Expert Analysis

• Pro Bono Work Is Powerful Self-Help For Attorneys

  

  Oct. 22-28 is Pro Bono Week, serving as a useful reminder that offering free legal help to the public can help attorneys expand their legal toolbox, forge community relationships and create human connections, despite the challenges of this kind of work, says Orlando Lopez at Culhane Meadows.

• High Court Bakery Driver Case Could Limit Worker Arbitration

  

  Employers that require arbitration of worker claims under the Federal Arbitration Act should closely follow Bissonnette v. LePage Bakeries as it goes before the U.S. Supreme Court, which could thoroughly expand the definition of “transportation workers” who are exempt from compulsory arbitration and force companies to field more employee disputes in court, says Nick Morisani at Phelps Dunbar.

• Rebuilding The Construction Industry With AI

  

  Artificial intelligence in the construction industry will usher in a new era of innovation and efficiency, leading to cheaper, safer and more environmentally conscious building practices, but it will also bring concerns related to data security, workforce training and job displacement, say Josephine Bahn and Jeffery Mullen at Cozen O'Connor.

• Series

  Playing In A Rock Cover Band Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Performing in a classic rock cover band has driven me to hone several skills — including focus, organization and networking — that have benefited my professional development, demonstrating that taking time to follow your muse outside of work can be a boon to your career, says Michael Gambro at Cadwalader.

• FTC, DOL Collab Marks New Labor Market Enforcement Era

  

  The Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Labor’s recent agreement to share information and coordinate investigations, coupled with new premerger rules and merger guidelines, underscores the paradigm shift underway to use the full authority of administrative agencies for worker protection, say Jeetander Dulani and Bill Kearney at Stinson.

• AI At Work: Safety And NLRA Best Practices For Employers

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  There are many possible legal ramifications associated with integrating artificial intelligence tools and solutions into workplaces, including unionized workplaces' employer obligations under the National Labor Relations Act, and health and safety issues concerning robots and AI, say attorneys at Proskauer.

• Series

  The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Espinosa On 'Lincoln Lawyer'

  

  The murder trials in Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer” illustrate the stark contrast between the ethical high ground that fosters and maintains the criminal justice system's integrity, and the ethical abyss that can undermine it, with an important reminder for all legal practitioners, say Judge Adam Espinosa and Andrew Howard at the Colorado 2nd Judicial District Court.

• Series

  In Focus At The EEOC: Advancing Equal Pay

  

  The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s recently finalized strategic enforcement plan expresses a renewed commitment to advancing equal pay at a time when employees have unprecedented access to compensation information, highlighting for employers the importance of open communication and ongoing pay equity analyses, say Paul Evans at Baker McKenzie and Christine Hendrickson at Syndio.

• Teach Your Witness About 'Good' And 'Bad' Testimony Words

  

  To ensure honest and accurate testimony in trials and depositions, attorneys must take care to educate their witnesses about the problematic words opposing counsel may use, such as “always” and “must,” and the effective words they can use in response, like “potentially” and “depends,” say Steve Wood and Bill Kanasky at Courtroom Sciences.

• Return Days Key In Hyatt COVID-19 Layoffs Ruling

  

  The Ninth Circuit’s recent decision in Hartstein v. Hyatt, which clarified when the hotel giant had to pay out accrued vacation time after pandemic-prompted temporary layoffs, highlights the importance of whether an employer specifies a return date within the normal pay period, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

• 2nd Circ. Ruling Clarifies Title VII Claim Standards

  

  The Second Circuit's recent opinion in Banks v. General Motors, although it does not break new ground legally, comes at a crucial time when courts are reevaluating standards that apply to Title VII claims of discrimination and provides many useful lessons for practitioners, says Carolyn Wheeler at Katz Banks.

• Hollywood Labor Negotiations Provide AI Road Map

  

  Sigma Khan at Henein Hutchison uses the recent Hollywood labor strikes — one of the first instances of a mass entertainment industry legal conflict where concerns over artificial intelligence's intrusion into the workspace has become a crucial issue — to analyze how litigation, legislation and contracts can aid in a landscape transformation precipitated by AI.

• Opinion

  Newman Suspension Shows Need For Judicial Reform

  

  The recent suspension of U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman following her alleged refusal to participate in a disability inquiry reveals the need for judicial misconduct reforms to ensure that judges step down when they can no longer serve effectively, says Aliza Shatzman at The Legal Accountability Project.

• When And How Companies Should Build An AI Strategy

  

  Once a company has decided to engage with artificial intelligence, there are myriad steps that need to be taken, beginning with the creation of an AI leadership team that has deep knowledge about the company's business risks and is highly respected by senior management, say Judith Rinearson and Corey Bieber at K&L Gates.

• 3 Personal Jurisdiction Questions Mallory Leaves Unanswered

  

  The due process framework that has cabined personal jurisdiction over nationwide and global businesses for the last eight decades looks increasingly precarious after this summer's fractured U.S. Supreme Court decision in Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co., which left three key questions unanswered, says Andrew Rhys Davies at WilmerHale.