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Conway Leaves Penn State Dickinson Law Deanship
Danielle Conway, who steps down effective immediately, will return to the Penn State Dickinson Law School faculty, and an acting dean has been named until an interim dean is appointed. Danielle Conway, who steps down effective immediately, will return to the...
When It Comes to AI, Law Firms Should Take ‘Slow and Steady Approach,’ Says Wisner Baum Partner
W. Crawford Appleby, a Wisner Baum partner in Los Angeles who is on the firm's AI committee, talked to Law.com about the best way to use artificial intelligence tools and how to avoid costly mistakes. W. Crawford Appleby, a Wisner Baum partner in Los Angeles who...
Law Firm Disrupted: Do Most Clients Really Benefit After Lateral Moves?
While laterals often cite gains in client service when explaining their move to a new firm, the most immediate outcome for clients is often higher rates. While laterals often cite gains in client service when explaining their move to a new firm, the most...
Marketing Roundup: Optimizing Content For AI Answer Engines, Revamping Your Operating Model, And More
As part of the Legal Marketing Association’s (LMA’s) partnership with Above the Law, we round up insights and intel from Strategies & Voices, LMA’s official online publication dedicated to the craft of legal marketing. This edition provides a framework for...
How To Create A Free Tool To Capture Leads In Your Practice Niche
Did you know that one of the most effective techniques for getting clients is to give away the game? It’s true! Free tools that clients immediately recognize as useful show value. Linking free tool access to a system for collecting zero-party data from prospective...
DOJ To Judge: ‘No One Was Trying To Pull A Fast One.’ Judge: ‘These Things Are Starting To Pile Up.’
The Justice Department walked into a Manhattan courtroom Thursday with grand jury subpoenas for New York Times reporters, and it walked out without them. The subpoenas went to Julian Barnes, Eric Lipton, Tyler Pager, Eric Schmitt, and Adam Goldman over their reporting...
Only A Billionaire Could Fail The Bar Exam This Profitably
Most people who fail the bar exam go quiet, regroup, and try again in the spring. Kim Kardashian put hers in a commercial, handed the setup to Gloria Allred, and sold you an energy drink with it. The reality star / SKIMS mogul / criminal justice crusader / aspiring...
New Jersey Has A Message For Lawyers: Don’t Sleep With Your Clients
Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day. The Association believed that maintaining the existing rules that have been applied on a case-by-case approach that focused on the effect of the relationship on the representation would better address the...
Got $29? AI-Driven Platform Makes Filing a Lawsuit Easy. But Is It Legal?
The business model of Petty Lawsuit could make it vulnerable to litigation for practicing law without a license, says Sean Griffin, a Washington, D.C. lawyer who blogs about AI in the legal profession. The business model of Petty Lawsuit could make it vulnerable...
One Year In, The HSF Kramer Merger Looks Like A Success With $2.4 Billion In Revenue
When Herbert Smith Freehills and Kramer Levin announced they were joining forces last year, the firms promised the combination would create a transatlantic powerhouse capable of competing with the biggest names in Biglaw. Now, we’ve got our first look at whether that...
Law School Deans Face ‘Untenable’ Pressures as Tenures Shrink
Deans are often “being held responsible for outcomes while lacking the authority, the resources, or sometimes even an accurate financial picture needed to address them, frequently making the position “untenable, according to a new study, titled “Relentless: The...
Biglaw Partner-Associate Public Makeout Sesh Posted On Social Media
Yesterday afternoon, a social media video began circulating showing a couple having a midday makeout session on a public park bench. The original poster shamed the pair with the classic “get a room” advice, followed by capturing their reactions and then putting it on...
Guy Posts His Obama-Era Biglaw Associate Reviews In Peak LinkedInMaxxing
Personally, I’ve never understood LinkedIn. The original pitch was “Facebook for resumes,” a platform designed to keep you in touch with your most obnoxious professional contacts without having to see their vacation pictures. But lately, it mostly seems like AI-slop...
