Expert Analysis

• How NIL Collectives Could Be Tax-Exempt After IRS Curveball

  

  Since the Internal Revenue Service recently announced that numerous collectives creating paid name, image and likeness deals for collegiate student-athletes do not qualify for tax exemption, for-profit entities and alternative collective structures with incidental student-athlete benefits may be considered to fund NIL ventures, says David Kaufman at Thompson Coburn.

• Strategies For Patent Drafting As Eligibility Questions Linger

  

  While the U.S. Supreme Court has demonstrated a lack of interest in clarifying the test for patent eligibility, lessons learned from lower court opinions can allow practitioners to better prepare patent applications for future challenges under Section 101, says Karam J. Saab at Kilpatrick.

• Level Up Lawyers' Business Development With Gamification

  

  With employee engagement at a 10-year low in the U.S., there are several gamification techniques marketing and business development teams at law firms can use to make generating new clients and matters more appealing to lawyers, says Heather McCullough at Society 54.

• Mallory Ruling Leaves Personal Jurisdiction Deeply Unsettled

  

  In Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway, a closely divided U.S. Supreme Court recently rolled back key aspects of its 2017 opinion in Daimler AG v. Bauman that limited personal jurisdiction, leaving as many questions for businesses as it answers, say John Cerreta and James Rotondo at Day Pitney.

• NY's Updated NIL Law Blazes A New Trail For Student-Athletes

  

  A recently signed bill amending the name, image and likeness law in New York — which prohibits the NCAA from penalizing a college for directly assisting its student-athletes' NIL opportunities — is paving the way for the creation of NIL collectives that will work directly with colleges to facilitate more deals, say Dan Lust and Lauren Bernstein at Moritt Hock.

• 5 Ways Firms Can Rethink Office Design In A Hybrid World

  

  As workplaces across the country adapt to flexible work, law firms must prioritize individuality, amenities and technology in office design, says Kristin Cerutti at Nelson Worldwide.

• Opinion

  Bar Score Is Best Hiring Metric Post-Affirmative Action

  

  After the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling striking down affirmative action admissions policies, law firms looking to foster diversity in hiring should view an applicant's Multistate Bar Examination score as the best metric of legal ability — over law school name or GPA, says attorney Alice Griffin.

• Copyright Precautions For AI Content After Warhol

  

  Since the U.S. Supreme Court's recent Warhol v. Goldsmith decision is unlikely to shed much light on liability for the use of copyrighted material in artificial intelligence content, developers should consider whether their AI-generated work has a different purpose or character than the original to avoid infringement, say Justin Pierce and Maria Sinatra at Venable.

• How End Of Forced Arb. Is Affecting Sex Harassment Cases

  

  A little over a year after the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault Act became effective, we have started seeing substantive interpretation of the EFAA, almost exclusively from the U.S. district courts in New York, and there are two key takeaways for employers, says Lisa Haldar at Lawrence & Bundy.

• Ghosting In BigLaw: How To Come Back From Lack Of Feedback

  

  Junior associates can feel powerless when senior colleagues cut off contact instead of providing useful feedback, but young attorneys can get back on track by focusing on practical professional development and reexamining their career priorities, says Rachel Patterson at Orrick.

• Steps To Success For Senior Associates

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  Adriana Paris at Rissman Barrett discusses the increased responsibilities and opportunities that becoming a senior associate brings and what attorneys in this role should prioritize to flourish in this stressful but rewarding next level in their careers.

• Automatic Arbitration Win For Cos. May Come With Pitfalls

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent resolution of a circuit split governing arbitration stays in Coinbase v. Bielski is a win for companies seeking to enforce arbitration agreements, but there may be consequences to keep in mind when considering whether to appeal a denial of a motion to compel arbitration, say Marianne Spencer and Sonya Winner at Covington.

• Legal Profession Must Do More For Lawyers With Disabilities

  

  At the start of Disability Pride month, Rosalyn Richter at Arnold & Porter looks at why lawyers with disabilities are significantly underrepresented in private practice, asserting that law firms and other employers must do more to conquer the implicit bias that deters attorneys from seeking accommodations.

• Opinion

  Appellate Funding Disclosure: No Mandate Is Right Choice

  

  The Advisory Committee on Appellate Rules' recent decision, forgoing a mandatory disclosure rule for litigation funding in federal appeals, is prudent, as third-party funding is only involved in a minuscule number of federal cases, and courts have ample authority to obtain funding information if necessary, says Stewart Ackerly at Statera Capital.

• NBA Players Must Avoid Legal Fouls In CBD Deals

  

  The NBA’s recently ratified collective bargaining agreement allows athletes to promote CBD brands and products, but athletes and the companies they promote must be cautious of a complex patchwork of applicable state laws and federal regulators’ approach to advertising claims, says Airina Rodrigues at Brownstein Hyatt.