Best Practices in Client Relationship Skills
There are key activities that lawyers can engage in to promote the health of existing client interactions. All of these activities can be categorized into one of three stages: 1) establishing the relationship; 2) building the relationship; and 3) proliferating the relationship.
Let the Hirer Beware
With so many lawyers up for grabs these days, firms have enticing opportunities to bring aboard top talent, sometimes at bargain prices. But let the hirer beware. Lateral hiring isn't without risk, and more lateral hiring means more exposure to claims alleging malpractice and other failings.
Deciphering SEC Enforcement and Its Impact on e-Discovery
In October 2008, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the first time made public its Enforcement Manual, the agency's internal reference guide for Enforcement Division staff in the investigation of potential violations of the federal securities laws. Law firms and corporations involved in matters before the SEC will find it a valuable resource to aid their understanding of SEC operations.
Insurance for Data Security Breaches And Consumer Privacy Claims
Every other day we read about some new data security breach or proposal to regulate the use of consumer's private data. However, there is good news too: Most courts are intolerant of privacy claims brought by plaintiffs who have suffered no actual damage, and most companies have insurance for privacy claims without knowing it.
IP's Impact on M&A and Corporate Values
In this far-ranging interview, Susan Perng Pan, Washington, DC-based patent attorney and partner of the intellectual property firm SUGHRUE MION, PLLC, discusses best practices and strategies for in-house counsel to assess, protect, and evaluate the worth of their portfolios, both domestically and globally.
Quarterly State Compliance Review
This edition of the Quarterly State Compliance Review looks at legislation of interest to corporate lawyers that went into effect from May 1 through July 1. It also examines recent decisions of interest from the courts of Delaware, Texas, and Washington.
Features
Federal Courts Adopt Narrow Constructions of Sarbanes-Oxley Legislation
A look at recent Federal Court decisions interpreting section 304 and section 1514A(a)(1) of SOX. These rulings may provide insight into how Federal Courts will apply any broad powers granted by a looming round of legislation.
Features
Ex-Heller Employees Sue Former Partners
Former employees of Heller Ehrman sued at least 179 former partners in April, demanding they fork over $32 million for the largest group of creditors in the defunct firm's bankruptcy. This article discusses the suit.
Managing Stressed Employees in Difficult Economic Times
With an unemployment rate of 8.5% and an underemployment rate exceeding 14%, the workplace can be a very stressful environment. This article presents a discussion on how to manage these stressed employees.
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MOST POPULAR STORIES
- Protecting Innovation in the Cyber World from Patent TrollsWith trillions of dollars to keep watch over, the last thing we need is the distraction of costly litigation brought on by patent assertion entities (PAEs or "patent trolls"), companies that don't make any products but instead seek royalties by asserting their patents against those who do make products.Read More ›
- Private Equity Valuation: A Significant DecisionInsiders (and others) in the private equity business are accustomed to seeing a good deal of discussion ' academic and trade ' on the question of the appropriate methods of valuing private equity positions and securities which are otherwise illiquid. An interesting recent decision in the Southern District has been brought to our attention. The case is <i>In Re Allied Capital Corp.</i>, CCH Fed. SEC L. Rep. 92411 (US DC, S.D.N.Y., Apr. 25, 2003). Judge Lynch's decision is well written, the Judge reviewing a motion to dismiss by a business development company, Allied Capital, against a strike suit claiming that Allied's method of valuing its portfolio failed adequately to account for i) conditions at the companies themselves and ii) market conditions. The complaint appears to be, as is often the case, slap dash, content to point out that Allied revalued some of its positions, marking them down for a variety of reasons, and the stock price went down - all this, in the view of plaintiff's counsel, amounting to violations of Rule 10b-5.Read More ›
- Meet the Lawyer Working on Inclusion Rider LanguageAt the Oscars in March, Best Actress winner Frances McDormand made “inclusion rider” go viral. But Kalpana Kotagal, a partner at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll had already worked for months to write the language for such provisions. Kotagal was developing legal language for contract provisions that Hollywood's elite could use to require studios and other partners to employ diverse workers on set.Read More ›
- Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar InvestigationsThis article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.Read More ›
- The DOJ Goes Phishing: The Rise of False Claims Act Cybersecurity LitigationWhile the DOJ Civil Cyber-Fraud Initiative is still in its early stages and cybersecurity regulations are evolving, whistleblower plaintiffs have already begun leveraging the FCA to pursue alleged noncompliance with government cybersecurity requirements.Read More ›