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Expert Analysis

• Series

  Fixing Up Cars Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  From problem-solving to patience and adaptability to organization, the skills developed working under the hood of a car directly translate to being a more effective lawyer, says Christopher Mdeway at Kaufman Dolowich.

• Making The Pitch To Grow Your Company's Legal Team

  

  In a compressed economy, convincing the C-suite to invest in additional legal talent can be a herculean task, but a convincing pitch — supported by metrics and cost analyses — may help in-house counsel justify the growth of their team, say Elizabeth Smith and Roger Garceau at Major Lindsey.

• Compliance Lessons From Raytheon's FCPA Settlement

  

  A recent Foreign Corrupt Practices Act action involving aerospace and defense company Raytheon underscores the importance of risk management related to retaining and overseeing third parties — especially in higher-risk jurisdictions — and the promotion of a companywide culture of compliance, say attorneys at Debevoise.

• Ledbetter's Legacy Shines In 2024 Equal Pay Law Updates

  

  The federal Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act turned 15 this year, and its namesake's legacy is likely to endure in 2025 and beyond, as demonstrated by 2024's state- and local-level progress on pay equity, as well as several rulings from federal appellate courts, say attorneys at Fisher Phillips.

• Gov't Scrutiny Of Workplace Chat Apps Set To Keep Growing

  

  The incoming Trump administration and Republican majorities in Congress are poised to open numerous investigations that include increasing demands for entities to produce communications from workplace chat apps, so companies must evaluate their usage and retention policies, say attorneys at Orrick.

• When US Privilege Law Applies To Docs Made Outside The US

  

  As globalization manifests itself in disputes over foreign-created documents, a California federal court’s recent trademark decision illustrates nuances of both U.S. privilege frameworks and foreign evidentiary protections that attorneys must increasingly bear in mind, say attorneys at Hunton.

• Notable 2024 Trademark Cases And What To Watch In 2025

  

  Emerging disputes between established tech giants and smaller trademark holders promise to test the boundaries of trademark protection in 2025, following a 2024 marked with disputes in areas ranging from cybersquatting to geographic marks, says Danner Kline at Bradley Arant.

• 'Minimal Participant' Bar Is Tough To Clear For Whistleblowers

  

  Under the U.S. Department of Justice’s corporate whistleblower pilot program, would-be whistleblowers will find it tough to show that they only minimally participated in criminal misconduct while still providing material information, but sentencing precedent shows how they might prove their eligibility for an award, say attorneys at MoloLamken.

• What 2024 Trends In Marketing, Comms Hiring Mean For 2025

  

  The state of hiring in legal industry marketing, business development and communications over the past 12 months was marked by a number of trends — from changes in the C-suite to lateral move challenges — providing clues for what’s to come in the year ahead, says Ben Curle at Ambition.

• 5 Notable Anti-Money Laundering Actions From 2024

  

  Regulators' renewed interest in anti-money laundering programs in 2024 led to numerous enforcement actions and individual prosecutions in industries like banking, cryptocurrency and gaming, including the blockbuster TD Bank settlement and investigations of casinos in Nevada, says Michael Beckwith at Dickinson Wright.

• Wage Whiplash: Surviving A Compliance Roller Coaster

  

  As the transition to the Trump administration causes mounting uncertainty about federal wage and hour policies, employers can transform compliance challenges into opportunities for resilience and growth by taking key steps to comply with stricter state and local requirements, says Lee Jacobs at Barclay Damon.

• Series

  Group Running Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  The combination of physical fitness and community connection derived from running with a group of business leaders has, among other things, helped me to stay grounded, improve my communication skills, and develop a deeper empathy for clients and colleagues, says Jessica Shpall Rosen at Greenwald Doherty.

• Marketing Messages Matter In State AG Consumer Protection

  

  Attorneys general interpret marketing claims far more broadly than many companies may realize, so to mitigate potential risk, businesses should be vigilant about all consumer messaging, including communications that may not traditionally be considered advertising in the colloquial sense, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

• 7th Circ. Ruling Muddies Split On Trade Secret Damages

  

  The Seventh Circuit's recent endorsement in Motorola v. Hytera of a Second Circuit limit on avoided-cost damages under the Defend Trade Secrets Act contradicts even its own precedents, and will further confuse the scope of a developing circuit conflict that the U.S. Supreme Court has already twice declined to resolve, says Jordan Rice at MoloLamken.

• Opinion

  6 Changes I Would Make If I Ran A Law School

  

  Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner identifies several key issues plaguing law schools and discusses potential solutions, such as opting out of the rankings game and mandating courses in basic writing skills.