Partners Should Sometimes Just Perform Work Rather Than Spend Time Delegating It To Associates
Law firm partners are often encouraged to delegate as much work as possible to associates. This is because delegating work frees up partners to focus on business development, client relationships, and other tasks that may be more appropriate for senior attorneys. In...
How I Made Partner: ‘Know Your Firm Well,’ Says Julia Damron of Athlaw LLP
"Know your firm well. The path to partnership looks very different depending on the structure and culture of where you practice. In a large firm, the benchmarks are going to differ significantly from those at a smaller or differently structured firm." "Know your...
Brendan Carr Lobs More Empty Threats At ABC For Not Airing Trump’s Election Fraud Lies
Earlier this year FCC boss Brendan Carr launched a series of fake investigations into ABC because the network (1) hosted Democratic Texas Senate hopeful James Talarico on The View, (2) aired comedians who made fun of the president and his wife, and (3) occasionally...
How Appealing Weekly Roundup
Ed. Note: A weekly roundup of just a few items from Howard Bashman’s How Appealing blog, the Web’s first blog devoted to appellate litigation. Check out these stories and more at How Appealing. “Trump Unveils New Tariffs Designed to Withstand Legal Scrutiny; New...
Trump’s Order Restricting Mail Voting ‘Likely and Imminent’ to Cause Disenfranchisement, Federal Judge Says
A Boston federal judge largely approved the voting rights organizations' constitutional claims against President Donald Trump's executive order targeting mail voting. A Boston federal judge largely approved the voting rights organizations' constitutional claims...
Todd Blanche’s Confirmation Strategy: Call Two Senate Judiciary Committee Members Liars
Todd Blanche’s two-day confirmation hearing for Attorney General was, by any measure, a lot. There was the Freudian slip where he introduced himself as Trump’s lawyer before catching himself. There was Senator Hirono correcting him on the spot when he confidently...
Morning Docket: 07.24.26
* SCOTUSBlog founder Tom Goldstein’s sentencing set for today. Anyone want action on what he gets? [Reuters] * Plaintiff hired spies to extract intel about defendant’s case from Biglaw partner. This James Bond reboot sucks. [Roll on Friday] * DOJ gives up effort to...
The FRETZIN Rules For Legal Business Development Success
There is more television available today than any reasonable person could ever watch, and somehow, I still find myself going back to the shows and documentaries that actually fire me up. This past weekend, I rewatched The Last Dance, the documentary about Michael...
Southbound and Down: How Sidley Austin Is Capitalizing on Miami’s Big Law Boom
In this week's episode, Legal Speak hosts Cedra Mayfield and Patrick Smith chat with Law.com business of law reporter Vivienne Serret as she debuts a new segment called, "Southbound and Down," which features Sidley Austin's Beatriz Azcuy in the premiere...
Microphone Tips for Lawyers: The Ultimate Guide to Sounding Like a Premium Podcaster
You probably don’t know what you’re doing with your microphone. Legal Broadcasting Company's Evan Dicharry explains the most common audio blunders and how to fix them instantly. The post Microphone Tips for Lawyers: The Ultimate Guide to Sounding Like a Premium...
Litigation Trends to Watch: Plaintiffs Target Big Tech, Sweepstakes Casinos and Kratom
While kratom remains unregulated at the federal level, nine states have banned the drug. Rhode Island reversed course and legalized kratom this year for adults 21 and older. While kratom remains unregulated at the federal level, nine states have banned the drug....
OpenAI’s New Model Hacked A Website On Its Own… Humans Would Go To Prison For That
OpenAI disclosed on Tuesday that its own models broke out of a sealed testing environment, found a previously unknown vulnerability, escaped onto the open internet, and compromised another company’s production servers to steal the answer key to a test they were in the...
Congratulations On That Biglaw Leadership Role. Here’s Your Second Job.
