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Expert Analysis

• Series

  Playing Guitar Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Being a lawyer not only requires logic and hard work, but also belief, emotion, situational awareness and lots of natural energy — playing guitar enhances all of these qualities, increasing my capacity to do my best work, says Kosta Stojilkovic at Wilkinson Stekloff.

• Adapting To PTAB's Reembracing Of Discretionary Denials

  

  Recent guidance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office marks a swing back toward procedural discretion in Patent Trial and Appeal Board trial institution decisions, bringing unpredictability but also opportunities for drafting petitions, and making and responding to discretionary denial arguments, says Taylor Stemler at Merchant & Gould.

• Crisis Management Lessons From The Parenting Playbook

  

  The parenting skills we use to help our kids through challenges — like rehearsing for stressful situations, modeling confidence and taking time to reset our emotions — can also teach us the fundamentals of leading clients through a corporate crisis, say Deborah Solmor at the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation and Cara Peterman at Alston & Bird.

• 4 Ways To Leverage A Jury's Underdog Perceptions

  

  Counsel should consider how common factors that speak to their client's size, power, past challenges and alignment with jurors can be presented to try and paint their client as a sympathetic underdog, says Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies.

• 4 Legislative Proposals Reflect Growing Scrutiny Of Pharma IP

  

  Bipartisan legislative momentum in Congress, including a recent package of bills targeting exclusivity strategies that delay generic and biosimilar competition, signals growing scrutiny of life sciences intellectual property strategies, so biologics companies and investors must pay attention to new strategic, compliance and litigation risks, says Olga Berson at Thompson Coburn.

• Why Hiring Former Jurors As Consultants Can Be Risky

  

  The defense team's decision to hire former juror Victoria George in the high-profile retrial of Karen Read shines a spotlight on this controversial strategy, which raises important legal, ethical and tactical questions despite not being explicitly prohibited, says Nikoleta Despodova at ND Litigation.

• Series

  Adapting To Private Practice: From NY Fed To BigLaw

  

  While the move to private practice brings a learning curve, it also brings chances to learn new skills and grow your network, requiring a clear understanding of how your skills can complement and contribute to a firm's existing practice, and where you can add new value, says Meghann Donahue at Covington.

• What Businesses Need To Know About EU Design Law Reform

  

  Recent reforms to European Union design protection law will broaden the scope of what constitutes protected designs and products, likely creating new opportunities and considerations for businesses operating within the EU or those engaging with its markets, say lawyers at Foley & Lardner.

• Berry Ruling Shows Why Plant IP Suits Can Be Thorny

  

  A California federal court's recent decision in Driscoll's v. California Berry Cultivars illustrates that while a path exists for asserting U.S. plant patent rights against extraterritorial breeders, it can be difficult to prove infringement based on importation of plant parts, say Travis Bliss and Stephany Small at Panitch Schwarze.

• 7 Considerations For Conducting Drug Clinical Trials Abroad

  

  With continuing cuts to U.S. Food and Drug Administration staffing motivating some pharmaceutical companies to consider developing drugs abroad, it's important to understand the additional risks and compliance requirements associated with conducting clinical studies in other countries, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• Top 3 Litigation Finance Deal-Killers, And How To Avoid Them

  

  Like all transactions, litigation finance deals can sometimes collapse, but understanding the most common reasons for failure, including a lack of trust or a misunderstanding of deal terms, can help both parties avoid problems, say Rebecca Berrebi at Avenue 33 and Boris Ziser at Schulte Roth.

• Best Practices For Companies Integrating Existing IP With AI

  

  Some copyright owners are exploring how they can make new content by combining their existing intellectual property assets with generative artificial intelligence, and although these initiatives can serve multiple business goals, those considering such practices should be aware they are entering largely uncharted waters, says Josh Weigensberg at Pryor Cashman.

• How Attys Can Use A Therapy Model To Help Triggered Clients

  

  Attorneys can lean on key principles from a psychotherapeutic paradigm known as the "Internal Family Systems" model to help manage triggered clients and get settlement negotiations back on track, says Jennifer Gibbs at Zelle.

• How Athletes Can Protect Their Signature Celebrations As IP

  

  As copyright and trademark law adapts to short-form choreography and dynamic media, athletes and their business partners have new tools to protect the intellectual property embedded in their unique dances, poses and celebrations, say attorneys at Debevoise.

• Opinion

  Third-Party Funding Transparency Is Key In Patent Suits

  

  Third-party litigation funding is a growing industry that could benefit from enhanced disclosure standards to ensure transparency, as challenges in obtaining discovery of such funding can complicate patent litigation against nonpracticing entities, say attorneys at Skadden.