Expert Analysis

• 7 Tips To Increase Your Law Firm's DEI Efforts In 2023

  

  Law firms looking to advance their diversity, equity and inclusion efforts should consider implementing new practices and initiatives this year, including some that require nominal additional effort or expense, say Janet Falk at Falk Communications and Gina Rubel at Furia Rubel.

• Series

  Keys To A 9-0 High Court Win: Get Back To Home Base

  

  When I argued for the petitioner in Morgan v. Sundance before the U.S. Supreme Court last year, I made the idea of consistency the cornerstone of my case and built a road map for my argument to ensure I could always return to that home-base theme, says Karla Gilbride at Public Justice.

• WTO Interim Appeals Award Demonstrates Process's Benefits

  

  The first award from the World Trade Organization interim arbitration arrangement, recently issued in a dispute over Colombian tariffs, shows that members have a viable independent review process that can offer prompt and effective dispute resolution, although some may criticize the award as an example of interpretive activism, says Alan Yanovich at Akin Gump.

• Atty-Client Privilege Arguments Give Justices A Moving Target

  

  Recent oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court in a case regarding the scope of the attorney-client privilege appeared to raise more questions about multipurpose counsel communications than they answered, as the parties presented shifting iterations of a predictable, easily applied test for evaluating the communications' purpose, say Trey Bourn and Thomas DiStanislao at Butler Snow.

• 5 Gen X Characteristics That Can Boost Legal Leadership

  

  As Generation X attorneys rise to fill top roles in law firms and corporations left by retiring baby boomers, they should embrace generational characteristics that will allow them to become better legal leaders, says Meredith Kahan at Whiteford Taylor.

• 6 Questions For Boutique Firms Considering Mergers

  

  To prepare for discussions with potential merger partners, boutique law firms should first consider the challenges they hope to address with a merger and the qualities they prioritize in possible partner firms, say Howard Cohl and Ron Nye at Major Lindsey.

• What Energy Claims Against Spain Mean For Investor Rights

  

  A Japanese investor's successful Energy Charter Treaty claim against Spain, which may have influenced the country's departure from the treaty, may be a harbinger for more pro-investor developments to come in investor-state arbitration, says Sohan Dasgupta at Taft Stettinius.

• 5 Tips For Adding Value To Legal Clients' Experience In 2023

  

  Faced with a potential economic downturn this year, attorneys should look to strengthen client relationships now by focusing on key ways to improve the client experience, starting with a check-in call to discuss client needs and priorities for the coming year, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

• How Arbitration May Need To Adapt To Blockchain Disputes

  

  As rapid technological developments such as blockchain, cryptocurrency, non-fungible tokens and smart contracts increasingly lead to legal disputes — as evidenced by the recent Voyager Digital and FTX bankruptcies — arbitration may need to adopt new resolution techniques that fit the novel landscape, says Peter Kamminga at JAMS.

• Opinion

  Courts Should Reject Mandatory Arbitration In Insurance Suits

  

  The case of Friends of Young Audiences v. Certain Underwriters, currently before a Louisiana federal court, is one of several pending opportunities for courts to support policyholder rights by declining to enforce mandatory arbitration provisions in insurance contracts, say Christopher Kuleba and Maria Castro Sanchez at Reed Smith.

• What's At Stake In Halkbank Sanctions High Court Case

  

  During oral arguments in Halkbank v. U.S. later this month, the U.S. Supreme Court will consider whether Turkey’s state-owned bank is immune from prosecution for allegedly helping Iran evade sanctions — a decision that will have far-reaching consequences for foreign state-backed entities and the U.S. Department of Justice, say attorneys at Cleary.

• 6 Ways To Avoid Compounding Errors When Practicing Law

  

  For lawyers and law firms, inevitable human error can lead to claims of malpractice or ethical violations, but the key is to avoid exacerbating mistakes by adding communication failures, conflicts of interest or insurance coverage losses, says Mark Hinderks at Stinson.

• What Will Keep Legal Talent Professionals Up At Night In 2023

  

  Hybrid work environments, high demand for lateral hires and a potential slowdown of the economy defined 2022 in the always-busy marketplace for legal talent, and as BigLaw looks at the year ahead, there are five major sources of concern for the teams charged with securing and retaining that talent, say advisers at Baretz+Brunelle.

• The Most-Read Legal Industry Law360 Guest Articles Of 2022

  

  A range of legal industry topics drew readers' attention in Law360's Expert Analysis section this year, from the "great resignation" to potential expansion of attorney-client privilege.

• What 3 Legal Industry Trends From 2022 Mean For Next Year

  

  Kate Reder Sheikh at Major Lindsey & Africa looks back on the year in legal recruiting, including practice areas that saw the most movement, which regions seemed most ripe for new office openings and who was promoted to partner, and makes some look-ahead predictions for 2023.