Ed. Note: Welcome to our daily feature Trivia Question of the Day! According to SurePoint Technologies and The Tilt Institute’s newly released study Elevating Law Firm Leadership, what percentage of respondents (law firm leaders and legal professionals from Am Law...
Todd Blanche Can’t Admit The Slush Fund Was A Mistake Because ‘That’s Not Proper MAGA Talk’ — See Also
Liar, Liar: Todd Blanche’s unique confirmation strategy. Stop Waiting For Cravath: Biglaw firms don’t need permission anymore. It’s time to make your money moves. That’s A Pretty Big Malpractice Claim You’ve Got There: Holland & Knight facing $1.2B lawsuit. Robot...
Biglaw Firm Facing $1.2 Billion Malpractice Lawsuit Over The Business Model It Allegedly Built
According to a recently filed lawsuit, Biglaw firm Holland & Knight helped build its client a product. And then 16 state attorneys general took issue with the specifics — with fun words like “predatory.” And now said client would like $1.2 billion from H&K. MV...
It’s Easier To Get Into Harvard Law School Than To Accept A $300 Consultation Fee From A Self-Scheduled Platform
“What, like it’s hard?” Elle Woods famously quipped about getting into Harvard Law. She had a point. Turns out, getting admitted to Harvard Law is child’s play when compared to the maze of trust-accounting rules, mandatory disclosures, and outright bans that a solo or...
AI Moves from Novelty to Operating Model for Legal Departments
AI is no longer an experiment for in-house legal teams. It's a core driver of business enablement. But technology alone won't deliver meaningful ROI. AI is no longer an experiment for in-house legal teams. It's a core driver of business enablement. But...
Florida Bar Opens Disciplinary Probe Into Trump’s Attorney
The Florida Bar confirmed to Law.com it has opened a disciplinary file on President Donald Trump's attorney Alejandro Brito after a Miami federal judge sanctioned him for conduct in the president's suit against the Internal Revenue Service. The Florida Bar...
US Senate Confirms North Dakota District Judge’s Elevation to Eighth Circuit
Judge Daniel Traynor was confirmed on a 48-47 vote. Some senators had criticized his decision to join a statement with 13 other judges, saying they would refuse to hire law clerks from Columbia University in the wake of the school's handling of pro-Palestine protests...
Enough Already: Biglaw Needs To Stop Waiting For Cravath
Milbank announced associate salary raises on June 2. Today, we’re on the verge of August, and Biglaw’s traditional game of Waiting for Cravath has officially entered the absurd phase. When we first checked in on the market a few weeks ago, it was strange. Now it’s...
Kirkland Plans To ‘Play To Win’ In Biglaw’s AI Talent War
Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day. You will definitely see more hires. You hear a lot about the talent war, and we plan to play to win. We are always in the market for top-level talent. — Michelle Kelban, a New York-based real estate partner at...
Privilege, Discovery, and Litigation Risks In Enforcing AI-Drafted Patents
This is the first installment in a two-part series examining the implications of using generative artificial intelligence in the drafting and prosecution of patent applications. In this part, we address privilege and discovery risks that could arise when GAI tools are...
50 Lessons Every Young Lawyer Should Learn Before Year Five
Building Your Foundation 1. Professionalism. Your reputation begins the moment you enter the profession. Treat everyone with respect because judges, opposing counsel, court staff, clients, and colleagues all remember how you conduct yourself long after they forget the...
Navigating Utah’s Legal Landscape with Kurt London + Boston’s Debut Album & Rock Trivia
Kurt London and Jared Correia break down the operational playbook for launching a personal injury practice, securing capital runways, and navigating Utah's evolving legal tech landscape. The post Navigating Utah’s Legal Landscape with Kurt London + Boston’s Debut...
Law Librarians In The City Of The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame
Well, it’s done. AALL has concluded its annual conference, this time in Cleveland, home of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. My first inclination after spending 2 ½ days with them: law librarians rock. Then I thought about it: maybe they don’t. Which, strangely enough,...
