Expert Analysis

• Justices' Obstruction Ruling Clears Venue-Challenge Path

  

  While the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Abouammo v. U.S. poses venue challenges for federal obstruction of justice prosecutions, it is a gift for defense counsel because it offers a clean, constitutional basis to challenge venue where a place of falsification and a place of investigation diverge, says Liz Aloi at MoFo.

• Drawing A Line Between Settlement Pressure And Extortion

  

  U.S. v. Luo, pending in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, may force courts to address anew when settlement negotiations become criminal extortion, particularly in the age of easily fabricated digital evidence, says attorney Denis Kiely.

• Recent Cases Clarify When Risk Disclosures Trigger Liability

  

  Several recent decisions highlight circumstances where risk disclosures can constitute actionable misrepresentations, providing clarity on how the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act's safe harbor and the common-law bespeaks caution doctrine apply to risk disclosures, and how publicly traded companies can guard against such claims, say attorneys at Katten.

• Securities Class Cert., 5 Years After Goldman Ruling

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's 2021 decision in Goldman Sachs Group v. Arkansas Teacher Retirement System has not only armed defendants in securities cases with more arguments in individual class certification fights, but may also be providing greater certainty and finality in class certification battles, say attorneys at Skadden.

• Opinion

  Md., Colo. Climate Rulings Point To Need For Federal Solution

  

  As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to review the Colorado Supreme Court's 2025 ruling in Boulder County v. Suncor U.S. Inc., which green-lit a state-level climate lawsuit, a recent conflicting ruling from the Maryland Supreme Court underscores why a uniform federal answer on climate litigation is needed now, says Phil Goldberg at Shook Hardy.

• High Court's FCC Ruling Adds To Comms Industry Paradox

  

  The Supreme Court's recent decision in Federal Communications Commission v. AT&T, finding that the FCC's informal forfeiture process survives Seventh Amendment scrutiny, opens some doors for regulated entities, but the practical effect may be surprisingly constrained, says Jonathan Marashlian at The CommLaw Group.

• Series

  Founding An Autism Academy Made Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Starting a nonprofit autism school with no building, no funding model and no guarantee that families would trust us taught me the importance of mission, patience and purpose — lessons that sharpened my practice and showed how meaningful work outside the office can make lawyers better, says Phillip Russell at Ogletree Deakins.

• Why Private Sector Should Watch Gov't DEI Firing Class Bid

  

  Former federal employees' class certification attempt in Fell v. Trump is worth following, as their challenge of the Office of Personnel Management's elimination of DEI positions raises questions about commonality in employee classes and protections for nonminority advocacy that reach beyond the public sector, says Shaun Southworth at Southworth PC.

• When Do Murals Qualify For IP Protection?

  

  Artist Robert Wyland recently sued FIFA for painting over his 1999 "Ocean Life" mural to make room for a World Cup promotion in Dallas, spotlighting questions over the extent to which copyright law and the Visual Artists Rights Act protect different types of art, say attorneys at Armstrong Teasdale.

• How Justices' Habeas Ruling Limits Compassionate Release

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent holding in Fernandez v. U.S. that a federal prisoner who challenges their conviction's validity must do so through habeas, not compassionate release, considerably narrows the universe of arguments that can support a sentence reduction, says attorney Elizabeth Franklin-Best.

• The Banking Issue Hiding In Justices' Freight Broker Ruling

  

  While the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent liability preemption ruling in Montgomery v. Caribe Transport was front-page news for the transportation industry, the banking industry seems to have missed that the decision exposes freight broker lenders to credit, documentation and litigation issues, say attorneys at Barack Ferrazzano.

• Insurance Ruling Extends NY Bad Faith To 3rd-Party Coverage

  

  In Renergy v. Mt. Hawley Insurance, a New York federal court recently granted a policyholder leave to amend its complaint to clarify a bad faith claims handling cause of action, confirming, after nearly 20 years, that bad faith damages are available in the third-party liability context, say attorneys at Barnes & Thornburg.

• Opinion

  Rule Of Law Requires Gov't Engagement With Bar, Not Retreat

  

  A federal agency's absence from national and local bar conferences, most recently illustrated by the U.S. Department of Justice's withdrawal from a New York City Bar Association white collar conference, disserves the bar, the government lawyers themselves and, ultimately, the administration of justice, says Muhammad Faridi at Linklaters.

• Fed. Circ. Clarifies Standard For Contesting CICA Overrides

  

  The Federal Circuit's recent holding in Life Science Logistics strengthens the hand of protesters facing an override of the Competition in Contracting Act stay, and a Court of Federal Claims decision the same day demonstrates that how a protester frames its requested relief remains critically important, says Richard Arnholt at Bass Berry.

• The Paradoxical Duty To Adopt AI When You Can't Bill For It

  

  Both billing for hours saved using artificial intelligence and preserving billable time by not adopting AI may violate rules of professional conduct, but until bar associations' ethics rules catch up to this emerging economic dilemma, firms must decide how to adjust fee structures themselves, says Ines Lassalle at Peyrot & Associates.