Business of Law

May 09, 2025
Nonprofits Urge More Money For Judge Security Amid Threats

Good government groups on Friday urged lawmakers to increase judicial security funding amid a wave of violent threats against judges, and to reject proposals that "undercut the judiciary's independence" like stripping judges of contempt powers and the ability to issue national injunctions.
May 09, 2025
A Look At David Souter's Most Significant Opinions

The retired Justice David Souter defied simple definition, viewed as a staunch conservative until he co-wrote an opinion upholding abortion rights in 1992. He did not hew to partisan lines, but reshaped the civil litigation landscape and took an unexpected stand in an extraordinarily close presidential election.
May 09, 2025
Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

Winston & Strawn LLP, Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Jones Day lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after an Illinois federal judge held in a bellwether case in multidistrict litigation that Abbott Laboratories isn't liable for the death of a baby who consumed Similac baby formula.
May 09, 2025
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

This past week in London has seen a subsidiary of State Street Corp. sue British sports betting giant Entain, Manolete Partners and HSBC tackle action just weeks after signing a £17 million revolving credit facility agreement, and a commercial fraud claim launched by EFG Bank against Mirabaud & CIE.
May 09, 2025
Tufts Student Wins Bail As Judge Cites Free-Speech Concerns

A Vermont federal judge on Friday ordered the immediate release of a Tufts University doctoral student taken into custody outside her home in March by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, saying Rümeysa Öztürk had raised "very substantial claims of due process and First Amendment violations" by the government.
May 09, 2025
Justice Souter Was An Unexpected Force Of Moderation

Justice David Souter, who saw the high court as a moderating force apart from the messiness of politics, subverted the expectations of liberals and conservatives alike during his 19 years on the bench.
May 09, 2025
Why Rule Of Law Actions Can Help Ease Anxieties

As anxieties soar across the profession amid attacks on law firms and the rule of law, taking action can be a strong antidote to ease stress and foster a sense of meaning and well-being, according to panelists who spoke Thursday during an Institute for Well-Being in Law event.
May 09, 2025
CFPB's Vought Set To Ditch Dozens Of Guidance Docs

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's acting Director Russell Vought is withdrawing dozens of the agency's interpretive rules, policy statements and other guidance documents dating back to 2011, according to a Federal Register draft notice filed Friday.
May 09, 2025
Retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter Dies At 85

Retired Justice David H. Souter, who served on the U.S. Supreme Court from 1990 to 2009, has died at 85, the court announced Friday.
May 09, 2025
McDermott, Schulte Roth Unveil Plans To Join For $2.8B Firm

McDermott Will & Emery LLP said Friday that it was wrapping up a deal to join forces with Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP to create a law firm with more than $2.8 billion in global revenue, the latest merger in an increasingly competitive legal landscape.
May 08, 2025
5th Circ. Wipes Out Southwest Attys' Religious Training Order

The Fifth Circuit on Thursday held that a lower court overstepped by ordering several in-house Southwest Airlines attorneys to undergo "religious liberty training" following a flight attendant's win in a wrongful termination suit, finding that the training wouldn't benefit the flight attendant or persuade Southwest to comply with an earlier order.
May 08, 2025
Law360's Guide To Trump's Judicial Picks

During his first term, Trump got 234 lifetime judges confirmed. Here Law360 looks at the vacancies, appointments and confirmations of the federal judiciary as Trump attempts to further shape the courts.
May 08, 2025
Judge Seems To Favor Susman Godfrey In Trump Challenge

A D.C. federal judge appeared poised Thursday to allow Susman Godfrey LLP's challenge to President Donald Trump's executive order targeting the firm to proceed or to grant the firm a summary judgment win altogether, after she pressed a government attorney on the president's basis for alleging discrimination at the firm.
May 08, 2025
Ex-Binance CEO Says He's Asked Trump Admin For A Pardon

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao said he has applied for a pardon from the Trump administration in the wake of a four-month prison term he served as part of a historic plea deal over the cryptocurrency exchange's anti-money laundering failures.
May 08, 2025
Dentons Europe, Houston Co. To Settle $4.7M Fee Dispute

Dentons Europe CS LLP and Houston-area Guidry & Associates Inc.'s $4.7 million fee dispute was dismissed Thursday after the parties notified the court of settlement talks.
May 08, 2025
Trump Admin Defends Gov't Restructuring As Lawful

The Trump administration defended what it says is a lawful executive order looking to reorganize agencies and terminate workers, telling a California federal judge that unions, nonprofits and local governments "waited far too long" to seek a temporary restraining order.
May 08, 2025
Trump Names 8 More For US Attorney Spots

President Donald Trump has nominated eight more individuals for U.S. attorney posts, several of whom already are serving in the roles on an interim basis.
May 08, 2025
Musk Objects To New Job For SEC's Former Litigation Chief

Elon Musk is opposing a move by plaintiff-side firm Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP to hire the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's former chief litigation counsel, arguing in a court filing that the lawyer "played a personal and substantial role" in suing Musk while at the SEC.
May 08, 2025
ABA Defends Free Speech In Response To DOJ's Grant Cutoff

The American Bar Association has told the D.C. federal court the U.S. Department of Justice's decision to cut domestic violence-related grants to the ABA violates its First Amendments rights and sets a precedent that would allow the government to "silence all manner of opposition."
May 08, 2025
Convicted Atty In Embassy Attack Seeks To Avoid Restitution

A Florida attorney sentenced to 8 ½ years in prison for damaging a San Antonio sculpture and unsuccessfully trying to detonate explosives outside the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., has asked the court to eliminate his $325,000 restitution obligation because of his inability to pay.
May 08, 2025
McCarter & English Partner To Be Picked As US Atty In Conn.

