Expert Analysis

• A Midyear Look At Expected Changes In Business Immigration

  

  While legislative immigration reform remains a nonstarter this year, U.S. businesses and their advisers should keep an eye on agency-level regulatory efforts that are underway, which may bring significant changes to filing fees, employment verification, visa renewal processing and more, says Rami Fakhoury at Fakhoury Global.

• 5 Ways Firms Can Rethink Office Design In A Hybrid World

  

  As workplaces across the country adapt to flexible work, law firms must prioritize individuality, amenities and technology in office design, says Kristin Cerutti at Nelson Worldwide.

• Opinion

  Bar Score Is Best Hiring Metric Post-Affirmative Action

  

  After the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling striking down affirmative action admissions policies, law firms looking to foster diversity in hiring should view an applicant's Multistate Bar Examination score as the best metric of legal ability — over law school name or GPA, says attorney Alice Griffin.

• Ghosting In BigLaw: How To Come Back From Lack Of Feedback

  

  Junior associates can feel powerless when senior colleagues cut off contact instead of providing useful feedback, but young attorneys can get back on track by focusing on practical professional development and reexamining their career priorities, says Rachel Patterson at Orrick.

• Pugin Ruling Lowers Bar For Felony-Based Deportation

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Pugin v. Garland that an offense may constitute an obstruction of justice aggravated felony, even when an investigation or proceeding is not pending, may allow the government to seek deportation for other low-level offenses never intended to be grounds for felony-based deportation, says Peter Alfredson at Capital Area Immigrants' Rights Coalition.

• Steps To Success For Senior Associates

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  Adriana Paris at Rissman Barrett discusses the increased responsibilities and opportunities that becoming a senior associate brings and what attorneys in this role should prioritize to flourish in this stressful but rewarding next level in their careers.

• Legal Profession Must Do More For Lawyers With Disabilities

  

  At the start of Disability Pride month, Rosalyn Richter at Arnold & Porter looks at why lawyers with disabilities are significantly underrepresented in private practice, asserting that law firms and other employers must do more to conquer the implicit bias that deters attorneys from seeking accommodations.

• Opinion

  Appellate Funding Disclosure: No Mandate Is Right Choice

  

  The Advisory Committee on Appellate Rules' recent decision, forgoing a mandatory disclosure rule for litigation funding in federal appeals, is prudent, as third-party funding is only involved in a minuscule number of federal cases, and courts have ample authority to obtain funding information if necessary, says Stewart Ackerly at Statera Capital.

• RETRACTED: How New Prevailing Wage Rule May Affect H-1B Employment

  

  Editor's note: This guest article has been removed due to an inaccurate discussion of the status of the U.S. Department of Labor's prevailing wage rule, "Strengthening Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain Aliens in the United States." The rule is no longer on the Biden administration's current rulemaking agenda.

• Opinion

  Congress Should Pass Bipartisan Immigration Reform Bill

  

  By reforming visa allocation, expediting asylum processing, creating new employment visas and creating a path forward for individuals lacking permanent legal status, the recently introduced Dignity Act presents an opportunity for much-needed reform and deserves support from both sides of the aisle, says Laura Reiff at Greenberg Traurig.

• How Attys Can Avoid Exposing Their Firms To Cyberattacks

  

  Attorneys are the weakest link in their firms' cyberdefenses because hackers often exploit the gap between individuals’ work and personal cybersecurity habits, but there are some steps lawyers can take to reduce the risks they create for their employers, say Mark Hurley and Carmine Cicalese at Digital Privacy & Protection.

• Virginia 'Rocket Docket' Slowdown Is Likely A Blip

  

  After being the fastest or second-fastest federal civil trial court for 14 straight years, the Eastern District of Virginia has slid to 18th place, but the rocket docket’s statistical tumble doesn't mean the district no longer maintains a speedy civil docket, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

• 5 Management Tips To Keep Law Firm Merger Talks Moving

  

  Many law firm mergers that make solid business sense still fall apart due to the costs and frustrations of inefficient negotiations, but firm managers can increase the chance of success by effectively planning and executing merger discussions, say Lisa Smith and Kristin Stark at Fairfax Associates.

• Pay Transparency Laws Complicate Foreign Labor Cert.

  

  State and local laws adopted to help close the gender pay gap pose challenges for U.S. companies recruiting foreign nationals, as they try to navigate a thicket of pay transparency laws without running afoul of federally regulated recruitment practices, say Stephanie Pimentel and Asha George at Berry Appleman.

• Rethinking In-Office Attendance For Associate Retention

  

  The hybrid office attendance model doesn't work for all employees, but it does for many — and balancing these two groups is important for associate retention and maintaining a BigLaw firm culture that supports all attorneys, says Summer Eberhard at Major Lindsey.