Expert Analysis

• An Associate's Guide To Career Development In 2025

  

  As the new year begins, associates at all levels should consider establishing career metrics, fostering key relationships and employing other specific strategies to help move through the complexities of the legal profession with confidence and emerge as trailblazers, say EJ Stern and Amanda George at Fractional Law Firm.

• The Securities Litigation Trends That Will Matter Most In 2025

  

  2025 is shaping up to be a significant year for securities litigation, as plaintiffs and defendants alike navigate shifting standards for omission theories of liability, class certification, risk disclosure claims and more, say attorneys at Willkie.

• Predicting The Lasting Changes CFPB May Face In 2025

  

  President-elect Donald Trump and the incoming Republican-controlled Congress' likely attempts to reshape the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau could significantly alter its rulemaking, supervisory and enforcement abilities for years to come, says Jim Sandy at McGlinchey Stafford.

• 5 Proactive Immigration Best Practices For Employers In 2025

  

  Businesses that depend on foreign talent should take specific steps in anticipation of changes to federal immigration policies that could affect the H-1B visa and other programs, and likely require changes in organizational operations and compliance strategy, says Dustin O'Quinn at Ballard Spahr.

• Top 10 Employer Resolutions For 2025

  

  While companies must monitor for policy shifts under the new administration in 2025, it will also be a year to play it safe and remember the basics, such as the importance of documenting retention policies and conducting swift investigations into workplace complaints, say attorneys at Krevolin Horst.

• NLRB Likely To Fill Vacuum After NMB Jurisdiction Ruling

  

  The National Mediation Board's recent ruling in Swissport Cargo Services LP abandoned decades of precedent by concluding the Railway Labor Act doesn’t apply to airline service providers, likely leading the National Labor Relations Board to assert its jurisdiction instead and potentially causing more operational disruptions and labor strife, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• How White Collar Enforcement May Shift In Trump's 2nd Term

  

  After President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House next month, the administration’s emphasis on immigration laws, drug offenses and violent crime will likely reduce the focus on white collar crime overall, but certain areas within the white collar world may see increased activity, say attorneys at Keker Van Nest.

• Risk Management Takeaways From NIST's AI Symposium

  

  Based on the National Institute of Standards and Technology's September artificial intelligence innovation symposium, companies should anticipate that laws and regulations safeguarding AI could take new forms and approaches that break the current mold, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.

• New Trump Admin May Bring Financial Oversight Turbulence

  

  As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to begin his second term, his top financial market regulatory and securities law enforcement appointees, campaign promises, and regulatory preferences foretell a period of muddy regulatory waters, say attorneys at Kroll.

• The Justices' Securities Rulings, Dismissals That Defined '24

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's 2024 securities rulings led to increased success for defendants' price impact arguments, but the justices' decisions not to weigh in on important issues relating to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act's pleading requirements may be just as significant, say attorneys at Skadden.

• 2024 Election Results May Prove Fortuitous For Family Offices

  

  Thanks to the decisive Republican victories in the 2024 elections, family offices have a unique opportunity for accelerated growth and influence, particularly through the benefits afforded by patient capital, says Edward Taibi at Olshan Frome.

• 10 Noteworthy CFPB Developments From 2024

  

  In a banner year for consumer finance regulation, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau made significant strides in its efforts to rein in Big Tech and nonbank financial firms, including via rules regarding open banking, credit card late fees, and buy now, pay later products, say attorneys at Wiley.

• What To Expect From EEOC Next Year After An Active 2024

  

  While highlights this year for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission include its first-ever Pregnant Workers Fairness Act cases and comprehensive workplace harassment guidance, the question for 2025 is whether the commission will sustain its momentum or shift its focus in a new direction, says Shannon Kelly at GrayRobinson.

• Series

  Fixing Up Cars Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  From problem-solving to patience and adaptability to organization, the skills developed working under the hood of a car directly translate to being a more effective lawyer, says Christopher Mdeway at Kaufman Dolowich.

• 2024 Has Been A Momentous Year For ESG

  

  Significant developments in the environmental, social and governance landscape this year include new legislation, evolving global frameworks, continued litigation and enforcement actions, and a U.S. Supreme Court decision that has already affected how lower courts have viewed some ESG challenges, say attorneys at Katten.