Business of Law

The Year #MeToo Rocked In-House Law Departments

General counsel from various industries were forced into the spotlight and held publicly accountable this year — either because they allegedly behaved inappropriately or were accused of handling internal situations poorly — as the #MeToo movement swept through corporate America and its in-house law departments.

How To Throw A Holiday Party — Without The Legal Hangover

While holiday parties may be a time-honored tradition for many companies, they present unique challenges that can land careless employers in legal hot water, especially in a year when the #MeToo movement has pushed concerns about workplace sexual harassment to the forefront of public consciousness, attorneys say. Here, Law360 looks at four things employers should keep in mind to make sure that holiday parties don't become fodder for lawsuits.

6 Things That Rocked The Legal Industry In 2018

From a pitched battle over a U.S. Supreme Court nomination to a sea change in the way that legal employers consider their attorneys' mental health and well-being, these were some of the most significant events and trends to hit the legal industry in 2018.

Law360 MVP Awards Go To Top Attorneys From 71 Firms

The elite slate of attorneys chosen as Law360’s 2018 MVPs have distinguished themselves from their peers by securing hard-earned successes in high-stakes litigation, complex global matters and record-breaking deals.

January 22, 2019
Judiciary Says It Will Stay Funded Through January

The administrative agency of the federal court system said Tuesday that federal courts will have enough funding to continue operating until Jan. 31 despite the government shutdown, the third time the courts have extended the estimated date when they will have to start cutting staff.
January 22, 2019
Girardi Keese, Thomas Girardi Owe $15M, Legal Lender Says

Law Finance Group LLC has hit the law firm Girardi Keese and trial attorney Thomas V. Girardi with a breach of contract suit in California state court claiming they have failed to make repayments on a debt of more than $15 million.
January 22, 2019
Skadden Deal Unfair, Russian Co. Says In Troll Farm Case

A Russian company criminally charged with thwarting enforcement of the Foreign Agents Registration Act asked a judge on Tuesday to make prosecutors explain why Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP "was permitted to purchase a declination" in its own FARA case.
January 22, 2019
Legal Field Has 'Enthusiasm Gap' For Gender Equity Initiatives

While there is general support in the legal field for policies geared toward reaching gender equity in the industry, a survey released on Tuesday reveals an “enthusiasm gap” by which women are more likely to champion these efforts than their male colleagues.
January 22, 2019
Firms' Crawl To Gender Diversity Shows Long Road Ahead

U.S. law firms are on track to achieve gender parity in partner promotions by 2032, and gender parity within the partner ranks at a time far beyond that, a reality some say necessitates drastic change if firms hope to alter the current trajectory.
January 22, 2019
Education Department GC Named Fla. Supreme Court Justice

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis filled the final vacant seat on the Florida Supreme Court Tuesday with the appointment of Carlos Genaro Muñiz, who is serving as general counsel at the U.S. Department of Education and will be the first Nicaraguan-American on the state’s highest court.
January 22, 2019
Ex-Weil Partner Sues MetLife For Disability Benefits

A former Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP bankruptcy partner has hit Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. with a lawsuit in New York federal court accusing the insurance carrier of wrongly denying him long-term disability benefits even though he suffers from a series of psychiatric problems.
January 22, 2019
15 Minutes With Planet Fitness' General Counsel

To Planet Fitness World Headquarters General Counsel Justin Vartanian, the biggest challenge for his industry is to motivate others to incorporate fitness into their lives. Here, he explains the benefits lawyers can gain from healthy lifestyles as the legal industry strives to reduce stigmas that surround mental health, and offers advice on how to stick to wellness-related resolutions amid demanding workloads.
January 18, 2019
How Skadden's Foreign Agent Scandal Unfolded

Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP has agreed to pay a $4.6 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice for failing to register as a foreign agent. Here, we look at how the firm got to this point.
January 18, 2019
In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360

For those who missed out, here's a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.
January 18, 2019
Skadden's Deal With DOJ Comes With Woes For Greg Craig

Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP called its $4.6 million deal with the U.S. Department of Justice “closure” after failing to register its lobbying work for the Ukrainian government, yet experts say the settlement actually exposes serious legal risks faced by ex-partner Greg Craig and potentially others.
January 18, 2019
Skadden Began Ukraine Work With Caution, Ended It In Lies

Emails released by the U.S. Department of Justice show how Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP lawyers slowly abandoned caution toward a foreign lobbying law and began openly lying to federal investigators during their engagement with the Ukrainian government from 2012 to 2013.
January 18, 2019
Skadden Deal Shows DOJ's FARA Focus Shifting To High Gear

The settlement announced Thursday between Skadden Arps Meagher & Flom LLP and the U.S. Department of Justice is the latest sign of increased enforcement of the current Foreign Agent Registration Act, even as efforts to update the law have gone nowhere.
January 18, 2019
Behind The Scenes, #TimesUp Fund Gets To Work

