Expert Analysis

• Series

  The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Making The Case To Combine

  

  When making the decision to merge, law firm leaders must factor in strategic alignment, cultural compatibility and leadership commitment in order to build a compelling case for combining firms to achieve shared goals and long-term success, says Kevin McLaughlin at UB Greensfelder.

• State AGs May Extend Their Reach To Nat'l Security Concerns

  

  Companies with foreign supply-chain risk exposure need a comprehensive risk-management strategy to address a growing trend in which state attorneys general use broadly written state laws to target conduct that may not violate federal regulations, but arguably constitutes a national security threat, say attorneys at Wiley.

• Opinion

  Despite Deputy AG Remarks, DOJ Can't Sideline DC Bar

  

  Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s recent suggestion that the D.C. Bar would be prevented from reviewing misconduct complaints about U.S. Department of Justice attorneys runs contrary to federal statutes, local rules and decades of case law, and sends the troubling message that federal prosecutors are subject to different rules, say attorneys at HWG.

• Unique Aspects Of Texas' Approach To AI Regulation

  

  The Texas Responsible AI Governance Act — which will soon be the sole comprehensive artificial intelligence law in the U.S. — pulls threads from EU and Colorado laws but introduces more targeted rules with fewer obligations on commercial entities, say attorneys at MVA Law.

• How AI Tech Suppliers Can Address IP Lawyers' Concerns

  

  While artificial intelligence tools can help intellectual property lawyers be more productive and effective, AI tech providers must address issues of privilege, data privacy and confidentiality to make their technology viable and useful for IP law, say Tom Colson at Colson Law and Kevin Bronson at Simpson & Simpson.

• From Bank Loans To Private Credit: Tips For Making The Shift

  

  The relationship between private credit and syndicated bank deals will evolve as the private market continues to grow, introducing new challenges for borrowers comparing financing options, particularly pertaining to loan documentation and working capital, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.

• Contradictory Rulings Show Complexity Of Swaps Regulation

  

  Recent divergent rulings, including two by the same Nevada judge, on whether the Commodity Exchange Act preempts state gambling laws when applied to event contracts traded on U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission-regulated markets illustrate the uncertainty regarding the legality of prediction markets, say attorneys at Akin.

• How New Law Transforms Large-Load Power Projects In Texas

  

  S.B. 6 — the new Texas law that revises state regulations for large electrical loads and related behind-the-meter projects — introduces higher up-front costs for developers and more flexible operating models for large-load customers, but should provide the certainty needed for greater investment in generation, say attorneys at Sidley.

• 8th Circ. Decision Shipwrecks IRS On Shoals Of Loper Bright

  

  The Eighth Circuit’s recent decision invalidating transfer pricing regulations in 3M Co. v. Commissioner may be the most significant tax case implementing Loper Bright's rejection of agency deference as a judicial tool in statutory construction, says Edward Froelich at McDermott.

• Rule Amendments Pave Path For A Privilege Claim 'Offensive'

  

  Litigators should consider leveraging forthcoming amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which will require early negotiations of privilege-related discovery claims, by taking an offensive posture toward privilege logs at the outset of discovery, says David Ben-Meir at Ben-Meir Law.

• IP Ownership Risk Grows In Booming Cancer Drug Market

  

  The ownership of intellectual property has become strategically decisive in deals involving valuable cancer therapeutics known as ADCs, as highlighted by the recent Takeda-Innovent deal, with the commercial value of a license resting on the integrity and defensibility of the underlying technology, say attorneys at Loeb & Loeb.

• Series

  My Miniature Livestock Farm Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Raising miniature livestock on my farm, where I am fully present with the animals, is an almost meditative time that allows me to return to work invigorated, ready to juggle numerous responsibilities and motivated to tackle hard issues in new ways, says Ted Kobus at BakerHostetler.

• The Future Of Gen AI Training Amid Reddit Data Scraping Suit

  

  Reddit's lawsuit against Perplexity AI is not framed as a classic copyright infringement fight, demonstrating that even when companies avoid fair use claims, the path by which training data is obtained is legally consequential, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

• Evaluating Nasdaq Tokenization Rule's Potential Impact

  

  Nasdaq's recently proposed rule would enable settlement of tokenized equity securities and exchange-traded products using blockchain technology, which could lead to dramatic improvements in market efficiency, settlement speed and market access, but prudent skepticism about timelines and implementation capabilities is warranted, says James Brady at Katten.

• Litigation Funding Could Create Ethics Issues For Attorneys

  

  A litigation investor’s recent complaint claiming a New York mass torts lawyer effectively ran a Ponzi scheme illustrates how litigation funding arrangements can subject attorneys to legal ethics dilemmas and potential liability, so engagement letters must have very clear terms, says Matthew Feinberg at Goldberg Segalla.