Keep your finger on the legal world's pulse

ABA Journal reports on how LA lawyers have been affected by the wildfires devastating parts of the city. It profiles individuals such as Ali Moghaddas, a partner with Edelson, who said the firm has been receiving calls for help and advises people affected by the disaster to first find a safe location then call their insurers to learn more about coverage. Meanwhile firms such as Hahn & Hahn in Pasadena law firm have offered offices as refuges for team members who require them. Christianne Kerns, its CEO and managing partner, noted that the majority of the firm has received evacuation orders, while it is contributing to a fire relief fund and is considering how to set up a task force to assist those with legal issues resulting from the conflagrations.

 

ABA Journal

The 2025 Report on the State of the U.S. Legal Market has found that changes to the “law firm talent model” represent a negative development for associates. The report, produced by Thomson Reuters and the Center on Ethics and the Legal Profession at Georgetown Law., states that “The composition of law firms is evolving, with a shift towards more experienced lateral hires, growth in two-tier partner structures, and a reduction in junior associate hiring," with firms cutting back on associate hiring and summer associate programs, while also hiring fewer equity partners and increasing the numbers of nonequity partners.

 

ABA Journal

Fani T. Willis, the district attorney for Fulton County, Georgia, has petitioned the state’s Supreme Court to reinstate her as the prosecutor in the election interference case involving President-elect Donald J. Trump. The petition follows a ruling by the Georgia Court of Appeals that disqualified her and her office from continuing the case, citing concerns about an appearance of impropriety due to her past romantic relationship with a lawyer she hired for the prosecution. This recent decision by the appellate court reversed a trial court's ruling, which had allowed Willis to continue handling the case. In her filing, Willis argues that no Georgia court has ever disqualified a district attorney based on the appearance of impropriety alone, without a concrete conflict of interest. She contends that the trial court was correct in allowing her to remain on the case, asserting that there is no substantial reason for her disqualification. The legal battle marks a critical point for Willis, as the case stems from a significant investigation she began nearly four years ago into efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia.

 

The New York Times

Apple has reassured users about its Siri voice assistant's privacy practices following its $95m settlement of a lawsuit. The company clarified that it has never sold or used Siri data for advertising, stating: “we have never used Siri data to build marketing profiles, never made it available for advertising, and never sold it to anyone for any purpose.” The tech giant emphasized that Siri processes data on-device when possible, and any server interactions are not linked to a user's account. Additionally, Apple stated that it only retains audio recordings if users opt in to improve Siri, with recordings used solely for this purpose. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit alleged that Siri was activated unintentionally and went on to share confidential or private discussions with Apple.

 

Wall Street Journal

A group of authors has alleged that Facebook and Instagram owner Meta Platforms train its artificial intelligence systems by using pirated versions of copyrighted books with the knowledge of CEO Mark Zuckerberg. A number of writers including Ta-Nehisi Coates and comedian Sarah Silverman are suing Meta for copyright infringement, alleging that internal documents produced by the company reveal that it was aware the works were pirated.

 

Reuters

Latham & Watkins has advised the arrangers on the financing for CVC Capital Partners' partnership with CompuGroup Medical, a leading e-health provider, and GT1 Vermögensverwaltung GmbH, its majority shareholder. The partnership will proceed if a CVC-controlled holding company successfully completes a voluntary public tender offer for CompuGroup Medical shares at €22.00 per share in cash, representing a 51.1% premium over the volume-weighted average price from the last three months.

 

Legal Desire

KPMG has sought an alternative business license in Arizona under which a subsidiary of the firm would be permitted to engage in legal work, with industry experts expecting rival companies to follow its example. Mike McNamara, CEO and partner with Baretz & Brunelle and former CEO of commented: "There are questions as to what does this really mean for the ABA and what is it going to mean for [Rule] 5.4 as we go forward. Will there be a shift within the ABA to better embrace this?". A spokesperson for the American Bar Association spokesperson said that it does not currently have a position on KPMG's application, while retired attorney and legal news blogger Stephen Embry remarked: "I wouldn't be surprised if Deloitte didn't make a move just because they seem to have been sort of significant players at the fringes of the legal marketplace."

