankfurt Kurnit.

• The Dollars And Sense Of Antitrust Class Certification: Part 2

  

  Detailed analysis of the Third Circuit's Lamictal ruling in the context of other recent pharmaceutical antitrust decisions clarifies when experts can use average prices to demonstrate classwide harm in order to sustain or defeat class certification, say Justin Cohen and Thu Hoang at Wilson Sonsini.

• 4 Issues To Watch In Philly FTC Hospital Merger Trial

  

  On Monday, a Pennsylvania federal court will hear the first-ever hospital merger challenge based on alleged harm to the inpatient rehabilitation services market in Federal Trade Commission v. Thomas Jefferson University, a case that highlights critical market definition, efficiencies and competition issues for parties considering mergers, say Douglas Litvack and David Maas at Davis Wright.

• What To Know When Making Dispositive Motions In Arbitration

  

  As practitioners increasingly turn to dispositive motion practice within arbitration, they should be aware of the underlying authority for these motions and consider practical guidance for their use, says arbitrator and mediator Janice Sperow.