What Lawyers Should Know Before Accepting Crypto Payment

As clients increasingly request to pay legal fees, retainers and escrow funds using cryptocurrency, lawyers should consider how only a handful of state bar authorities have addressed the issue with varying ethics opinions, as well as the related questions that no authority has yet answered, says attorney Felix Shipkevich.

Zillow-Redfin Settlement Spotlights Nontraditional-Deal Risk

The Federal Trade Commission's recent settlement with Zillow and Redfin serves as a reminder that authorities are increasingly interested in challenging nontraditional transaction structures that effectively eliminate a market participant, which includes some exclusivity arrangements, say attorneys at Freshfields.

How AI Is Reshaping The Structure Of Crypto Venture Deals

As founders at the intersection of crypto and artificial intelligence increasingly face capital-raising quandaries, parties structuring crypto venture deals should weigh how equity, token and hybrid financings allocate value to avoid tricky contractual governance and fiduciary law questions down the line, say attorneys at Cahill Gordon.

Series

Mentalism Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Convincing strangers I can read their minds may seem like an unusual second career for a legal practitioner, but both disciplines share several important requirements, including trust and preparation, says Warren Biro at Manatt.

Why And How To Build A Neurodiversity-Informed Practice

By better understanding neurodiversity and implementing simple accommodations for clients with autism, ADHD or learning differences, attorneys can build stronger relationships with those who may otherwise struggle to obtain and benefit from legal services, while developing good habits that will benefit everyone they represent, says Ting Cheung at Sanford Heisler.

How FTC Win Charts A Court-1st Merger Litigation Playbook

A New York federal court's recent decision blocking Henkel's acquisition of Liquid Nails marked a decisive trial win for the Federal Trade Commission, and tips for merging parties in similar transactions now include preparing for full-blown federal litigation, including a complete evidentiary trial, say attorneys at Cooley.

HSR Compliance Lessons Abound In Proposed $250M Deal

The U.S. Justice Department's recently proposed $250 million Hart-Scott-Rodino Act settlement with KKR sheds light on additional safeguards that companies can put into place to mitigate risk as they prepare for their next deal, including implementation of a robust document process, say attorneys at White & Case.

Testing AI's Promise For Large-Scale Document Review

Our document-review comparison of attorneys' responsiveness and issue coding decisions versus predictions generated by artificial intelligence across 1,600 documents suggests that these tools can offer a reasonable and reliable basis for improved discovery workflows, provided lawyers understand where guardrails are needed, say attorneys at Redgrave.

Navigating A Key Inflection Point In Biosimilar Sector M&A

As biosimilar mergers and acquisitions gain notice amid U.S. Food and Drug Administration reforms, a maturing patent framework and a looming patent cliff, companies diversifying into the higher-growth biologics space should align their regulatory, intellectual property and transactional strategies, say attorneys at Skadden.

AI Meeting Recaps Pose New Discovery And Privilege Risks

The New York City Bar Association’s recent ethics opinion, cautioning attorneys not to record nonclient conversations with artificial intelligence tools, reflects an emerging view that AI meeting recaps are now a distinct business record category, meaning counsel should set meeting-level controls and apply framework-level updates, says William Wright at Faegre Drinker.

Preparing For Broader Calif. Rules On PE Healthcare Deals

California's recent emergency regulations implementing expanded healthcare transaction review requirements, such as for private equity and hedge funds, represent a notable expansion of state oversight, including enhanced disclosures, wider definitions and new advance notice requirements, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

How Restitution Became Del. Chancery Court's Middle Ground

Though monetary relief is the Delaware Court of Chancery's favored form of compensating shareholders injured by a breached transaction, Ramadurgam v. Destiny XYZ illustrates how restitution, rather than rescission, can also be a viable option for squeezed-out shareholders to present to the court, says Ashwini Jayaratnam at DarrowEverett.

Del. Ruling Tests Limits Of Conflicted-Deal Safe Harbors

In Dodiya v. Franklin, the Delaware Court of Chancery recently decided that new legal protections for corporate transactions involving conflicts of interest did not apply, reminding boards that the Section 144 safe harbors amended last year reward careful management and accurate disclosure of known conflicts, say attorneys at Debevoise.

HPE-Juniper Settlement Teaches Key Tunney Act Lessons

A California federal court's recent approval of the U.S. Department of Justice's settlement with Hewlett Packard over its Juniper Networks acquisition offers legal practitioners some crucial lessons, including on unique tech-sector remedies for mergers and acquisitions and the continued viability of the Tunney Act, says Shubha Ghosh at Syracuse University College of Law.

PFAS Risks Require Due Diligence Beyond Compliance

While traditional environmental due diligence questions remain important, concern over perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances has highlighted the growing problem of environmental conditions that create material business risk, even though no regulatory violation, enforcement action or lawsuit exists, say attorneys at Greenberg Traurig.