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Even as junior associates gain sophisticated legal skills, it’s important for them to also gain practical knowledge related to the inner workings of their law firm. Here, six longtime staff offer their tips to new associates for navigating life in a large law firm like a pro.
Soon after U.S. District Judge Robin Rosenberg of the Southern District of Florida began presiding over her first multidistrict litigation — a case alleging the heartburn medication Zantac caused cancer — she took a novel approach to selecting leadership on the plaintiffs' side.
Lawyers are approaching generative artificial intelligence with caution, despite its promised advantages, and the use of legal AI tools is only slowly catching on, according to a new survey.
Relatively few firms are encouraging their lawyers to use generative AI, according to a new survey by Law360 Pulse, and many do not seem to have policies about AI use in place.
Most lawyers aren't worried about being replaced by robots, but they are broadly concerned about the accuracy and ethical implications of generative artificial intelligence, a new survey shows.
Average law firm partner billing rates rose 5.4% in 2023, higher than any other year in the last decade, with the largest law firms hiking prices the most, according to a report released Tuesday by LexisNexis' CounselLink.
A Connecticut state court judge has sliced a $1.4 million malpractice bid down to less than $165,000 in a dispute over an attorney's failure to properly secure a loan, citing the client's own negligence and its recovery of most of the money at issue from other sources.
The Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities' prosecutorial arm has defended its ability to challenge the Connecticut Judicial Branch's handling of an attorney's reinstatement process, arguing the case wouldn't violate the separation of powers between the bodies.
Fewer recent law school graduates were unemployed in March than in the previous year, as the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic further recede into memory, according to data released Monday by the American Bar Association.
A group of 11 attorneys general is calling on the Senate to confirm Adeel Mangi, nominee for the Third Circuit, who would be the first federal Muslim appellate judge if confirmed, condemning allegations that he is antisemitic or anti-law enforcement.
Connecticut's banking commissioner says a trial court judge misapplied case law by sidelining his authority to investigate complaints against a debt collection operation attached to a law firm, saying his office should be the first to decide whether he or the judicial branch has authority over the matter.
A Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP partner's former landlord asked a Connecticut state judge to force the attorney and his wife back to arbitration in their lease dispute, arguing that they cannot dodge their binding agreement just because the parties' first-choice mediator walked away.
The legal industry had another busy week with more lateral hires, partner promotions, new practice group launches, in-house moves and the passing of a trailblazing former Connecticut Supreme Court chief justice. Test your legal news savvy here with Law360 Pulse's weekly quiz.
Winston & Strawn LLP and attorney Richard Reinthaler lead this week's U.S. Supreme Court-dominated edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after the high court ruled that a corporation's failure to disclose certain information about its future business risks cannot, under certain circumstances, be the basis of a private securities fraud claim.
Like their counterparts on the U.S. Supreme Court, the justices on some state high courts are working in the shadows when issuing certain decisions, raising fears that their time-saving measures are not worth the cost in transparency.
Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP and Locke Lord LLP are in merger talks to create a combined firm with more than 1,600 attorneys and nearly $1.6 billion in revenue, in what appears to be an effort to lock in both firms' leadership in six industry sectors.
The office that regulates Connecticut attorneys wants a lawyer with a decadelong history of failing to respond to grievances and information requests to be found in contempt and immediately suspended for failing to comply with a trust account audit.
The top attorney for Connecticut-based GXO Logistics Inc. saw his salary package increase to over $2.4 million in 2023 as the company reported an all-time record in revenue, according to a recent securities filing.
BigLaw saw a significant uptick in reporting data breaches, while law firms of all sizes continue to be prime targets for cybercriminals, according to data compiled by Law360 Pulse via extensive public record requests.
The managing partner of a six-attorney Hartford, Connecticut, personal injury and employment law firm threatened to gin up a criminal probe and ordered downloads from the personal Gmail account of a departing attorney, according to a post-trial brief by disciplinary authorities seeking the partner's one-year suspension.
After a 31% decline in 2023, lateral law firm movement is expected to dip further in 2024, both at the partner and associate levels, to return closer to prepandemic norms following a period of atypically high movement, according to a new report by Decipher Investigative Intelligence.
Ellen Ash Peters, the first woman appointed to the Connecticut Supreme Court and, later, the first woman elevated to chief justice, has died at age 94, the Connecticut Judicial Branch confirmed Wednesday.
