Expert Analysis

• PGA, LIV Tie-Up Might Foreshadow Future Of Women's Soccer

  

  The pending merger between PGA Tour and LIV Golf is entirely consistent with the history of American professional sports leagues that faced upstart competitors, and is a warning about the forthcoming competition between the National Women's Soccer League and the USL Super League, says Christopher Deubert at Constangy Brooks.

• How Attys Can Avoid Exposing Their Firms To Cyberattacks

  

  Attorneys are the weakest link in their firms' cyberdefenses because hackers often exploit the gap between individuals’ work and personal cybersecurity habits, but there are some steps lawyers can take to reduce the risks they create for their employers, say Mark Hurley and Carmine Cicalese at Digital Privacy & Protection.

• Virginia 'Rocket Docket' Slowdown Is Likely A Blip

  

  After being the fastest or second-fastest federal civil trial court for 14 straight years, the Eastern District of Virginia has slid to 18th place, but the rocket docket’s statistical tumble doesn't mean the district no longer maintains a speedy civil docket, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

• Broadcast Deal Parties, Beware In-House FCC Hearings

  

  Potential buyers and sellers in the telecom space should take note of the recent collapse of Standard General's attempted takeover of Tegna, which could not find its way out of a procedural maze created by the Federal Communications Commission's administrative law judge review, says Dennis Corbett at Telecommunications Law Professionals.

• FTC's Amgen-Horizon Protest Raises Conglomerate Concerns

  

  The Federal Trade Commission's challenge to Amgen Inc.'s proposed $28 billion acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics is the agency's first move in four decades based on a conglomerate theory of competitive harm, and might pose new antitrust risks for transactions beyond the pharmaceutical sector, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

• How Employers Can Prepare For Minn. Noncompete Ban

  

  With Minnesota’s sweeping ban on noncompete agreements set to begin July 1, employers must immediately implement new strategies to protect their invaluable intellectual property, customer relationships and investment in employee training, say attorneys at Littler Mendelson.

• 5 Management Tips To Keep Law Firm Merger Talks Moving

  

  Many law firm mergers that make solid business sense still fall apart due to the costs and frustrations of inefficient negotiations, but firm managers can increase the chance of success by effectively planning and executing merger discussions, say Lisa Smith and Kristin Stark at Fairfax Associates.

• What 3rd Circ. Niaspan Decision Means For Class Cert.

  

  The Third Circuit's recent denial of class certification in the Niaspan antitrust case underscores its particularly stringent understanding of the implicit ascertainability requirement, which further fuels confusion in the courts, threatens uneven results and increases the risk of forum shopping, says Michael Lazaroff at Rimon Law.

• CMA Review Could Help Shape UK's AI Landscape

  

  The Competition and Markets Authority's recent review of the U.K. market for artificial intelligence foundation models is likely to feed into its recommendations concerning future legislative and regulatory changes, but may be overtaken by fast-changing developments, say lawyers at Cooley.

• FTC Pharma Merger Digest May Offer Policy Clues

  

  The Federal Trade Commission's and the U.S. Justice Department's recently published summary of the agencies' workshop on proposed changes to pharmaceutical merger analysis reads like a policy roadmap and its timing may forecast the release of new draft merger guidelines, say attorneys at Mintz.

• Rethinking In-Office Attendance For Associate Retention

  

  The hybrid office attendance model doesn't work for all employees, but it does for many — and balancing these two groups is important for associate retention and maintaining a BigLaw firm culture that supports all attorneys, says Summer Eberhard at Major Lindsey.

• 4 Paths To Defending Calif. Unfair Competition Claims

  

  In its recent Epic Games v. Apple decision, the Ninth Circuit fairly underscored the broad scope of California's unfair competition law, but at the pleading stage and beyond, defendants should give particular consideration to the applicability of four nuanced and UCL-specific paths to resolution, say attorneys at Munger Tolles.

• Avoiding Antitrust Enforcement In Health Care Joint Ventures

  

  Considering the Federal Trade Commission's recent activity in challenging hospital combinations, health care companies must be mindful of antitrust considerations unique to the industry, and employ strategies to minimize enforcement risks, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

• What Innovators Can Expect In The Patent World After Amgen

  

  After the U.S. Supreme Court's recent Amgen v. Sanofi decision, which invalidated Amgen's patents because the specifications failed to enable the full scope of the invention, innovators should expect more enablement rejections and invalidity challenges, and higher standards overall for obtaining broad genus claims, says Kisuk Lee from Harness IP.

• The PGA Tour-LIV Golf Merger Ramifications For Both Parties

  

  Jason Kaner and Joseph Hanna at Goldberg Segalla explore the PGA Tour and LIV Golf's bombshell merger announcement, its impact on ongoing litigation, potential antitrust concerns and the future structure of professional golf.