Expert Analysis

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  Being A Sommelier Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Being a sommelier has quietly shaped how I practice law by changing the way I think, communicate and connect with people, and offers a constant reminder that expertise is about making your knowledge useful and accessible to others, says Kara Du at Sheppard.

• House Truck Weight Bill Could Raise Stakes In Crash Suits

  

  A bill pending in the U.S. House of Representatives could allow participating states to run six-axle trucks at 91,000 pounds instead of 80,000, likely resulting in more catastrophic injury claims with higher damages and further taxing an already strained insurance coverage system, says attorney Angel Reyes.

• Deposit Contracts Do Heavy Lifting As Fraud Moves Upstream

  

  As courts increasingly find that upstream parties are best positioned to detect red flags in fraud disputes, most recently in Yangtze v. Ohio Valley Trackwork, companies should tighten treasury and deposit agreement verification protocols, indemnity terms, and insurance coordination to reduce exposure, says Nadine Dorsht at Stinson.

• NJ Supreme Court Ruling Exposes D&O Gaps For PE Boards

  

  The New Jersey Supreme Court's recent decision in Mist Pharmaceuticals v. Berkley Insurance, barring directors and officers coverage, serves as a cautionary tale for private equity executives serving in overlapping roles at sponsor and portfolio companies, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

• Calif. Wiretap Ruling May Reshape Pixel Tracking Litigation

  

  The recent dismissal of a proposed class action accusing Blue Shield of California of violating the federal Wiretap Act highlights the gap between legacy wiretap laws and modern browser architecture, and the tendency of pixel tracking complaints to oversimplify or mischaracterize how browsers work, says Phil Richards at ThreatHandle Consulting.

• State Of Insurance: Q2 Notes From Illinois

  

  The second quarter of 2026 featured a trio of auto insurance opinions from Illinois' appellate courts, addressing a notice requirement, narrowing insurers' exposure for delayed payment of underinsured motorist claims, and creating a district split on coverage for employee-drivers under employers' policies, says Matthew Fortin at BatesCarey.

• 11th Circ. Opioid Appeal May Shift Public Nuisance Coverage

  

  The Eleventh Circuit's recent ruling certifying to the Florida and Georgia Supreme Courts the question of whether insurers must provide coverage against suits claiming policyholders improperly distributed opioids may ultimately result in a counterbalance to the Delaware line of cases denying coverage for government opioid suits, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

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  Teaching SEC Investigations Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Instructing a law school course on U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission investigations has made me a more thoughtful, deliberate practitioner because it requires me to continually reassess and challenge what I know about securities law enforcement, how I know it and how best to explain it, says David Chase at Miami Law.

• State Of Insurance: Q2 Notes From Pennsylvania

  

  Todd Leon at Marshall Dennehey highlights notable second-quarter insurance developments in Pennsylvania, including federal court opinions providing guidance on first-party and third-party insurance coverage principles, and a pending bill seeking to regulate health insurers' use of artificial intelligence.

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  Judges On AI: Examining Administrative, Organizational Uses

  

  U.S. District Judge Alan Albright of the Western District of Texas examines how artificial intelligence could transform a court's ability to deal with administrative work and organize materials when preparing for hearings or drafting opinions, thereby affording judges more time to resolve contested issues.

• After Wash. Ruling, Paid Claim May Not End Bad Faith Risk

  

  In Labeaume v. First National Insurance, a Washington appeals court recently held that the insurer's benefit payment did not preclude the plaintiff's Insurance Fair Conduct Act claim, expanding the scope of the act's cure provision and making claim documentation even more significant, says Rishabh Agny at Clyde & Co.

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  Being A Singer Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Before law school, I spent seven years trying to make it as a professional singer in Los Angeles, and nearly everything I learned about preparation, humility, confidence and more has followed me into my legal practice, says Jessica Caterina at Moses & Singer.

• Mass. UHC Fraud Suit Signals States' Medicaid FCA Push

  

  Massachusetts' recently filed False Claims Act suit alleging UnitedHealthcare misrepresented the health status of enrollees in a Medicaid senior care organization plan it managed pushes forward a new phase of state-level scrutiny of managed care data and Medicaid payment mechanisms, say Li Yu at Bernstein Litowitz, Ellen London at London & Naor and Gwendolyn Stamper at Vogel Slade.

• The Growing Antitrust Risks Of AI Pricing For Health Insurers

  

  Attorneys at Patterson Belknap provide an overview of the increased risk of antitrust enforcement for health insurance companies using algorithmic price models, including in the form of multidistrict private litigation, new state and federal bills, and potential federal enforcement.

• FDA Draft Guidance Maps Payor Strategy For Psychedelics

  

  Recently revised guidance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will operationalize a framework permitting drug developers to share product information with insurance companies, giving psychedelic therapeutics developers a road map for building a successful payor infrastructure before approval, says Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell.