Expert Analysis

• A Law Firm's Guide To Avoiding Client Conflicts

  

  With the pace of law firm mergers accelerating, Mark Hinderks at Stinson reviews the conflict of interest rules that may derail a deal or cause a firm to lose a new or existing client, and how courts have filled in perceived gaps in the rules.

• Understanding DC Circ.'s Agency Rule Withdrawal Debate

  

  The D.C. Circuit's recent ruling that an agency must provide notice and an opportunity for comment when withdrawing a rule that has been filed for public inspection but not yet published in the Federal Register features a vigorous debate on the "point of no return" issue that has significant practical consequences whenever there is a change in administration, says Steven Gordon at Holland & Knight.

• Considerations For Associates As Lateral Hiring Cools Down

  

  Law firms are offering fewer signing bonuses and moving back to slower, more deliberate interview processes — a cue for associates to follow suit and consider the long-term advantages of a move instead of short-term financial gain, says Leeron Molloy at VOYlegal.

• Post-Arctic Cat Lawsuits Reveal Patent Marking Pitfalls

  

  The Federal Circuit's 2017 Arctic Cat v. Bombardier Recreational Products decision set a low bar for infringers in patent marking cases, but recent federal court decisions offer a cautionary tale for defendants hoping to cut off or limit pre-suit damages through a challenge based on marking requirements, says Mark Liang at O'Melveny.

• Justices' EPA Ruling Didn't Move Needle On Chevron Doctrine

  

  Though some suggest the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in West Virginia v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency marked the end of a doctrine requiring judicial deference to federal regulators, the ruling merely articulated well-developed precedent on the limits of agency authority, say Dan Wolff and Eryn Howington at Crowell & Moring.

• Best Practices For Auto Boards During Industry Revolution

  

  Recent cases alleging that corporate directors breached their fiduciary duties by failing to exercise adequate oversight have survived motions to dismiss, and automotive boards would do well to understand how the so-called Caremark standard might apply to them at a particularly challenging time for the industry, say Justin Savage and Ike Adams at Sidley.

• Ethics Lessons From The Alex Jones Discovery Debacle

  

  The botched production of a cache of texts and emails prior to Alex Jones' defamation trial, and a failure to take corrective actions, should remind attorneys of the potential pitfalls of discovery, their professional responsibilities throughout the process, and the possibility of severe sanctions, say attorneys at Harris Wiltshire.

• Why Gig Platforms Should Be On Alert

  

  The Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general have set their sights on the gig economy and practices they view as deceptive and unfair, which will open gig platforms to more scrutiny — and past cases against gig-economy giants including Uber and Instacart are cautionary tales to keep in mind, say attorneys at Venable.

• Opinion

  Market Drops Show Tech Antitrust Reform Isn't Needed

  

  Recent equity market declines — and technology history — cast doubt on the staying power of the tech platform lock-in effects used to justify proposed antitrust regulatory and legislative interventions, says Jonathan Barnett at the University of Southern California.

• US Tech Cos. Must Prepare For Impending UK Data Requests

  

  U.S. technology companies can expect to receive their first intercept orders from U.K. authorities in October as part of a U.K.-U.S. data sharing agreement under the CLOUD Act, and should ensure readiness to produce data as well as familiarity with the agreement's requirements for orders, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

• Combating Implicit Bias In Alternative Dispute Resolution

  

  Alternative dispute resolution requires a high degree of trust and belief that proceedings will be fair, so confronting implicit associations among neutrals through systemic and personal efforts is even more important in the ADR world, say arbitrators and mediators at JAMS.

• How The Metaverse Will Affect Business And Legal Processes

  

  It is time to start thinking about virtual reality's effects on cybersecurity, business dealings, case strategy and more, as the metaverse takes shape and organizations open banks, host law firm offices and create retail strategies digitally, says Samantha Green at Epiq. 

• Opinion

  9th Circ. Must Block Cos.' Unfair Rules For Mass Arbitration

  

  The Ninth Circuit should uphold a California federal court's decision in MacClelland v. Cellco Partnership, and make it clear that businesses cannot both force claims into individual arbitrations and make mass arbitration infeasible or impractical, say Raphael Janove and Sidney Cobb at Pollock Cohen.

• Benefits Of The Extended SBA Place Of Business Moratorium

  

  The Small Business Administration recently extended a moratorium on the requirement that government contractors participating in the agency's 8(a) business development program establish a bona fide location, which should allow more companies to participate until Congress amends the outdated rule, says Meghan Leemon at PilieroMazza.

• Navigating Arbitral Subpoenas In A Post-COVID Landscape

  

  Courts’ mixed enforcement during the pandemic of physical presence and territorial requirements for arbitral subpoenas shows that the rules were not built for a virtual world, making it critical for lawyers to understand the possible limitations on third-party evidence, say Emily Kirsch and Craig Tarasoff at Kirsch & Niehaus.