Legal Research Startup Midpage Crosses Another Threshold Of Coverage, Adding Federal and State Statutes, Regulations and Agency Guidance
It was just 18 months ago that I wrote about the legal research startup Midpage passing what its founder considered a critical threshold in its development, achieving full data coverage of key U.S. case law. Now the company is crossing another threshold, adding full...
AI Is Making Your Law Firm Faster — That’s Not the Same as Making It Better
Despite productivity gains, AI is exposing operational gaps law firms can no longer ignore. Actionstep CEO Early Stephens breaks down the 2026 Midsize Law Firm Priorities Report. The post AI Is Making Your Law Firm Faster — That’s Not the Same as Making It Better...
Hell Week Is Coming
Not to freak out bar examinees any more, well, maybe just a little, but the last week of July should be renamed Hell Week, a la fraternity hazing. Taking the bar exam is its own particular form of hell, and the only ticket to being a practicing lawyer, at least in...
Microsoft’s Own Legal Department Will Use Harvey, As The Two Companies Deepen Their Alliance
The post Microsoft’s Own Legal Department Will Use Harvey, As The Two Companies Deepen Their Alliance appeared first on Above the Law.Microsoft’s legal department is becoming a Harvey customer.The legal AI company Harvey announced today that Microsoft’s Corporate,...
First Post-Mahmoud LGBTQ+ Curriculum Case in Mass. Survives Dismissal Bid
The lawsuit is part of a wave of litigation testing the balance between public school curriculum and parents' religious rights following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor. The lawsuit is part of a wave of litigation testing the balance...
The Future of Lawyering: Lawyer Training
In this second piece, I focus on how lawyers can become good lawyers when AI is beginning to absorb much of the research, analysis, and drafting traditionally assigned to junior attorneys. In this second piece, I focus on how lawyers can become good lawyers when...
Vacant Benches: Delayed Appointments Vetting Lag or Policy Choice?
In states without appointment deadlines, prolonged judicial vacancies can leave courts short-handed while raising questions about whether governors are carefully vetting candidates—or simply exercising unchecked discretion. In states without appointment...
Matt Damon Still Can’t Believe He Was Ketanji Brown Jackson’s College Scene Partner
Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day. I can’t believe she would say ‘I know that guy’ when she’s a Supreme Court Justice! It’s amazing. — Actor Matt Damon, in comments given during an interview with CBS Mornings, after being shown a clip of Justice...
The Next President Should Throw Open The Gates Of Trade To BYD And Other Electric Automakers
Shenzhen, China-based BYD Co. is the largest manufacturer of electric automobiles in the world. Last year, BYD fully electric models outsold Tesla by more than 600,000 units. BYD’s most affordable electric vehicle costs the equivalent of about $8,000. Those who have...
New Bill Seeks To Create Public Option On ACA Marketplaces
The post New Bill Seeks To Create Public Option On ACA Marketplaces appeared first on Above the Law.The post New Bill Seeks To Create Public Option On ACA Marketplaces appeared first on Above the Law.
Morning Docket: 07.23.26
* Holland & Knight sued for $1.2 billion by embattled client hit with multiple state AG cases. [Reuters] * Delaware adapting to future of AI managed companies. [Bloomberg Law News] * Peter Navarro’s contempt conviction upheld by D.C. Circuit. [Roll Call] * Senate...
Entegrata Hires Simpson Thacher AI Leader Andrew Baker To Head New AI Enablement Product Line
The legal data company Entegrata, whose data lakehouse platform helps law firms consolidate siloed data into a single source of truth, has hired Andrew Baker, who for more than five years led applied AI and data science at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, as its first...
Amid Rising Rents, Litigators Await Guidance on Challenges to Rent-Setting Algorithms
With litigators awaiting guidance on the growing crop of suits over the use of algorithms to set rents, a related case at the Third Circuit concerning hotels "has been pending since last fall, and I think a lot of people are waiting for it," law professor Salil Mehra...
