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Expert Analysis

• Series

  Adapting To Private Practice: From Fed. Prosecutor To BigLaw

  

  Making the jump from government to private practice is no small feat, but, based on my experience transitioning to a business-driven environment after 15 years as an assistant U.S. attorney, it can be incredibly rewarding and help you become a more versatile lawyer, says Michael Beckwith at Dickinson Wright.

• Jurisdiction Argument In USAID Dissent Is Up For Debate

  

  A dissent refuting the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent order directing the U.S. Agency for International Development to pay $2 billion in frozen foreign aid argued that claims relating to already-completed government contract work belong in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims – answering an important question, but with a debatable conclusion, says Steven Gordon at Holland & Knight.

• Firms Still Have Lateral Market Advantage, But Risks Persist

  

  Partner and associate mobility data from the fourth quarter of 2024 shows that we’re in a new, stable era of lateral hiring where firms have the edge, but leaders should proceed cautiously, looking beyond expected revenue and compensation analyses for potential risks, say Julie Henson and Greg Hamman at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.

• Opinion

  We Must Allow Judges To Use Their Independent Judgment

  

  As two recent cases show, the ability of judges to access their independent judgment crucially enables courts to exercise the discretion needed to reach the right outcome based on the unique facts within the law, says John Siffert at Lankler Siffert & Wohl.

• Deportation Flights May End Up A Legal And Strategic Error

  

  Officials in the Trump administration could face criminal contempt charges if a D.C. judge finds that they flouted his orders last weekend to halt deportation flights to El Salvador, which could ultimately make mass deportations more difficult — and proving noncompliance a self-defeating strategy, says Ethan Greenberg at Anderson Kill.

• Mitigating The Risk Of Interacting With A Designated Cartel

  

  There are steps companies doing business in Latin America should take to mitigate risks associated with the Trump administration's designation of several cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and the terrorism statute's material-support provisions, which may render seemingly legitimate transactions criminal, say attorneys at Covington.

• Series

  Performing Stand-Up Comedy Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Whether I’m delivering a punchline on stage or a closing argument in court, balancing stand-up comedy performances and my legal career has demonstrated that the keys to success in both endeavors include reading the room, landing the right timing and making an impact, says attorney Rebecca Palmer.

• Series

  Adapting To Private Practice: From SEC To BigLaw

  

  As I adjusted to the multifaceted workflow of a BigLaw firm after leaving the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, working side by side with new colleagues on complex matters proved the fastest way to build a deep rapport and demonstrate my value, says Jennifer Lee at Jenner & Block.

• Making The Case For Rest In The Legal Profession

  

  For too long, a culture of overwork has plagued the legal profession, but research shows that attorneys need rest to perform optimally and sustainably, so legal organizations and individuals must implement strategies that allow for restoration, says Marissa Alert at MDA Wellness, Carol Ross-Burnett at CRB Global, and Denise Robinson at The Still Center.

• 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.

• 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.

• Implementation, Constitutional Issues With Birthright Order

  

  President Donald Trump's executive order reinterpreting the 14th Amendment's birthright citizenship clause presents unavoidable administrative problems and raises serious constitutional concerns about the validity of many existing federal laws and regulations, says Eric Schnapper at the University of Washington School of Law.

• 6th Circ. Ruling Paves Path Out Of Loper Bright 'Twilight Zone'

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright ruling created a twilight zone between express statutory delegations that trigger agency deference and implicit ones that do not, but the Sixth Circuit’s recent ruling in Moctezuma-Reyes v. Garland crafted a two-part test for resolving cases within this gray area, say attorneys at Wiley.

• Cos. Should Prepare For Mexican Payments Surveillance Tool

  

  The recent designation of six Mexican cartels as "specially designated global terrorists" will allow the Treasury Department to scrutinize nearly any Mexico-related payment through its Terrorist Finance Tracking Program — a rigorous evaluation for which even sophisticated sanctions compliance programs are not prepared, says Jeremy Paner at Hughes Hubbard.

• Steps For Federal Grantees Affected By Stop-Work Orders

  

  Broad changes in federal financial assistance programs are on the horizon, and organizations that may receive a stop-work order from a federal agency must prepare to be vigilant and nimble in a highly uncertain legal landscape, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.