The American Bar Association on Wednesday announced that this year's recipient of its Michael Franck Professional Responsibility Award will be Susan Fortney, a Texas A&M University School of Law professor and ethics expert whose research has earned her international recognition.
After a $4.1 million Connecticut ERISA settlement, a federal court has awarded more than $1 million in fees to attorneys who represented a class of nearly 40,000 Xerox workers, determining a one-quarter fee amount was more appropriate than the requested one-third cut.
When Michael Lackey first pitched others at Mayer Brown about using litigation funding for a matter, he got a less-than-positive response, he recalled.
Female attorneys in leadership roles inspire other women to pursue similar opportunities in a male-dominated field, and for those who aspire to lead, prioritizing collaboration, inclusivity and integrity is key, says Kim Yelkin at Foley & Lardner.
Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Moira Penza, now at Wilkinson Stekloff, recalls the challenges of her first case as a civil defense attorney — a multibillion-dollar multidistrict class action against Allergan — and the lessons she learned about building rapport in the courtroom and with co-counsel.
Most legal professionals lack understanding of the macroeconomic trends unique to the legal industry, like the rising cost of law school and legal services, which contributes to an unfair and inaccessible justice system, so law school courses and continuing legal education requirements in this area are essential, says Bob Glaves at the Chicago Bar Foundation.
While the American Bar Association's recent amendments to its law school accreditation standards around student well-being could have gone further, legal industry employers have much to learn from the ABA's move and the well-being movement that continues to gain traction in law schools, says David Jaffe at the American University Washington College of Law.
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Ask A Mentor: How Do I Build Rapport In New In-House Role?Tim Parilla at LinkSquares explains how new in-house lawyers can start developing relationships with colleagues both within and outside their legal departments in order to expand their networks, build their brands and carve their paths to leadership positions.
Piper Hoffman and Will Lowrey at Animal Outlook lay out suggestions for attorneys to maximize the value of their pro bono efforts, from crafting engagement letters to balancing workloads — and they explain how these principles can foster a more rewarding engagement for both lawyers and nonprofits.
Lawyers can use LinkedIn to strengthen their thought leadership position, generate new business, explore career opportunities, and better position themselves and their firms in search results by writing a well-composed, optimized summary that demonstrates their knowledge and experience, says Guy Alvarez at Good2bSocial.
Imposter syndrome is rampant in the legal profession, especially among lawyers from underrepresented backgrounds, leading to missed opportunities and mental health issues — but firms can provide support in numerous ways, and attorneys can use therapeutic strategies to quiet their inner critic, says Helen Pamely at Rosling King.
In 2022, partners considering lateral moves have new priorities, and firms that hope to recruit top talent will need to communicate their strategy for growth, engage on hot issues like origination credit and diversity initiatives, and tailor their integration plans toward expanding partners’ client base, says Gloria Sandrino at Lateral Link.
Lawyers are experiencing burnout on a massive, unprecedented scale due to the pandemic, but law firms and institutional players can and should make a difference by focusing on small, practical solutions that protect their attorneys’ most precious personal resource and professional commodity — time, says Chad Sarchio, president of the District of Columbia Bar.
Technological shifts during the pandemic and beyond should force firms to rethink how legal secretaries can not only better support timekeepers but also participate in elevating client service, bifurcating the role into an administrative support position and a more elevated practice support role, says Lauren Chung at HBR Consulting.
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Ask A Mentor: How Can I Ace My Upcoming Annual Review?Jennifer Rakstad at White & Case highlights how associates can emphasize achievements and seek support before, during and after their annual review, despite the pandemic’s negative effects on face time with colleagues and business development opportunities.
In order to be perceived as prestigious by clients and potential recruits, law firms should take their branding efforts beyond designing visual identities and address six key imperatives to differentiate themselves — from identifying intangible core strengths to delivering on promises at every interaction, says Howard Breindel at DeSantis Breindel.
Law firms looking to streamline matter management should consider tools that offer both employees and clients real-time access to documents, action items, task assignee information and more, overcoming many of the limitations of project communications via email, says Stephen Weyer at Stites & Harbison.
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Ask A Mentor: How Can I Successfully Switch Practices?Associates who pivot into new practice areas may find that along with the excitement of a fresh start comes some apprehension, but certain proactive steps can help tame anxiety and ensure attorneys successfully adapt to unfamiliar subjects, novel internal processes and different client deliverables, say Susan Berson and Hassan Shaikh at Mintz.