Expert Analysis

• 5th Circ. Ruling Signals Judicial Shift On SEC Admin Process

  

  The Fifth Circuit’s decision in Jarkesy v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission signals a growing discomfort in the judiciary with the SEC's administrative process, and those dealing with enforcement actions should bring their constitutional challenges early and often, say Benjamin Daniels and Trevor Bradley at Robinson & Cole.

• DOT Standards For EV Chargers Address Key Public Concerns

  

  The U.S. Department of Transportation's recently proposed standards for public electric vehicle charging infrastructure reflect the Biden administration's continued effort to encourage EV deployment in the U.S. markets — and speak to some of the most important concerns of EV consumers relating to charging, say Levi McAllister and Maggie Curran at Morgan Lewis.

• Opinion

  NYC Pay Transparency Law May Fail To Close Wage Gap

  

  Peter Glennon at The Glennon Law Firm argues that New York City’s new pay transparency law, requiring employers to post salary information in job listings, creates a number of challenges for businesses, raising the question: Could encouraging the use of existing tools close the wage gap without the need for additional legislation?

• 5th Circ.'s Nixing Of SEC Judges May Mean Trouble For FERC

  

  The Fifth Circuit's recent ruling against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's use of administrative law judges also calls into question the constitutionality of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's ALJs — with a critical question being whether the subject of an enforcement action has the option to go to federal court, say Elizabeth Cassady and Daniel Mullen at Steptoe.

• Opinion

  Now's The Time To Address Archaic Law School Curricula

  

  With law school enrollments jumping significantly ahead of a potential recession and more students graduating than the market can absorb, law schools should turn to creative solutions to teach students how to negotiate, work with clients, specialize and use technology to practice their craft more efficiently, says University of Colorado adjunct professor Jason Mendelson.

• Deploying US Discovery In Brazil Following High Court Ruling

  

  While the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in ZF Automotive v. Luxshare may be seen as a limitation on the use of discovery in foreign proceedings, there are still many options for litigants deploying U.S. discovery abroad, which is particularly valuable in Brazil, say attorneys at Kobre & Kim.

• High Court's Tribal Ruling May Enable More Gambling In Texas

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Texas v. Ysleta, finding that Texas cannot regulate a tribe's electronic bingo, paves the way for Native American tribes in Texas to upscale their gaming operations, say attorneys at McGuireWoods.

• Proposed Online Platform Regs Deviate From Antitrust Norms

  

  The U.S. and EU are on the cusp of adopting digital platform legislation that would impose regulations based solely on firms' size, avoiding traditional antitrust principles and potentially changing the way online platforms' conduct is litigated, say Daniel Fenske at Mayer Brown and Felipe Pereira at Tauil Chequer.

• State Natural Resource Damages Suits: What Cos. Must Know

  

  With numerous states currently following New Jersey's lead in stepping up litigation seeking natural resource damages, defendants face unique challenges, and must consider unique approaches to case management to limit liability, says Matthew Conley at Archer.

• Employer Abortion Policy Considerations In A Post-Roe World

  

  Restricted abortion access in many states after the U.S. Supreme Court’s expected reversal of Roe v. Wade may cause corporate recruitment and retention concerns, but before implementing policies that help employees access reproductive care, employers should consider their workforce’s values, legal risks and potential political backlash, says Meredith Kirshenbaum at Goldberg Kohn.

• Lessons From Lawyer Fee-Sharing Agreements Gone Wrong

  

  The recent fee-sharing dispute between Edelson and Girardi Keese is a reminder that lawyers who do not strictly follow the applicable rules may risk a disciplinary complaint, lose their share of the fee, or wind up in costly litigation with co-counsel, says David Grossbaum at Hinshaw.

• LeClairRyan Bankruptcy Highlights Pass-Through Tax Issue

  

  A Virginia bankruptcy court's recent ruling in the case of defunct law firm LeClairRyan shows there may be serious tax consequences for pass-through entity partners who give up their ownership interest without following operating agreement exit provisions and updating bankruptcy court filings, say Edward Schnitzer and Hannah Travaglini at Montgomery McCracken.

• Chicago Cos. Must Prepare For New Sex Harassment Law

  

  A Chicago ordinance taking effect next week imposes new requirements on employers around preventing sexual harassment in the workplace, so in-house employment counsel and human resources professionals should take several compliance steps and invest in efforts to foster respectful workplaces, say attorneys at Proskauer.

• SEC Crypto Unit Expansion Is A Warning To Industry

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s recent decision to expand its Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit is a clear signal that federal regulators may increase enforcement against those violating securities laws in the digital asset space, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

• Enforcement Trends To Watch After SEP Remedies Withdrawal

  

  Patent holders and implementers will need to consider several key issues in light of the new case-by-case federal enforcement stance following the withdrawal of the 2019 policy statement on standard-essential patents and the recent decision not to implement a new policy statement, say Alexander Okuliar and John Lanham at MoFo.