Expert Analysis

• Thinking Strategically About The Weekend's Impact On Jurors

  

  Clint Townson at IMS discusses how experienced trial lawyers and consultants can utilize the strategic value of weekends in their favor by accounting for how the weekend break affects juror cognition and decision making as part of an integrated trial strategy.

• Dobbs Ruling Creates Compliance Dilemmas For Hospitals

  

  Following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, hospitals in states with sweeping abortion prohibitions may struggle to reconcile state and federal legal regimes, including the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, say attorneys at Dentons.

• Opinion

  Now's The Time To Address Archaic Law School Curricula

  

  With law school enrollments jumping significantly ahead of a potential recession and more students graduating than the market can absorb, law schools should turn to creative solutions to teach students how to negotiate, work with clients, specialize and use technology to practice their craft more efficiently, says University of Colorado adjunct professor Jason Mendelson.

• When A Nonmanufacturer Is The 'Apparent Manufacturer'

  

  A recent Washington state case addressed consumer expectations with respect to a manufacturer's advertisements, which is a reminder that retailers can be held liable for products they don't manufacture based on labeling and advertising under the apparent manufacturer doctrine, say Christopher Carton and Jasmine Owens at Bowman and Brooke.

• Lessons From Lawyer Fee-Sharing Agreements Gone Wrong

  

  The recent fee-sharing dispute between Edelson and Girardi Keese is a reminder that lawyers who do not strictly follow the applicable rules may risk a disciplinary complaint, lose their share of the fee, or wind up in costly litigation with co-counsel, says David Grossbaum at Hinshaw.

• LeClairRyan Bankruptcy Highlights Pass-Through Tax Issue

  

  A Virginia bankruptcy court's recent ruling in the case of defunct law firm LeClairRyan shows there may be serious tax consequences for pass-through entity partners who give up their ownership interest without following operating agreement exit provisions and updating bankruptcy court filings, say Edward Schnitzer and Hannah Travaglini at Montgomery McCracken.

• 8 Steps To Creating A Legal Ops Technology Road Map

  

  Legal departments struggling to find and implement the right technologies for their operations should consider creating a road map that summarizes their approach to technology changes, provides clearly defined metrics for success, and serves as the single source of truth for stakeholders, says Melanie Shafer at SimpleLegal.

• Labor Law Lessons In Amazon's NY COVID Suit Win

  

  A New York state court’s recent decision in James v. Amazon, dismissing allegations the company illegally retaliated against workers who raised concerns about COVID-19 safety policies, offers important reminders about federal labor law preemption and scope, says Hannah Redmond at Bond Schoeneck.

• The Importance Of Data And Data Analysis In Litigation

  

  Understanding, analyzing and effectively presenting large data sets is an increasingly important skill in litigation as it allows plaintiffs to dramatically scale up the scope of cases and is often critical to defeating motions to dismiss and motions for summary judgment, says David Burnett at Motley Rice.

• 2 New Defenses To Federal Shareholder Derivative Claims

  

  Increasingly, plaintiffs are bringing Securities Exchange Act claims in derivative suits because they perceive these claims to have advantages compared to traditional fiduciary duty claims, but there are several reasons why plaintiffs are wrong and the flawed assumptions underlying these claims should be tested in court, say Brian Lutz and Michael Kahn at Gibson Dunn.

• Avoiding Endless Liability From 'Take Home' COVID Claims

  

  The Ninth Circuit’s recent certification in Kuciemba v. Victory Woodworks is the latest in a series of cases exploring whether companies can be sued when a third party contracts COVID-19 from an employee’s workplace exposure — and employers will need to take certain steps to avoid seemingly boundless chains of liability, say Karen Wentzel and Cristen Hintze at Squire Patton.

• Limiting Liability When Using Volunteers: Key Points For Orgs

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  Nonprofits can be liable for their volunteers' actions and omissions, even when volunteers are acting outside the scope of their duties — but organizations have an array of tools at their disposal to mitigate such risks, and should deploy them thoughtfully, say Rosemary Fei and Geena Yu at Adler & Colvin.

• Steps Companies Can Take To Mitigate Privilege Labeling Risk

  

  Although Google prevailed on a recent privilege labeling sanctions motion, an important takeaway from the decision is that companies should assess their in-house procedures and employee training programs regarding privileged communications to mitigate risks of the potential appearance of bad faith privilege claims, say Gareth Evans at Redgrave and e-discovery attorney James Hertsch.

• Opinion

  Aviation Watch: Why Boeing Pilot's Indictment Was Misguided

  

  Criminal fraud charges against test pilot Mark Forkner related to the Boeing 737 crashes — charges of which he was recently acquitted — appear to have been an effort to whitewash the failures of Boeing and the Federal Aviation Administration, and highlight that civil remedies are a better solution in such cases, says Alan Hoffman, a retired attorney and aviation expert.

• What Litigation Funding Disclosure In Delaware May Look Like

  

  A standing order issued by Delaware's chief federal judge requiring litigants to disclose whether their cases or defenses are being financed by third parties is unlikely to have onerous effects but may raise questions regarding potential conflicts of interest and access to justice, say Cayse Llorens and Matthew Oxman at LexShares.