Expert Analysis

• Worker Accommodations After Justices' Religious Bias Ruling

  

  While the U.S. Supreme Court's recent Groff v. DeJoy decision makes it easier for employees to obtain religious accommodations under Title VII, it also guarantees more litigation over what counts as a substantial hardship for businesses, as lower courts will have to interpret the exact contours of the new standard, says Caroline Corbin at the University of Miami School of Law.

• Opinion

  States Must Fight Predatory Real Estate Listing Agreements

  

  As momentum against long-term real estate listing agreements continues to grow, states should take action to render existing agreements unenforceable and discourage future unfair and deceptive trade practices in real estate, says Elizabeth Blosser at the American Land Title Association.

• 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.

• How To Avoid A Zombie Office Building Apocalypse

  

  With national office vacancy rates approaching 20%, policymakers, investors and developers will need to come together in order to prevent this troubling trend from sucking the life out of business districts or contaminating the broader real estate market, say Ryan Sommers and Robyn Minter Smyers at Thompson Hine.

• 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.

• SuperValu's Lesson: Always Be Building An FCA Defense

  

  The recent U.S. v. SuperValu decision confirming that scienter is an essential element of False Claims Act liability should motivate government contractors to prepare for allegations of material misrepresentation by building a record of their honorable efforts toward regulatory compliance, say David Resnicoff and Andrew Patton at Riley Safer.

• NBA Players Must Avoid Legal Fouls In CBD Deals

  

  The NBA’s recently ratified collective bargaining agreement allows athletes to promote CBD brands and products, but athletes and the companies they promote must be cautious of a complex patchwork of applicable state laws and federal regulators’ approach to advertising claims, says Airina Rodrigues at Brownstein Hyatt.

• 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.

• High Court Underscores DOJ's Role In Policing FCA Litigation

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Polansky v. Executive Health Resources reaffirms that the government has final say in False Claims Act cases, allowing for meaningful guardrails that deter private litigators from seeking to regulate industries that Congress has delegated to expert administrative agencies, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

• 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.

• What 3rd Circ. Niaspan Decision Means For Class Cert.

  

  The Third Circuit's recent denial of class certification in the Niaspan antitrust case underscores its particularly stringent understanding of the implicit ascertainability requirement, which further fuels confusion in the courts, threatens uneven results and increases the risk of forum shopping, says Michael Lazaroff at Rimon Law.

• Rebuttal

  2nd Circ. Reinsurance Ruling Correctly Applied English Law

  

  Contrary to a recent Law360 guest article's argument, the Second Circuit correctly applied English law when it decided in Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania v. Equitas that concurrent reinsurance certificates required the reinsurer to cover loss in accordance with the law of the policy's governing jurisdiction, say Peter Chaffetz and Andrew Poplinger at Chaffetz Lindsey.

• The Texas Two-Step May Be Losing Steam

  

  The Texas Two-Step is a powerful bankruptcy strategy that has been used in recent high-profile cases, including Johnson & Johnson’s talc unit bankruptcy case, but ongoing debate and legal challenges raise the question of whether this maneuver is losing reliability, say Brendan Best and Justin Allen at Varnum.

• East Penn Verdict Is An FLSA Cautionary Tale For Employers

  

  A Pennsylvania federal jury's recent $22 million verdict against East Penn set a record for the Fair Labor Standards Act and should serve as a reminder to employers that failure to keep complete wage and hour records can exponentially increase liability exposure under the FLSA, say Benjamin Hinks and Danielle Lederman at Bowditch & Dewey.