In Australia, AI Is Accelerating the Decline of the Billable Hour, Law Firms Say. But What Comes Next?
Clients want a share of the benefits of AI. Clients want a share of the benefits of AI.
Johnson & Johnson Wins Big: Federal Judge Orders Nearly 70,000 Talc Claimants to Show Why They Shouldn’t be Dismissed
In Wednesday's order, U.S. Magistrate Judge Rukhsanah Singh, in the District of New Jersey, raised "deep skepticism" about the plaintiffs' specific causation experts and sought to reevaluate how to manage the "aged and complex mass tort MDL." In Wednesday's...
Over 500 Former DOJ Lawyers Explain How They *Somehow* Managed Jobs Without Massive Ethical Violations
The Justice Department’s lawsuit against the D.C. Office of Disciplinary Counsel rests on the claim that lawyers working for the federal government cannot be held to the same rules of legal ethics and professional responsibility that bind every other attorney’s...
Willkie Farr And OpenAI Building Proprietary AI Named After Guy Who Would Not Have Cut A Deal With Trump
Willkie Farr & Gallagher just announced a partnership with OpenAI to build the next generation of its in-house AI tools, a collaboration that comes with a firmwide rollout of ChatGPT Enterprise and access to Codex for the firm’s engineers. While many firms seek...
When You Run Out Of Law, Reach For ‘Absurd’ — See Also
DOJ Files Childish Brief, Begs Judge Not To Take Its Allowance: The $1,000 a day fine Todd Blanche would really like to avoid. Heartbreaking: DOJ Lawyers Used To Have To Follow Ethics Rules: While the current DOJ argues that government lawyers should be immune from...
Todd Blanche’s Brief Has The Tone Of A Kid Yelling ‘That’s Not Fair’
This is anything but your typical lawyerly brief. That is not some small, stylistic quibble. Lawyers know to go after the arguments being made, not the person making it, because judges notice, because opposing counsel will quote it back at you, and because the instant...
The Law Schools Where Starting Salaries For Graduates Exceed Their Student Debt (2026)
In today’s world, the vast majority of students attending law school have been saddled with seemingly insurmountable six-figure debt loads. Many law students are under the mistaken impression that they’ll be able to pay off that debt quickly; after all, they believe...
2026: A Rule Of Law Odyssey
A Vault 50 law firm announced deep staff layoffs — upward of 10 percent — last week. Is this a sign of things to come — a byproduct of AI pressure and a precarious economy — or a unique problem for that firm? Controversy erupted after the Trump administration swiftly...
Senate Democrats Reintroduce Supreme Court Term Limits Bill, And The Polling Has Never Been Friendlier
Sheldon Whitehouse is back with the BATL Act, and this time, the public is standing behind him. Whitehouse, along with Senators Cory Booker, Richard Blumenthal, and Alex Padilla, reintroduced the Supreme Court Biennial Appointments and Term Limits Act today. Same...
A Class Action Lawsuit Will Determine Whether Nintendo Customers Are Entitled To Tariff Refunds
In August 2025, Nintendo announced that it would raise the prices of the Nintendo Switch 2 console due to market conditions. At the time, the Trump tariffs were in effect starting with a 24% reciprocal tariff. Later, a negotiated 15% reciprocal tariff was imposed on...
Biglaw Firm With A Stellar Rep On Associate Compensation
Ed. Note: Welcome to our daily feature Trivia Question of the Day! According to Vault’s most recent associate survey, which Biglaw firm (with a reputation for operating above the going Biglaw market rate) gets the number one spot for compensation? Hint: Interestingly,...
‘I’m Trying to Help Both Sides’: Judge in Uber Sex Assault Trials Wants Bellwether Plan Replenished
At a Tuesday hearing, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer, in the Northern District of California, said the first sexual assault trials haven't provided clear answers on Uber's alleged negligence. At a Tuesday hearing, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer, in the...
