Expert Analysis

• FERC Order May Alter PJM's Framework, Spur $1B In Refunds

  

  A recent order from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission stands to reform how grid operator PJM Interconnection assigns transmission upgrade costs, with potentially sweeping implications for transmission owners, merchant transmission facilities and load-serving entities, including an estimated $1 billion in refunds and surcharges, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

• Series

  Studying Foreign Languages Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Studying Italian and Japanese has shown me that learning a new language can benefit a legal career in several ways, including by demonstrating the importance of approaching problems from a fresh perspective and the value of practicing patience with colleagues and clients, says Anna King at Genworth Financial.

• 6th Circ. Ruling Broadest So Far In Wave Of Habeas Decisions

  

  The Sixth Circuit’s recent opinion in Lopez-Campos v. Raycraft provides the most developed structural reasoning among rulings in a widening circuit split over mandatory detention after undocumented entry into the U.S., and supplies immigration practitioners a template for due process arguments in favor of habeas relief, says Kemal Hepsen at Mandamus Lawyers.

• And Now A Word From The Panel: An MDL Realignment

  

  With seven multidistrict litigation proceedings initiated so far this year, a review of venue locations suggests a shift away from the East Coast, a seeming reversal of last year's swing in that direction, says Alan Rothman at Sidley.

• Tax Teams Get No Bright-Line Rule From AI Privilege Cases

  

  Three recent appellate decisions that considered artificial intelligence in the context of attorney-client privilege protections illustrate that taxpayers and tax practitioners alike must consider the pertinent facts on a case-by-case basis, with particular attention to confidentiality, disclosure risk and system design, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• 2nd Circ.'s Cantero Redo Complicates Mortgage Escrow Issue

  

  The Second Circuit's recent decision in Cantero v. Bank of America reflects the absence of definitiveness in mortgage escrow preemption jurisprudence, leaving lenders to navigate conflicting state rules and pricing challenges amid a deepening circuit split, say attorneys at Sullivan & Cromwell.

• Looking Beyond Calif. Climate Laws As NY Bills Advance

  

  California's climate disclosure legislation has made emissions and risk reporting a practical reality — and now that New York is working on its own climate disclosure bills, companies must confront a future in which compliance systems will need to be ready for multiple states' reporting regimes, says Thierry Montoya at FBT Gibbons.

• DOJ Activity Indicates Rising Antitrust Risk For Hospitals

  

  Two civil actions filed by the U.S. Department of Justice against New York-Presbyterian Hospital and OhioHealth, both alleging that the hospital systems used their market power to stifle competition, highlight the government's growing scrutiny of barriers to lower-cost insurance options, say attorneys at Freshfields.

• 5 Rules In 10 Weeks: Inside Genius Act's Implementation Blitz

  

  Regulators have proposed five Genius Act rules in a striking span of 10 weeks, building a stablecoin framework that, with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency at its operational center, will shape oversight and force issuers, banks and fintechs to take action as deadlines approach, say attorneys at Cahill.

• Series

  NY Times Word Puzzles Make Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Every morning I let The New York Times humble me with word games, which offer a chance to recalibrate my brain before the day's chaos arrives and remind me that a solution — whether to a puzzle or employment law issue — almost always exists once I find the right angle, says Amy Epstein Gluck at Pierson Ferdinand.

• Data Center Developer Lessons From Maine's Vetoed Ban

  

  The regulatory and political dynamics that recently led Maine’s governor to veto a popular bipartisan bill proposing a temporary data center development ban offer a useful template that developers can use to help their projects survive other states' attempts at moratoriums, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

• Submitting Ideas To AI Platforms May Affect Patent Rights

  

  Recent judicial developments suggest that disclosing an invention to a consumer artificial intelligence platform constitutes public disclosure, making disciplined use of such tools and early filing strategies essential to preserving patent rights, say attorneys at Day Pitney.

• Series

  Law School's Missed Lesson: Diagnose Before Arguing

  

  Law school often skips over explicitly teaching students how to determine what kind of problem a case presents before they commit to a particular doctrinal path, which risks building arguments that are internally coherent but externally misaligned, says Melanie Oxhorn at Kobre & Kim.

• Becoming The Biz-Savvy GC That Portfolio Companies Need

  

  Candidates for general counsel roles at private equity-backed portfolio companies should prioritize proving their sector-specific experience, commercial judgment and ease with uncertainty — and attorneys hoping to be candidates in five to 10 years should start working on those skills now, says Dimitri Mastrocola at Major Lindsey.

• Nielsen Appeal Tests Antitrust Limits Of Pricing And Bundling

  

  In Cumulus v. Nielsen, the Second Circuit is considering a structural pattern in which a monopolist exploits upstream market power to foreclose downstream competition, which could potentially offer broad insight into how courts will assess exclusionary bundling and pricing defenses under antitrust law, says Luke Hasskamp at Bona Law.