 

Law.com

Sullivan & Cromwell now expects workers to be in the office five days a week, after the firm began requiring full attendance late last year. The firm has updated its office manual to reflect its stance on office attendance. It states: “Absent extraordinary general circumstances such as closure of the office due to severe weather or individual circumstances such as sudden illness of a child, it is expected that lawyers will typically work from the office, not home, during normal business hours." This comes as major firms such as JPMorgan Chase and Amazon prepare to require five days of weekly attendance from their own corporate employees.

 

Law.com

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has sued credit rating firm Experian for failing consumers who challenge the accuracy of consumer credit files. CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said that "Credit reporting errors can have serious consequences for a family's finances and it is critical that credit reporting giants follow the law." Experian described the lawsuit as "completely without merit," continuing: "Our legal position is strong, we will defend it vigorously and are confident we will prevail." Experian would be required to pay redress to harmed consumers, forfeit gains made a result of alleged wrongdoing and pay a fine under the legal action.

 

Reuters

Mike Gallagher, head of defense for Palantir Technologies and former chairman of the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, writes in the Wall Street Journal on the ongoing debate over TikTok in the U.S., noting that amid continuing calls to ban the Chinese-owned app, "The best outcome for TikTok would be a sale to an owner that isn’t connected to a foreign adversary." He claims that a number of potential buyers are ready to acquire the firm from Chinese owner Bytedance, and that the aim of proposed regulations is to allow Americans to use the app safely, rather than to stop them using it.

 

Wall Street Journal

Tesla Inc. has successfully dismissed a discrimination lawsuit filed by a former Black human resources business partner after she could not prove that her arbitration agreement was unenforceable. The US District Court for the Central District of California ruled that the former employee's claim of being exempt from arbitration under the Federal Arbitration Act was unfounded, stating she provided “absolutely no basis” for her argument. The court clarified that the FAA exception is narrow and does not apply simply because Tesla sells electric vehicles across the US.

 

Bloomberg Law

Donald Trump could be sentenced after being convicted on criminal charges involving hush money paid to an adult film star, after Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts and fellow conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett joined the court's three liberal justices in forming a majority to Mr Trump's last-minute bid to prevent sentencing. The court's order stated: "First, the alleged evidentiary violations at president-elect Trump's state-court trial can be addressed in the ordinary course on appeal. Second, the burden that sentencing will impose on the president-elect's responsibilities is relatively insubstantial in light of the trial court's stated intent to impose a sentence of 'unconditional discharge' after a brief virtual hearing."

 

Reuters

Technology industry group the Information Technology Industry Council has called on the government not to issue a rule controlling global access to AI chips. The group's CEO Jason Oxman wrote to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo saying that "Rushing a consequential and complex rule to completion could have significant adverse consequences," and warning that "the potential risks to U.S. global leadership in AI are real and should be taken seriously." Controls being considered by the government should be issued as proposed rulemaking instead of as a rule, the group believes, citing geopolitical and economic implications.

 

Reuters

Shook, Hardy & Bacon has announced the closure of its London office, part of a strategic realignment amid a trend of U.S. law firms reassessing their presence in the UK capital. The firm, which has over 520 lawyers across 18 U.S. locations, has been winding down its UK operations for several months. The decision followed a thorough assessment of business operations, with partners Sarah Croft and Simon Castley moving to CMS. The firm reported revenues of $459.5m in the 2023 financial year, but average profit per equity partner decreased by 5% to $1.3m. Shook, Hardy & Bacon is not alone; other U.S. firms like Armstrong Teasdale and Vinson & Elkins have also announced closures in London, reflecting a broader reassessment of international growth plans and the impact of economic uncertainty.

 

LawFuel

The FT reports that a number of liberal Americans are considering relocating to the UK in the wake of Donald Trump’s election victory, according to UK immigration lawyers. 

 

Financial Times