Expert Analysis

• Series

  The Law Firm Merger Diaries: How To Build On Cultural Fit

  

  Law firm mergers should start with people, then move to strategy: A two-level screening that puts finding a cultural fit at the pinnacle of the process can unearth shared values that are instrumental to deciding to move forward with a combination, says Matthew Madsen at Harrison.

• Why Justices Must Act To End Freight Broker Liability Split

  

  The Sixth Circuit's recent ruling in Cox v. Total Quality Logistics Inc., affirming states' authority over negligence claims against transportation brokers, deepens an existing circuit split, creating an untenable situation where laws between neighboring states conflict in seven distinct instances — and making U.S. Supreme Court intervention essential, says Steven Saal at Lucosky Brookman.

• Rare Tariff Authority May Boost US Battery Manufacturing

  

  Finalizing preliminary tariffs on active anode material from China — the result of a rare exercise of statutory authority finding that foreign dumping hampered the development of a nascent U.S. industry — should help domestic battery manufacturing, but potential price increases could discourage related clean-energy use, say attorneys at MoloLamken.

• Considerations When Invoking The Common-Interest Privilege

  

  To successfully leverage the common-interest doctrine in a multiparty transaction or complex litigation, practitioners should be able to demonstrate that the parties intended for it to apply, that an underlying privilege like attorney-client has attached, and guard against disclosures that could waive privilege and defeat its purpose, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

• Series

  The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Making The Case To Combine

  

  When making the decision to merge, law firm leaders must factor in strategic alignment, cultural compatibility and leadership commitment in order to build a compelling case for combining firms to achieve shared goals and long-term success, says Kevin McLaughlin at UB Greensfelder.

• State AGs May Extend Their Reach To Nat'l Security Concerns

  

  Companies with foreign supply-chain risk exposure need a comprehensive risk-management strategy to address a growing trend in which state attorneys general use broadly written state laws to target conduct that may not violate federal regulations, but arguably constitutes a national security threat, say attorneys at Wiley.

• 5 Bonus Plan Compliance Issues In Financial Services

  

  As several legal constraints — including a new California debt repayment law taking effect in January — tighten around employment practices in the fiercely competitive financial services sector, the importance of compliant, well-drafted bonus plans has never been greater, say attorneys at Jackson Lewis.

• Opinion

  Despite Deputy AG Remarks, DOJ Can't Sideline DC Bar

  

  Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s recent suggestion that the D.C. Bar would be prevented from reviewing misconduct complaints about U.S. Department of Justice attorneys runs contrary to federal statutes, local rules and decades of case law, and sends the troubling message that federal prosecutors are subject to different rules, say attorneys at HWG.

• How Store Brand Evolution May Influence IP Cases

  

  A consumer shift toward private-label grocery products has spurred a recent crop of lawsuits, like Smuckers v. Trader Joe's, and parties must be prepared to carefully analyze consumer confusion in the grocery retailing context, as well as expectations and behavior, say Justin LaTorraca, Elizabeth Milsark and Laura O’Laughlin at Analysis Group.

• Rule Amendments Pave Path For A Privilege Claim 'Offensive'

  

  Litigators should consider leveraging forthcoming amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which will require early negotiations of privilege-related discovery claims, by taking an offensive posture toward privilege logs at the outset of discovery, says David Ben-Meir at Ben-Meir Law.

• Series

  My Miniature Livestock Farm Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Raising miniature livestock on my farm, where I am fully present with the animals, is an almost meditative time that allows me to return to work invigorated, ready to juggle numerous responsibilities and motivated to tackle hard issues in new ways, says Ted Kobus at BakerHostetler.

• Litigation Funding Could Create Ethics Issues For Attorneys

  

  A litigation investor’s recent complaint claiming a New York mass torts lawyer effectively ran a Ponzi scheme illustrates how litigation funding arrangements can subject attorneys to legal ethics dilemmas and potential liability, so engagement letters must have very clear terms, says Matthew Feinberg at Goldberg Segalla.

• Ill. State Farm Suit Tests State Insurance Data Demand Limits

  

  The Illinois Department of Insurance's recently filed suit against State Farm, seeking nationwide data on its homeowners insurance, raises important issues as to the breadth, and possible overreach, of a state's regulatory authority, says Stephanie Pierce at Kutak Rock.

• Power Market Reforms Push Data Center Lease Rates Higher

  

  Rising demand, constrained supply and ongoing reforms, amid a rush for reliable, near-term computing capacity, are putting pressure on data center leasing renewal rates in large markets such as the Electric Reliability Council of Texas and PJM Interconnection Inc., say attorneys at Weil.

• E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Dynamic Databases

  

  Several recent federal court decisions illustrate how parties continue to grapple with the discovery of data in dynamic databases, so counsel involved in these disputes must consider how structured data should be produced consistent with the requirements of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, say attorneys at Sidley.