The TimesUp Legal Defense Fund, born of a social media hashtag, has grown to $24 million and is so far funding sexual harassment litigation, defamation defense, and public relations on behalf of dozens of women. But most of its work is taking place behind the scenes.
January 18, 2019
Law360's Pro Say LIVE: SDNY Chief Talks Women In The Law

This week the Pro Say podcast is live from the New York State Bar Association's annual meeting, talking with the chief judge of the Southern District of New York about how women are faring in the legal profession.
January 18, 2019
Judge Orders Blue Cross Attys To Shape Up In Antitrust MDL

The Alabama federal judge overseeing sweeping antitrust litigation against the Blue Cross Blue Shield network has said he can no longer wait for the insurance giant’s army of lawyers to marshal themselves into a more manageable group, ordering a dozen attorneys into a "Council of Twelve" to streamline a leadership plan.
January 18, 2019
For Skadden's Brand, Ukraine Scandal A Shot Across The Bow

Skadden’s unregistered lobbying work for the Ukrainian government has cost the law firm $4.6 million in a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice, but could the debacle cost the firm even more in reputational damage?
January 18, 2019
Fed. Circ. To Remain Open During Shutdown

The Federal Circuit said in an order published on Friday that it would remain open during the partial government shutdown, with all deadlines remaining in place and all oral arguments proceeding as scheduled, as the federal courts brace themselves to run out of available funds within the coming days.
January 18, 2019
Could A Tougher Standard For Law Schools Hurt Diversity?

The American Bar Association’s governing body is poised to vote later this month on a proposal to create stricter standards for law school bar passage rates, a move some say could have a negative impact on the diversity of the legal profession.
January 18, 2019
GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

Two new reports found that in-house lawyers are increasingly looking for nontraditional perks such as flexible work arrangements and paid meals in addition to hefty bonuses, and that law firm leaders in the new year are overall fairly confident about their own shops' prospects but have more gloomy predictions about the domestic and global economies. These are some of the stories in corporate legal news you may have missed in the past week.

Expert Analysis

Opinion

Courts Are Getting It Right On Litigation Funding Discovery

Earlier this month, a California federal court denied discovery into the identification of third-party funders with a financial interest in the outcome of an underlying patent infringement action. This decision in MLC v. Micron follows a long line of well-reasoned precedent across U.S. federal courts, say Matthew Harrison and Sarah Jacobson of Bentham IMF.
Settlement Counsel Key For Efficient Mass Tort Resolution

Team-based specialization in mass tort litigation defense allows each member to draw on individual strengths, maximizing their contribution. A core tenet of this approach is using settlement counsel to focus on strategic initiatives and end-game resolution efforts, separate from the heated battle lines of the litigation, say attorneys at Faegre Baker Daniels.
Diversity's Next Step: Developing Minority Partners

The lack of minority partners comes at a high cost to firms, say attorneys at Lightfoot Franklin & White LLC, as they suggest several practical ways to tackle this problem.
Arbitrators And Mediators Should Reflect Society's Diversity

Alternative dispute resolution providers have made great strides toward diversity, but recent statistics show there is still work to be done. There are certain steps ADR providers can take to actively recruit more women and minority candidates to serve as arbitrators and mediators, says James Jenkins of the American Arbitration Association.
Why AFAs Are Key To The Future Of Legal Practice

Alternative fee agreements can help align law firm and client interests, increase efficiency and eliminate corporate extortion, among other benefits. They are the best thing to happen to the practice of law in decades, says Kelly Eisenlohr-Moul at Dinsmore & Shohl LLP.
Series

Judging A Book: Barron Reviews 'The Clamor Of Lawyers'

Can lawyers lead a revolution? According to "The Clamor of Lawyers: The American Revolution and Crisis in the Legal Profession" — a slim but elegant volume by Peter Charles Hoffer and Williamjames Hull Hoffer — they can and they did, says First Circuit Judge David Barron.
Opinion

The Case For Lawyer-Directed Litigation Funding In NY: Part 2

Lawyer-directed nonrecourse litigation funding is more likely to protect a lawyer's exercise of independent professional judgment than traditional means of litigation finance, and furthermore enables worthwhile cases that otherwise could not be funded, say Peter Jarvis and Trisha Thompson of Holland & Knight LLP.
Opinion

The Case For Lawyer-Directed Litigation Funding In NY: Part 1

Contrary to what the New York City Bar Association concluded in an ethics opinion last year, lawyer-directed nonrecourse commercial litigation funding does not violate New York rules on sharing fees with nonlawyers, say Peter Jarvis and Trisha Thompson of Holland & Knight LLP.
7 Questions To Add To Your Lateral Partner Questionnaire

Law firms should redesign the vetting process for lateral candidates so it directly addresses sexual harassment and assault issues, says Howard Rosenberg of Decipher.
Q&A

A Chat With Reed Smith Chief Marketing Officer Sadie Baron

In this monthly series, Amanda Brady of Major Lindsey & Africa interviews management from top law firms about the increasingly competitive business environment. Here we feature Sadie Baron, chief marketing officer at Reed Smith LLP.

← Previous
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
…
Next →

Business of Law

Editor's Picks

Expert Analysis