Expert Analysis

• Small And Midsize Business Finance Faces More State Regs

  

  Recent developments in state credit disclosure, consumer debt collection, and lender licensing and registration requirements suggest that companies extending financing to small and midsize businesses are likely to encounter a significantly more stringent legal climate moving forward, say attorneys at Manatt.

• How Courts Are Clashing Over FinCEN Real Estate Rule

  

  A Texas federal court's recent decision in Flowers v. Bessent has vacated the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's anti-money laundering rule for residential real estate transfers, but significant uncertainty remains due to the ruling's direct conflict with other recent federal court decisions, say attorneys at Katten.

• What DOL Proposal Signals For 401(k)s, Alternative Assets

  

  The U.S. Department of Labor recently published a highly anticipated proposed rule that could establish more defined pathways for 401(k) plan fiduciaries to consider investment options with greater alternative asset exposure, and help fund sponsors and investment managers develop such options, say attorneys at Cleary.

• GHG Endangerment Finding Repeal Brings New Legal Risks

  

  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2009 determination that greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare anchored a matrix of regulation across multiple sectors — and the recent repeal of that finding has fundamentally destabilized the legal landscape governing industrial emissions, corporate liability and climate-related risk management, says Tanya Nesbitt at Thompson Hine.

• Series

  Officiating Football Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Though they may seem to have little in common, officiating football has sharpened many of the same skills that define effective lawyering in management-side labor and employment: preparation, judgment, composure, credibility and ability to make difficult decisions in real time, says Josh Nadreau at Fisher Phillips.

• Series

  Law School's Missed Lessons: How To Draft Pleadings

  

  Most law school graduates step into their first jobs without ever having drafted a complaint, answer, motion or other type of pleading, but that gap can be closed by understanding the strategy embedded in every filing, writing with clarity and purpose, and seeking feedback at every step, says Eric Yakaitis at Haug Barron.

• Legal And Regulatory Keys To Sustainable Building Projects

  

  While the federal government continues to roll back environmental regulations, market momentum toward high-performance, energy-efficient commercial real estate as a defining driver of long-term value remains robust — so developers should understand how applicable standards and regulatory frameworks will affect projects, say attorneys at CGS3.

• E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On ESI Control

  

  Several recent federal court decisions have perpetuated a split over what constitutes “control” of electronically stored information — with judges divided on whether the standard should turn on a party's legal right or practical ability to obtain the information, say attorneys at Sidley.

• Anticipating The Justices' Potential Ruling On Tax Takings

  

  Recent oral arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court case Pung v. Isabella focused on rules for valuation, timing and administrability of tax auction proceeds and whichever method the court adopts for determining just compensation, it will have far-reaching impacts on tax collection, homeowners' equity and the secondary market for tax-foreclosed property, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

• 2 Discovery Rulings Break With Heppner On AI Privilege Issue

  

  While a New York federal court’s recent ruling in U.S. v. Heppner suggests that some litigants’ communications with AI tools are discoverable, two other recent federal court decisions demonstrate that such interactions generally qualify for work-product protection under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, says Joshua Dunn at Brown Rudnick.

• Series

  Isshin-Ryu Karate Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  My involvement in martial arts, specifically Isshin-ryu, which has principles rooted in the eight codes of karate, has been one of the most foundational in the development of my personality, and particularly my approach to challenges — including in my practice of law, says Kaitlyn Stone at Barnes & Thornburg.

• Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: April Lessons

  

  In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy identifies practice tips from three recent rulings involving allegations of racial discrimination in mortgage applications, health insurance networks and actual cash value losses.

• How Developers Can Leverage The New Markets Tax Credit

  

  An increased regulatory focus on affordable housing raises important legal considerations for structuring transactions using the oft overlooked New Markets Tax Credit, which can fill a gap in affordable for-sale housing financing by lowering community developer costs but comes with unique compliance, structuring and documentation demands, say attorneys at Stinson.

• 5 Takeaways From Capital Proposals For Community Banks

  

  While much commentary has centered on how federal regulators' proposed capital overhaul would affect the biggest banks, there are several aspects that regional and community institutions should note too, including the potential benefits of the expanded risk-based approach and reduced capital requirements for mortgage origination, say attorneys at Covington.

• Opinion

  State Bars Need To Get Specific About AI Confidentiality

  

  Lawyers need to put actual client information into artificial intelligence tools to get their full value, but they cannot confidently do so until state bars offer clear, formal authority on which plan tiers of the three most popular generative AI tools are safe to use when sharing specific client details, says attorney Nick Berk.