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Expert Analysis

• Opinion

  It's Time To Fix The SEC's Pay-To-Play Rule

  

  Nearly 15 years after its adoption, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's pay-to-play rule is not working as intended — a notion recently echoed by SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce — and the commission should reconsider the strict liability standard, raise the campaign contribution limits and remove the look-back provision, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

• Opinion

  CPSC's Amazon Ruling Is A Win For Safety, Accountability

  

  A recent U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission order classifying Amazon.com as a distributor, and requiring it to comply with notice, recall, refund and remediation obligations for defective products, is a major victory for consumer safety — and for attorneys pursuing product liability claims against major online retailers, says Donald Fountain at Clark Fountain.

• Cross-Border Lessons In Using Hague Evidence Convention

  

  Recent case law demonstrates that securing evidence located abroad requires a strategic approach, including utilization of the Hague Evidence Convention and preparation to justify your chosen evidence-gathering path, say attorneys at Fish & Richardson.

• 4 Ways Women Attorneys Can Build A Legal Legacy

  

  This Women’s History Month, women attorneys should consider what small, day-to-day actions they can take to help leave a lasting impact for future generations, even if it means mentoring one person or taking 10 minutes to make a plan, says Jackie Prester, a former shareholder at Baker Donelson.

• UK Refusal Of US Extradition Request May Set New Standard

  

  The recent U.K. Supreme Court ruling in El-Khouri v. U.S., denying a U.S. extradition request, overturns a long-held precedent and narrows how U.K. courts must decide such requests, potentially signaling a broader reevaluation of U.K. extradition law, say lawyers at Dechert and Kingsley Napley.

• Navigating The Growing Thicket Of 'Right To Repair' Laws

  

  An emerging patchwork of state laws on the right to repair creates tensions with traditional intellectual property and competition principles, so manufacturers should plan proactively for legal disputes and minimize potential for rival third-party repairs to weaponize state laws, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

• Justices' Revival Ruling In Bias Suit Exceeds Procedural Issue

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Waetzig v. Halliburton allowed the plaintiff in an age discrimination lawsuit to move to reopen his case after arbitration, but the seemingly straightforward decision on a procedural issue raises complex questions for employment law practitioners, says Christopher Sakauye at Dykema.

• Why A Rare SEC Dismissal May Not Reflect A New Approach

  

  While the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's pending dismissal of its case against Silver Point is remarkable to the extent that it reflects a novel repudiation of a decision made during the prior commission, a deeper look suggests it may not represent a shift in policy approach, say attorneys at Weil.

• Unpacking First Consumer Claim Under Wash. Health Data Act

  

  The first consumer class action claim filed under Washington's My Health My Data Act, Maxwell v. Amazon.com, may answer questions counsel have been contending with since the law was introduced almost a year ago, if the court takes the opportunity to interpret some of more opaque language, say attorneys at Polsinelli.

• Deficiency Trends In National Futures Association Exams

  

  A recent notice from the National Futures Association outlining the most common deficiencies uncovered during exams gives member firms an opportunity to review prior guidance, particularly regarding the hot topic of implementing procedures governing the use of outsourced service providers, say attorneys at Akin.

• A Judge's Pointers For Adding Spice To Dry Legal Writing

  

  U.S. District Judge Fred Biery shares a few key lessons about how to go against the grain of the legal writing tradition by adding color to bland judicial opinions, such as by telling a human story and injecting literary devices where possible.

• Mastering The Fundamentals Of Life Sciences Due Diligence

  

  As life sciences transactions continue to gain tremendous momentum, companies participating in these transactions must conduct effective and strategic regulatory due diligence, which involves extensive amounts of information and varies by manifold factors, says Anna Zhao at GunnerCooke.

• A Close-Up Look At DOJ's Challenge To HPE-Juniper Deal

  

  The outcome of the Justice Department's challenge to Hewlett Packard Enterprise's proposed $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks will likely hinge on several key issues, including market dynamics and shares, internal documents, and questions about innovation and customer harm, say attorneys at McDermott.

• Why NY May Want To Reconsider Its LLC Transparency Law

  

  Against the backdrop of the myriad challenges to the federal Corporate Transparency Act, it may be prudent for New York to reconsider its adoption of the LLC Transparency Act, since it's unclear whether the Empire State's "baby-CTA" statute is still necessary or was passed prematurely, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

• Pleading Rules At Stake In High Court Hamas Banking Case

  

  While a case between victims of Hamas terrorist attacks and a Lebanese bank, recently argued before the U.S. Supreme Court, appears to ask a narrow question of which civil procedure rules apply to requests to reopen final judgments, how the justices rule could drastically change pleading strategies for future plaintiffs, say attorneys at Dorsey & Whitney.