In a recent decision, the Arizona Supreme Court has determined the fate of a personal injury settlement in a divorce case. The court ruled that a couple’s $4.2 million settlement agreement with a pacemaker manufacturer does not constitute a post-nuptial agreement. As such, the majority of the sum will be treated as community property, per…
On August 22nd, Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion, three of the biggest credit bureaus, were hit with an antitrust class action in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California. The lawsuit was filed by a group of medical providers who allege that the credit bureaus conspired to exclude unpaid medical bills under $500…
The U.S. Supreme Court is set to kickoff the 2023-2024 term on Oct. 2. Unlike the preceding sessions that were dominated by high-profile social issues such as abortion, gun rights, affirmative action, and LGBTQ discrimination, the upcoming courtroom battles have a more legalistic emphasis. The shift indicates that the Supreme Court’s conservative majority, after navigating…
A Greek Orthodox priest who also manages a hedge fund has taken a unique approach in his free-speech struggle against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) related to comments he made regarding a biotech company that he was shorting. Rev. Father Emmanuel Lemelson is being assisted by the New Civil Liberties Alliance in this…
In a significant development, the Judicial Council of Georgia has unanimously endorsed a recommendation regarding a significant increase in the remuneration of state judges. The proposal, if it materializes, would increase the base salary rates for Georgia’s judges, aligning them with their federal counterparts by the fiscal year 2024. Read more here.
Following their work in assisting a client secure host-city status for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, lawyers at Morgan Lewis & Bockius have formed a designated team aimed at aiding clients who wish to be involved in the first ever three-country FIFA World Cup, negotiating the multifaceted cross-jurisdictional challenges they will likely encounter. The team…
Insurance claims and the growing role of artificial intelligence (AI) within this process are currently under debate. In a particular incident, 300,000 health insurance claims were denied with a limited human review. This case has prompted the creation of a bill in Harrisburg, which if passed, will compel insurance companies to disclose the use of…
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has enacted new regulations obliging registered private fund advisors to disclose quarterly performance to bolster investor transparency. However, sterner provisions initially proposed were omitted from the final version of the rules. SEC Chair Gary Gensler underscores the significance of private funds and their advisors in virtually all sectors…
Following a vigorous start to the year, U.S. law firm leasing activity continued to surge in the second quarter, recording the most significant period of leasing since the pandemic’s onset, based on the recent quarterly report from Savills. The second quarter mirrored the activity seen in the first, with legal sector leases of 20,000 square…
Edward Blum, a conservative legal activist, recently spearheaded a group that lodged lawsuits against two Am Law 100 firms, which allegedly discriminates via their respective paid diversity fellowships. Perkins Coie and Morrison & Foerster, the firms implicated, were served the lawsuits in Texas and Florida – jurisdictions seen as amenable for complaints the group intends…
In a recent litigation, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit faced the dairy dilemma of determining whether the term “gruyere” cheese is a mere generic term or if it has the right to be registered as a trademark within the United States. This forms an essential part of the ongoing contention,…
On the first day of a mental competency hearing, Tom Girardi’s lawyer, Craig Harbaugh, meticulously scrutinized the government’s neurological expert, Dr. Diana Goldstein. Former plaintiff attorney Girardi, aged 84, attentively observed the process unfolding at the U.S. federal courtroom in downtown Los Angeles. The hearing, presided over by U.S. District Judge Josephine Staton in the…
Earlier this week, it was disclosed that two candidates who sat for the California Bar exam in July 2023 had been unintentionally administered the incorrect exam. The incident was announced by the State Bar and occurred at the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento. This information was initially reported by Law.com. Specifically, the two…
Francis Koh, a Maryland-based intellectual property lawyer, recently voluntarily dismissed his defamation lawsuit against Amazon. Koh made this decision when Amazon committed not to send any further emails to his clients about purported sanctions against him. Koh, who has an impeccable record and is a principal at the Koh Law Firm in Bethesda, Maryland, serves…
Atlantic City casino hotels have been met with an influx of guest-room price-fixing lawsuits after an initial suit led defendants to arm themselves with heavyweight law firms like Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom; King & Spalding and Jones Day. At the heart of these legal battles is ‘Rainmaker’, an algorithm used by the casinos…
The future of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan appears to be in a flux, with the uncertainty around the strategic direction of the company making it increasingly challenging to recruit partners, according to insiders. One of the many professionals who have recently left the firm, observes that this uncertainty is amplifying the firm’s recruitment difficulties….
The protracted dispute over the purchase of the ‘Chicago Chop House’ restaurant has finally found closure with the petitioners – Chicago real estate developers Sean Conlon and Steve Horvath, and their single-purpose LLC, Wexford – reaching a settlement with defendants Phil Martin, Matthew McCahill, and the related LLCs Chop Hospitality and 6058 Properties. This protracted…
With the ongoing shift in the global legal landscape, many of London’s top attorneys, commonly referred to as ‘rainmakers’, seem to be conspicuously absent. According to an analysis on Law.com, this shift could pose significant challenges for U.K. firms in the global competition. The report suggests that in order to compete effectively on a global…
Renowned Supreme Court lawyer and commentator, Steve Vladeck, has recently been involved in a candid discussion with The National Law Journal. Currently holding the Charles Alan Wright Chair in Federal Courts at the University of Texas at Austin School of Law, Vladeck has attracted attention for his challenging perspectives on today’s conservative court. Of particular…
About ten months into the technologically sophisticated era of generative artificial intelligence (AI), its transformative potential for the field of law is becoming increasingly clear to industry professionals. While there’s broad consensus around the revolutionary role of such technology, the exact functions it will majorly transform within a law firm remains an important question. The…
The contemporary legal market is seeing an increased emphasis on billing discipline as a result of prolonged payment periods from Big Law clients and a sustained downturn in demand. This trend is evident in renowned lawfirms such as Sidley Austin, which recently instated a new policy reducing year-end bonuses from 25% to 50% for associates…
Despite the uncertainties and challenges posed by the current economic climate, law firms have seen revenue growth in the first half of the year, owing to historically high billing rates and strong off-cycle practices. This is according to a midyear survey conducted by Wells Fargo Private Bank Legal Specialty Group. While demand and productivity have…
They say money can’t buy happiness, but according to some lawyers, perhaps it could buy a few functional laptops. Results from the 2023 Midlevel Associate Survey have highlighted significant technology hitches experienced in law firms. Many participants found it difficult to match their firms’ remarkable profits with their outdated tech infrastructure, including slow computers, dated…
Earlier this year, a lawyer using the AI language model, ChatGPT, for legal research filed a motion in federal court that contained fake case citations. This resulted in sanctions against the lawyer and served as a stark reminder to the legal professionals about the potential hazards of relying overly on artificial intelligence for legal research….
In a recent development within the legal industry, firms are increasingly recognizing the value of remote flexibility in attracting highly skilled lateral talent. The trend, discussed at length in a recent post on Law.com, comes in response to ongoing changes in lawyer lifestyle preferences and the emerging challenges posed by the pandemic-era work environment. Despite…