Paramount/Warner Bros Merger Secures Green Light From EU
The powerful EU regulator was one of the last hurdles facing Paramount and Warner Bros. The U.K.'s regulator must still issue its decision, and a lawsuit opposing the merger is pending in the U.S. The powerful EU regulator was one of the last hurdles facing...
Nicolás Maduro’s Narcoterrorism Trial Slated for June 2027
U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein of the Southern District of New York set the trial date during a Wednesday hearing. U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein of the Southern District of New York set the trial date during a Wednesday hearing.
Landlords Sue to Overturn New York City Rent Freeze
Dechert and Rosenberg & Estis filed an Article 78 petition challenging the Rent Guidelines Board's independence and economic analysis. The coalition of landlords alleged that the board predetermined its June rent-freeze vote and ignored economic data supporting...
Senate Confirms Former Ohio Solicitor General Benjamin Flowers to Sixth Circuit
Flowers, who clerked for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and Ninth Circuit Judge Sandra Ikuta, fills the vacancy left by Sixth Circuit Judge Jeffrey Sutton, who announced plans to take senior status. Flowers, who clerked for Supreme Court Justice Antonin...
Organizing Legal Work with Copilot Notebooks
Tech Tips: Ben Schorr shows how Copilot Notebooks give you a "walled garden" workspace that helps you move from scattered information to useful work product faster. Here's what you can do with it. The post Organizing Legal Work with Copilot Notebooks appeared first on...
Clifford Chance Partner Profits Top £1B as PEP and Revenue Rise 9%
The firm saw 9% growth in the Americas, with CFO Daniel Burton and global managing partner Charles Adams discussing the latest set of figures with Law.com The firm saw 9% growth in the Americas, with CFO Daniel Burton and global managing partner Charles Adams...
8th Circuit Judge Bobby Shepherd to Take Senior Status, Giving Trump Another Vacancy
Shepherd's announcement of senior status hands President Donald Trump his third opportunity in his second term to add a judge to the St. Louis-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, which covers Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota...
How I Made Partner: ‘Don’t Wait for Things to Fall in Your Lap,’ Says Joseph Gerber of Knobbe Martens
"Who do you want to work with? What kind of clients do you want? What are you going to do to find them? Be proactive in thinking about these questions, and don't wait for things to fall in your lap—they probably won't." "Who do you want to work with? What kind...
Critical Mass With Law.com’s Amanda Bronstad: Lawsuits Hit Taylor Farms and Taco Bell Over Contaminated Lettuce, 1st Checks Sent From $4B Sex Abuse Settlement Amid Fraud Scandal
This week: At least five lawsuits have been filed against Taylor Farms over its lettuce contaminated with cyclospora, and Taco Bell is an additional defendant in most of the cases. More than $700 million of a massive settlement with Los Angeles County is being sent...
After Major Setback, Ultra-Processed Food Lawsuits Face Uncertain Path
"Even though they are brought under different state laws, even though they are brought before different judges, they're going to face exactly the same problem," Erica Graves of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips said. "Even though they are brought under different...
Built By Lawyers, For Lawyers: DingDuff Is A Free Claude Connector That Its Founders Say Rivals The Legal Research Giants
Two practicing lawyers in Austin, Texas, have built a free connector that plugs Claude directly into millions of court opinions, statutes, regulations and court rules, along with federal court filings via PACER — and they say that, in their own testing, it matches and...
$1.2B Malpractice Suit Alleges Holland & Knight ‘Eviscerated’ Real Estate Brokerage
The plaintiff argues the firm failed to identify potential regulatory pitfalls in its $320 million property tech business. The plaintiff argues the firm failed to identify potential regulatory pitfalls in its $320 million property tech...
John Yoo Wants DOJ To Investigate Mamdani For Crime He Literally Did Not Commit
John Yoo is back on his bullshit. The man best known for authoring vaguely legal-sounding memos turning the U.S. into a torture state went on Fox News yesterday to muse that New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani should be investigated by the Trump Justice Department. Yoo...