Hartford-based McCarter & English LLP partner David X. Sullivan will be nominated by President Donald Trump to lead the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut, his law firm confirmed to Law360 on Thursday.
May 08, 2025
Trump Replaces Martin With Pirro As US Atty Pick

President Donald Trump said Thursday he would withdraw the nomination of Ed Martin for U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, replacing him with former judge and Fox News host Jeanine Pirro.
May 08, 2025
Critics Warn Tenn. Middle District Rule Could 'Chill' Speech

Two public interest nonprofit law firms have expressed concerns that local rule changes proposed by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee regarding public communications by lawyers amid litigation are unconstitutionally vague and could impede attorneys' constitutional right to free speech.
May 08, 2025
Rising Tide Of Trump Pardons Not Lifting All Boats, Attys Say

President Donald Trump signed off on more pardons and commutations during his first 100 days in office than any president in modern history while bypassing the traditional clemency process that goes through the U.S. Department of Justice, potentially giving false hope to those who believe they have a chance to benefit from the executive actions but lack White House connections.
May 07, 2025
9th Circ. Judge Suggests Sidelining Peers To Curb Injunctions

With the U.S. Supreme Court set for a seminal showdown over nationwide injunctions, observers are advocating wide-ranging outcomes, and a Ninth Circuit judge entered the fray Wednesday by proposing that district judges be blackballed for blatant overreach or perceived bias.

Expert Analysis

2024 Pointers On Persuading Jurors

In a year where nuclear verdicts continued to proliferate, Law360 guest commentary focused on how trial attorneys can better select and connect with jurors, offering strategies for identifying anti-corporate sentiments and tactics to land one’s closing argument.
The Latest Legal Writing Tips

In 2024, Law360 guest experts provided advice for improving many kinds of legal writing — explaining how attorneys can use syllogistic reasoning, emulate master chefs, and clean up drafts produced by generative artificial intelligence tools.
Associate Issues In The 2024 Spotlight

Law360 guest writers provided insights on a range of issues affecting associates this year, from the challenges of training new lawyers in the era of artificial intelligence, to nonfinancial factors that junior attorneys should consider before accepting a job offer.
Cybersecurity: The Top Guest Articles Of 2024

From the CrowdStrike failure to the plethora of new and sometimes tricky regulatory requirements, to early decisions interpreting cyberinsurance coverage, guest authors broke down the implications of the biggest cybersecurity developments this year.
Election Impact: The Top Guest Articles Of 2024

Donald Trump's election win initiated a deluge of predictions for the incoming administration, with Law360 guest writers covering key policy areas such as immigration, tax, energy, labor and competition, plus potential congressional themes and investigations.
AI Questions: The Top Guest Articles Of 2024

As the legal discourse surrounding artificial intelligence shifted from theoretical to concrete this year, guest commentary focused on the proliferation of new AI-related litigation, enforcement actions and best practices, while tracking the judiciary’s experimentation with generative AI.
ESG And DEI: The Top Guest Articles Of 2024

In their commentary on ESG and DEI topics this year, Law360 guest authors discussed Project 2025’s potential impact, the rise of greenwashing litigation, strategies for fostering employee retention amid a shaky regulatory landscape, and more.
Noncompetes: The Top Guest Articles Of 2024

Employee noncompete issues took center stage this year, as Law360 guest writers covered everything from state-level enforceability trends and alternative methods for protecting business interests, to a National Labor Relations Board ruling and the Federal Trade Commission’s attempted ban.
The Most-Read Employment Law360 Guest Articles Of 2024

Readers were drawn to employment law commentary on a range of 2024 developments, including the U.S. Supreme Court's Title VII ruling, impactful activity from the National Labor Relations Board, and state legislation targeting employee noncompete agreements.
The Most-Read IP Law360 Guest Articles Of 2024

Double-patenting was one of the top intellectual property topics tackled in Law360’s Expert Analysis section this year, along with the intersection of copyright law and artificial intelligence, case distribution in the Western District of Texas, and more.
The Most-Read Securities Law360 Guest Articles Of 2024

This year, popular securities guest article topics included controversial Delaware court decisions and their legislative aftermath, as well as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s focus on emerging industries amid struggles to implement its rulemaking agenda.
The Most-Read Access To Justice Guest Articles Of 2024

Law360 guest commentary addressed several emerging access to justice issues this year, including growing case backlogs, a dearth of legal services in rural communities and amendments to long-standing sentencing policies.
The Most-Read Law360 UK Guest Articles Of 2024

The start of a generational shift in U.K. employment law under Labour, a ruling on artificial intelligence-driven credit scores and strategic law firm expansion were among the hot topics U.K. Expert Analysis articles explored this year.
Reviewing 2024's Crucial Patent Law Developments

As 2024 draws to a close, significant rulings and policies aimed at modernizing long-standing legal practices or addressing emerging challenges have reached patent law, says Michael Ellenberger at Rothwell Figg.
Series

Fixing Up Cars Makes Me A Better Lawyer

From problem-solving to patience and adaptability to organization, the skills developed working under the hood of a car directly translate to being a more effective lawyer, says Christopher Mdeway at Kaufman Dolowich.