Expert Analysis

• Series

  Playing Mah-Jongg Makes Me A Better Mediator

  

  Mah-jongg rewards patience, pattern recognition, adaptability and keen observation, all skills that are invaluable to my role as a mediator, and to all mediating parties, says Marina Corodemus.

• Tips For Business Users After 2 Key AI Copyright Decisions

  

  Because two recent artificial intelligence copyright decisions from the Northern District of California — Bartz v. Anthropic and Kadrey v. Meta — came out mostly in favor of the developers using the plaintiffs' works to train large language models, business users should proceed with care, says Chris Wlach at Acxiom.

• Lively-Baldoni Saga Highlights Insurance Coverage Gaps

  

  The ongoing legal dispute involving "It Ends With Us" co-stars Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively raises coverage questions across various insurance lines, showing that effective coordination between policies and a clear understanding of potential gaps are essential to minimizing unexpected exposures, says Katie Pope at Liberty Co.

• FTC Staff Cuts Unlikely To Curb Antitrust Enforcement Agenda

  

  While Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson's recent commitment to reducing agency staff may seem at odds with the Trump administration's commitment to antitrust enforcement, a closer analysis shows that such reductions have little chance of derailing the president's efforts, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

• Series

  Law School's Missed Lessons: Navigating Client Trauma

  

  Law schools don't train students to handle repeated exposure to clients' traumatic experiences, but for litigators practicing in areas like civil rights and personal injury, success depends on the ability to view cases clinically and to recognize when you may need to seek help, says Katie Bennett at Robins Kaplan.

• Copyright Takeaways From 2 Calif. GenAI Rulings

  

  Two California federal court decisions suggest that the fair use defense may protect generative artificial intelligence output, but given the ongoing war between copyright holders and AI platforms, developers should still consider taking steps to reduce legal risk, says Lincoln Essig at Knobbe Martens.

• Challenging A Class Representative's Adequacy And Typicality

  

  Recent cases highlight that a named plaintiff cannot certify a putative class action unless they can meet all the applicable requirements of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, so defendants should consider challenging a plaintiff's ability to meet typicality and adequacy requirements early and often, say attorneys at Womble Bond.

• Opinion

  4 Former Justices Would Likely Frown On Litigation Funding

  

  As courts increasingly confront cases involving hidden litigation finance contracts, the jurisprudence of four former U.S. Supreme Court justices establishes a constitutional framework that risks erosion by undisclosed financial interests, says Roland Eisenhuth at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

• Tips For Managing Social Media And International Travel Risks

  

  Employers should familiarize themselves with the legal framework governing border searches and adopt specific risk management practices that address increasing scrutiny of employees’ social media activities by immigration enforcement, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

• Brand Protection Takeaways From OpenAI Trademark Case

  

  The ongoing battle between IYO and OpenAI offers critical lessons on diligent trademark enforcement and proactive risk management for startups and established players alike navigating branding in the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence sector, say attorneys at Dykema.

• How Attys Can Use AI To Surface Narratives In E-Discovery

  

  E-discovery has reached a turning point where document review is no longer just about procedural tasks like identifying relevance and redacting privilege — rather, generative artificial intelligence tools now allow attorneys to draw connections, extract meaning and tell a coherent story, says Rose Jones at Hilgers Graben.

• A Look At Florida's New Protected Series LLC Legislation

  

  A new law in Florida enhances the flexibility of using limited liability companies as the entities of choice for most privately held businesses, moving Florida into a small group of states with reliable uniform protected series legislation for series LLCs, says Louis Conti at Holland & Knight.

• Gauging The Risky Business Of Business Risk Disclosures

  

  With the recent rise of securities fraud actions based on external events — like a data breach or environmental disaster — that drive down stock prices, risk disclosures have become more of a sword for the plaintiffs bar than a shield for public companies, now the subject of a growing circuit split, say attorneys at A&O Shearman.

• Series

  Playing The Violin Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Playing violin in a string quartet reminds me that flexibility, ambition, strong listening skills, thoughtful leadership and intentional collaboration are all keys to a successful legal practice, says Julie Park at MoFo.

• Employer Tips As Deepfakes Reshape Workplace Harassment

  

  As the workplace harassment landscape faces the rising threat of fabricated media that hyperrealistically depict employees in sexual or malicious contexts, employers can stay ahead of the curve by tracking new legal obligations, and proactively updating policies, training and response protocols, say attorneys at Littler.