Lawyers Learning You Can’t Square Peg AI Into eDiscovery Round Holes
Attorneys can do a lot with new generative AI tools beyond earn sanctions for faking citations. But despite the AI industry’s curiously apocalyptic advertising claims — like Anthropic’s World Cup ad that sort of implied AI would kill us all? — the fact of the matter...
Todd Blanche Feared Judges Giving It To DOJ In Extremely Uncomfortable Place
The Trump administration is staffed almost exclusively by guys who saw Full Metal Jacket and decided to root for the drill sergeant. Obviously, that describes Pete Hegseth, whose whole persona is “Gunnery Sergeant Hartman attitude and Private Pyle physique,” but it...
This Judge Is Just Begging For A Benchslap — See Also
Judge VanDyke Has Taken To Asking The Supreme Court For Favors: Of the benchslap variety. Full Metal Briefing: Todd Blanche feared DOJ would get “skullfucked” by the courts. The Tortured Logic Of John Yoo: Yoo tells Fox News that the DOJ should probe Zohran Mamdani...
No Merger Needed: Linklaters Posts Strong Financial Results
Linklaters has spent years talking about its international growth strategy. This year, the numbers suggest it’s paying off. The Magic Circle firm reported revenue of £2.5 billion ($3.3 billion) for fiscal 2026, a 6.8% increase over the previous year. Pre-tax profit...
Courtroom View Network: Learning Trial Skills By Watching Real Lawyers In Real Trials
It’s 11 p.m. Sunday night. You are a young lawyer trying your first case that starts tomorrow. You have prepared and carefully thought through how to present your case. Then it hits you. You have to get a complex set of documents introduced into evidence. Your case...
The One Thing You Didn’t Think To Look For In Legal AI
When a law firm evaluates a legal AI tool, the questions are almost always about the things you can see in a demo. How fast is it? Do the citations look right? Can it draft something usable in under a minute? These are fair questions but not what I would lead with. I...
This Biglaw Partner Got A Crash Course In Comedy From Larry David
Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day. [It was] pretty, pretty, pretty good. The obvious highlight was getting to see firsthand how true experts in their field approach comedy and storytelling. Quite frankly, I thought I was simply going to be an...
Enterprise AI Is Quietly Creating Its Own Standard Contract
One of the things I’ve noticed over the years is that every major technology shift eventually develops its own recognizable contract. It doesn’t happen overnight. In the early days, every agreement feels different because vendors are still figuring out how to describe...
Skadden Said Its Trump Deal Raised No Ethical Issues. Intel’s Shareholders Disagree.
There is a version of the Biglaw capitulation story where the nine firms that bent a knee to Donald Trump did some pro bono work on behalf of veterans, ate a news cycle, and moved on. That is the version the firms have been selling since jump, but the reality is quite...
The Unexpected Place You Can Improve Your 1L Grades
Ed. Note: Welcome to our daily feature Trivia Question of the Day! According to a recent report, JD-Next’s 1L Reality Check published by Aspen Publishing, what percentage of 1Ls who reported they exercise multiple times a week say their grades are better than...
Trump Must Disclose Financial Records in BBC Suit, Miami Judge Rules
"We know that the evidence lies within the trust,” lead British Broadcasting Corporation attorney Charles Tobin, partner at Ballard Spahr, said in a Tuesday discovery hearing. "We know that the evidence lies within the trust,” lead British Broadcasting...
Skadden’s Deal with Trump and Work for Intel Deal Gets Scrutinized by Democratic Lawmakers
Several Democratic lawmakers sent a letter on Tuesday to Skadden, requesting the firm to respond to questions related to its work for Intel and apparent work for the Commerce Department following its deal with the Trump administration. Several Democratic...
