Expert Analysis

• Merger Proposals Reflect Agency Leaders' Antitrust Principles

  

  Attorneys at Covington trace the recently proposed Hart-Scott-Rodino and merger guidelines changes to certain foundational concerns of the Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division leadership, including issues related to concentration associated with horizontal and vertical mergers.

• The Basics Of Being A Knowledge Management Attorney

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  Michael Lehet at Ogletree Deakins discusses the role of knowledge management attorneys at law firms, the common tasks they perform and practical tips for lawyers who may be considering becoming one.

• Challenging Standing In Antitrust Classes: The Uninjured

  

  In virtually every antitrust class action, parties at the certification phase disagree about whether the proposed class includes uninjured members, but the goals of Rule 23 and judicial economy are best served by synthesizing two distinct approaches circuit courts take on this issue, say Michael Hamburger and Holly Tao at White & Case.

• What Big Tobacco's Cannabis Investments Mean For Market

  

  The tobacco industry appears to be shoring up investments in the cannabis market, most recently with Philip Morris’ purchase of an Israeli cannabis tech company, pointing to a bright future for vaped and noncombustible products, and signaling that marijuana rescheduling may be on the horizon, say Slates Veazey and Whitt Steineker at Bradley Arant.

• To Hire And Keep Top Talent, Think Beyond Compensation

  

  Firms seeking to appeal to sophisticated clients and top-level partners should promote mentorship, ensure that attorneys from diverse backgrounds feel valued, and clarify policies about at-home work, says Patrick Moya at Quaero Group.

• How Merger Review Overhaul Could Affect Health Industry

  

  For those in the health care industry considering growth and expansion strategies, the antitrust agencies' recent proposals for new Hart-Scott-Rodino rules and more complex merger guidelines will increase deal timelines, the merging parties' burden, and overall uncertainty and potential antitrust risk as to the outcome, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

• More States Should Join Effort To Close Legal Services Gap

  

  Colorado is the most recent state to allow other types of legal providers, not just attorneys, to offer specific services in certain circumstances — and more states should rethink the century-old assumptions that shape our current regulatory rules, say Natalie Anne Knowlton and Janet Drobinske at the University of Denver.

• Identifying Trends And Tips In Litigation Financing Disclosure

  

  Growing interest and controversy in litigation financing raise several salient concerns, but exploring recent compelled disclosure trends from courts around the country can help practitioners further their clients' interests, say Sean Callagy and Samuel Sokolsky at Arnold & Porter.

• Bid Protest Spotlight: Personnel Loss, Conflicts, Timeliness

  

  In this month's bid protest roundup, Locke Bell at MoFo highlights recent decisions from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the U.S. Government Accountability Office, addressing an offeror's loss of key personnel, organizational conflicts of interest arising out of reliance on former government employees in preparing a bid, and protest timeliness when no debriefing is required.

• Congress Needs Better Health Care Fraud Data From DOD

  

  The U.S. Department of Defense does not collect enough data to prevent health care and service contractor fraud and waste, so Congress should enact benchmarks that the DOD must meet when gathering and reporting data, enabling lawmakers to make better-informed decisions about defense appropriations, says Jessica Lehman at Verizon.

• The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Elrod On 'Jury Duty'

  

  Though the mockumentary series “Jury Duty” features purposely outrageous characters, it offers a solemn lesson about the simple but brilliant design of the right to trial by jury, with an unwitting protagonist who even John Adams may have welcomed as an impartial foreperson, says Fifth Circuit Judge Jennifer Elrod.

• 4 Business-Building Strategies For Introvert Attorneys

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  Introverted lawyers can build client bases to rival their extroverted peers’ by adapting time-tested strategies for business development that can work for any personality — such as claiming a niche, networking for maximum impact, drawing on existing contacts and more, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

• 3 Ways Justices' Disclosure Defenses Miss The Ethical Point

  

  The rule-bound interpretation of financial disclosures preferred by U.S. Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas — demonstrated in their respective statements defending their failure to disclose gifts from billionaires — show that they do not understand the ethical aspects of the public's concern, says Jim Moliterno at the Washington and Lee University School of Law.