Tax

Law Firms, Know Who's Responsible For Your Cloud Security

Lawyers generally know that files go into the cloud and that the files are then secured and protected, but it's necessary for firms to take a closer look at their cloud supply chain and then come up with a responsibility matrix that helps mitigate any potential risks or weaknesses, says Martin Ward at iManage.

Benefits For Law Firms Venturing Into New Services

By offering more services, law firms can deepen and strengthen their client relationships and truly become an extension of their clients' teams while generating new revenue streams, and while there are risks associated with expanding into consulting, they may be worth it, says Lou Ramos at Major Lindsey.

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Embracing ESG: Exelon GC Talks Diversity Initiatives

Executing a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion programming, through recruitment, inclusive legal pipelines and community empowerment via pro bono efforts, can ensure a strong environmental, social and governance proposition, says Gayle Littleton at Exelon.

Revamping Law Firm Marketing Lists — With Partner Buy-In

Jackson Lewis’ Paige Bowser shares lessons from the firm's recent overhaul of an outdated email marketing database, including tips for getting partners on board, ensuring compliance with privacy laws and augmenting outreach strategies.

NFTs May Come With Rewards, But Also Legal Risks

While some buyers of nonfungible tokens are experiencing enormous returns on their investments, those just entering the market should proceed with caution, and be sure to understand the risks related to contracts, taxation, intellectual property and money laundering regulations, says Anne-Laure Alléhaut at Patterson Belknap.

The Murky World Of Legal Rankings Gets Some Clarity In NJ

New Jersey's new, stringent approach to legal rankings will make accolade advertising more transparent, benefiting both attorneys and clients and offering legal marketers a new set of best practices amid evolving standards, say Penny Paul at Lowenstein Sandler and Susan Peters at Greybridge.

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Embracing ESG: Cigna Counsel Talks Employee Wellness

Building employee well-being into corporate environmental, social and governance priorities required our legal team to focus more closely on cross-functional collaboration within the company and increased communication with our board of directors and shareholders, says Julia Brncic at Cigna.

How Western States Help The Wealthy Avoid Taxes, Creditors

The race by certain states in the western U.S. to legalize shell companies, private trusts and other mechanisms allowing wealthy individuals to avoid taxes and creditors underlies the U.S.' status as a secrecy haven of choice, says Daniel Pascucci at Mintz.

Hybrid Work Models Are Key To Gender Parity In Law Firms

To curb the historically high rates of attrition among female lawyers, Roberta Liebenberg at Fine Kaplan and Stephanie Scharf at Scharf Banks suggest firms must normalize hybrid work schedules, and they recommend best practices to promote engagement among all attorneys, regardless of where they work.

3 Keys To Winning Your Next Oral Argument

To leverage the unique opportunity oral arguments provide to talk directly to judges and contribute to their decision making, attorneys must mind the three hallmarks of persuasiveness: projecting credibility, exuding likability and gaining the listener's trust, says Daniel Karon at Karon LLC.

Keys To Efficient And Accurate Doc Review For E-Discovery

Attorneys involved in e-discovery can review information accurately and cost-effectively by understanding the data in a document collection and identifying its key pitfalls, drafting comprehensive review guidelines, and preparing ahead, says John Wertelet at Eckert Seamans.

Problems To Avoid When Forming Your 2nd Real Estate Fund

There are a number of considerations when moving from your first real estate fund to subsequent funds during post-pandemic growth, particularly if the aggregate regulatory assets under management of the funds exceed $110 million or if additional country jurisdictions will be involved, say Matt Ertman and Max Brunner at Allen Matkins.

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Embracing ESG: Raytheon GC Talks Climate Change

Now that the climate crisis is seen as an existential threat, the stakes couldn't be higher — or the challenges more daunting — for the general counsel, who must enlist all parts of the company for support while providing both a legal and ethical road map on how to respond, says Frank Jimenez at Raytheon.

IRS Ruling Opens Runway For Stalled Carbon Capture Deals

A recent Internal Revenue Service ruling that clarifies how multiparty ownership affects eligibility for the carbon sequestration tax credit should accelerate the pace of project financing transactions that were held up by lingering uncertainty, and should increase the pool of projects into which tax equity will consider investing, say attorneys at Orrick.

Will The OECD Plan Fix International Taxation?

Lilian Faulhaber at Georgetown Law breaks down the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s plan for international tax reform, recently joined by 130 countries, and whether it will solve the problems it was designed to address, including the need for multinational companies to pay their fair share of taxes in the digitized world economy.