Pennsylvania

Expert Analysis

• For Self-Driving Car Makers, Industry Standards Matter

  

  When a self-driving Uber car ran over an Arizona pedestrian earlier this year, the company inadvertently shone a spotlight on the importance of industry standards. Failing to meet these benchmarks could be interpreted as a violation of the standard of care owed to a plaintiff by a corporate defendant, says Allen Patatanyan of West Coast Trial Lawyers.

• Who Can Decide Whether 'Class Arbitration' Is Authorized?

  

  In Lamps Plus v. Varela, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide next term whether an arbitration agreement that says nothing about class arbitration can be interpreted to constitute consent by the parties. But it's currently unclear if the Supreme Court will specify who can actually decide that question, says Gilbert Samberg of Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo PC.

• States Responding To SALT Cap, Carried Interest Provisions

  

  A number of states have recently proposed or passed new laws targeting carried interest loopholes and the cap on state and local tax deductibility. Some of these efforts are taxpayer-friendly and some are expected to impose additional tax burdens, say Jeremy Naylor and Kimberly Ann Condoulis of Proskauer Rose LLP.

• The Future Of Authenticating Audio And Video Evidence

  

  The recent emergence of artificial intelligence-based technology has prompted serious concerns about the future integrity of recordings. Attorneys must think critically about standards for authenticating audio and video evidence as well as legislative and regulatory safeguards to discourage pervasive manipulation and forgery, says Jonathan Mraunac of Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC.

• Opinion

  Law360's Global 20 Doesn't Acknowledge Global Networks

  

  While I read with interest Law360's report analyzing the top 20 global law firms of 2018, I also noticed it doesn't tell the whole story. Global networks of independent law firms compare favorably with multinational firms in terms of geographic coverage, legal expertise, and awareness of local cultures and customs, says Glenn Cunningham of Interlaw Ltd.

• Guest Feature

  Chris Dodd Talks Dodd-Frank, Nuremberg Trial, Hollywood

  

  Attorney Randy Maniloff recently sat down with former Sen. Christopher Dodd at his new office at Arnold & Porter in Washington, D.C. The goal? To discover things we might not know about the author of some of the most important legislation of the last few decades.

• What Kavanaugh's Writing Tells Us About His Personality

  

  People with certain personality traits tend to use certain words. A computer analysis of Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s D.C. Circuit opinions reveals that he is highly extraverted, which means that he would be a prominent voice on the U.S. Supreme Court, says Matthew Hall, a professor at the University of Notre Dame.

• Roundup

  Cities In Distress

  

  Five years after the city of Detroit filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy, experts look at the financial troubles of Chicago and other U.S. cities in this special series.

• Opinion

  3 Pros, 3 Cons Of Litigation Finance

  

  An educated guess puts the number of new litigation funders launched in the past 18 months at 30 — an astonishing number, with more to come. Is this a blessing to our legal system or something more akin to tulip mania? Maybe both, says Ralph Sutton, founder and CEO of litigation funding firm Validity Finance LLC.

• How Attorney Discipline Is Evolving In The #MeToo Era

  

  In March, the American Bar Association issued a manual to help legal employers and victims fight sexual harassment in the legal profession. While automatic disbarment for sexual misconduct with clients may have been considered too harsh a sanction almost a decade ago, it may be revisited in the current climate, say Bonnie Frost and Kristi Terranova of Einhorn Harris Ascher Barbarito & Frost PC.