Rare In-Camera Requests Pile Up in Chicago Steakhouse Investor Dispute
“You all are the extreme outlier," Circuit Court of Cook County Judge Alison Conlon said, adding that no other party has ever asked her for an in-camera review. “You all are the extreme outlier," Circuit Court of Cook County Judge Alison Conlon said, adding that...
The Fab Firm Guide to Law Practice Management, Inspired by The Beatles
When Paul McCartney released “The Boys of Dungeon Lane," Teddy Snyder began wondering how the Beatles’ oeuvre might help your law practice. Enjoy this "Fab Firm" guide to law practice management, inspired by some favorite Beatles songs. The post The Fab Firm Guide to...
Connecticut Parents Receive State’s Largest-Ever Wrongful Death Settlement for Their 5-Year-Old Son
Chantel T. Pierre Louis and D'Meza Shultz Pierre Louis claimed their son Romeo D. Pierre Louis's death in April 2022 was preventable and resulted from inadequate supervision during outdoor recess. Chantel T. Pierre Louis and D'Meza Shultz Pierre Louis claimed...
The Courts and the Country: A Conversation Between Judge Mustafa Kasubhai and Yusuf Zakir
In this conversation, U.S. District Court Judge Mustafa Kasubhai for the District of Oregon and Yusuf Zakir, chief talent and inclusion officer at Davis Wright Tremaine, discuss the importance of the courts and their role shaping the national fabric. In this...
Biglaw May Want To Break Up With The Billable Hour Thanks To AI
Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day. We all need to collectively move on in our thinking to get alternative fee arrangements working in the right way. — Sunny Mann, global chair of Baker McKenzie, in comments given during a recent appearance on...
DOJ Wants Susman Godfrey Kicked Off The ABA’s Case Because DOJ Subpoenaed Susman Godfrey
The Justice Department has decided that the problem with the ABA’s lawsuit over the Biglaw executive orders is the lawyers bringing it. The ABA sued the administration over the Trump administration’s campaign of executive orders — stripping disfavored firms of...
SCOTUS To Decide If Cops Can Steal 82-Year-Old’s Plane Over Passenger’s Bud Lights
The Supreme Court just took a new case to explore the nature of cruel and unusual punishment. Don’t worry, it’s not about halting a state’s plan to execute a scientifically exonerated man by dunking him in a chamber of sharks — which is presumably in the planning...
Harvard Law Student Has Already Won Nearly $350K On Jeopardy!
Law school is pretty expensive. One of the latest ways to deal with that is to become extremely good at Jeopardy!. We have a new reigning law student champion after Jamie Ding’s amazing $882,605 haul on the show this past spring. Now it’s Caleb Groen’s turn. The...
The Ways That Congress Should Regulate Itself
Members of Congress should not be permitted to profit from inside information. If a member of Congress learns material, nonpublic information about a company, the member is forbidden to trade in that company’s securities. Why can’t Congress pass that law? Shall we...
To Help Heroin Trafficker Keep His Gun, Fifth Circuit Considers ‘What If We Got Rid Of All Federal Laws?’
Every few years, in between collecting luxury gifts and vacations, Justice Thomas slaps together a concurrence literally no other justice would even consider as a prank, explaining that some load-bearing pillar of constitutional order is, on closer inspection,...
Angela Madathil Is Right: The Best In-House Lawyers Aren’t Compliance Police. They’re Translators.
Over the years, I’ve noticed something interesting. The compliance conversations that drag on for weeks rarely end because lawyers finally found the right legal argument. They end because someone finally explained the problem in a way the business understood. I...
Legal Ethics Roundup: SCOTUS Justices Testify About Enforceable Ethics, 20 AGs Want Clark Discipline Challenge Dismissed, Law Democratized On LawNext & More
Ed. note: Please welcome Renee Knake Jefferson back to the pages of Above the Law. Subscribe to her Substack, Legal Ethics Roundup, here. Welcome to what captivates, haunts, inspires, and surprises me every week in the world of legal ethics. Happy Monday! As promised...