Expert Analysis

• Ethics Issues For Mainland Firms Involved In Maui Fire Suits

  

  Before law firms located outside of Hawaii represent clients affected by the Lahaina wildfires, they must be aware of local ethics rules and regulatory gray areas, as any any ethical missteps could have major ramifications for the firm's practice in its home jurisdiction, says Ryan Little at Klinedinst.

• Perspectives

  More States Should Join Effort To Close Legal Services Gap

  

  Colorado is the most recent state to allow other types of legal providers, not just attorneys, to offer specific services in certain circumstances — and more states should rethink the century-old assumptions that shape our current regulatory rules, say Natalie Anne Knowlton and Janet Drobinske at the University of Denver.

• Identifying Trends And Tips In Litigation Financing Disclosure

  

  Growing interest and controversy in litigation financing raise several salient concerns, but exploring recent compelled disclosure trends from courts around the country can help practitioners further their clients' interests, say Sean Callagy and Samuel Sokolsky at Arnold & Porter.

• Attorneys Using AI Shouldn't Worry About Waiving Privilege

  

  As large language models become more advanced, attorneys may be concerned that sending confidential data to companies like OpenAI risks waiving attorney-client or work-product privilege, but there’s nothing about such tools that would negate the reasonable expectation of privacy, say John Tredennick and William Webber at Merlin.

• Series

  The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Elrod On 'Jury Duty'

  

  Though the mockumentary series “Jury Duty” features purposely outrageous characters, it offers a solemn lesson about the simple but brilliant design of the right to trial by jury, with an unwitting protagonist who even John Adams may have welcomed as an impartial foreperson, says Fifth Circuit Judge Jennifer Elrod.

• NJ Justices Clarify Bribery Law Scope, But Questions Remain

  

  The New Jersey Supreme Court’s recent State v. O'Donnell decision clarified that the state’s bribery law unambiguously applies to candidates for public office, but there are still unresolved questions about how the ruling may affect lobbyists, undeclared candidates and political speech, says Scott Coffina at Pietragallo Gordon.

• 4 Business-Building Strategies For Introvert Attorneys

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  Introverted lawyers can build client bases to rival their extroverted peers’ by adapting time-tested strategies for business development that can work for any personality — such as claiming a niche, networking for maximum impact, drawing on existing contacts and more, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

• Opinion

  3 Ways Justices' Disclosure Defenses Miss The Ethical Point

  

  The rule-bound interpretation of financial disclosures preferred by U.S. Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas — demonstrated in their respective statements defending their failure to disclose gifts from billionaires — show that they do not understand the ethical aspects of the public's concern, says Jim Moliterno at the Washington and Lee University School of Law.

• Trump's 'I Thought I Won' Jan. 6 Defense Is Unlikely To Prevail

  

  Since being indicted for his alleged attempts to overthrow the 2020 presidential election, former President Donald Trump’s legal team has argued that because he genuinely believed he won, his actions were not fraudulent — but this so-called mistake of fact defense will face a steep uphill battle for several key reasons, says Elizabeth Roper at Baker McKenzie.

• Caregiver Flexibility Is Crucial For Atty Engagement, Retention

  

  As the battle for top talent continues post-pandemic, many firms are attempting to attract employees with progressive hybrid working environments — and supporting caregivers before, during and after an extended leave is a critically important way to retain top talent, says Manar Morales at The Diversity & Flexibility Alliance.

• How Judicial Privilege Shields Attys Facing Wiretap Violations

  

  A recent ruling from the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, as well as past rulings across the country, indicates that the judicial privilege is applicable to alleged violations of wiretapping laws, so attorneys presented with audio evidence beneficial to their case should not fear being sued, says David Scott at Kang Haggerty.

• In-Office Engagement Is Essential To Associate Development

  

  As law firms develop return-to-office policies that allow hybrid work arrangements, they should incorporate the specific types of in-person engagement likely to help associates develop attributes common among successful firm leaders, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.

• Perspectives

  A Judge's Pitch To Revive The Jury Trial

  

  Ohio state Judge Pierre Bergeron explains how the decline of the jury trial threatens public confidence in the judiciary and even democracy as a whole, and he offers ideas to restore this sacred right.

• How To Recognize And Recover From Lawyer Loneliness

  

  Law can be one of the loneliest professions, but there are practical steps that attorneys and their managers can take to help themselves and their peers improve their emotional health, strengthen their social bonds and protect their performance, says psychologist and attorney Traci Cipriano.

• Noncompetes Hold Atty Privilege Pitfalls For Health Industry

  

  Providers negotiating with medical professionals bound by enforceable restrictive covenants must tread carefully due to not only risk of breaching physicians' covenants but also risk of wrongful conduct that pierces attorney-client privilege, says Scott O'Connell at Holland & Knight.