Pennsylvania Pulse

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    Why High-Profile GC Joined Little Group With Big Plans

    Like the South Street Seaport she represents, general counsel Lucy Fato has evolved over the past three decades through a series of high-profile corporate challenges to her current job of building a law department for a new company that holds a hodgepodge of businesses and some ambitious plans.

  • New NJ Senator Seeks Postelection Vote On 3rd Circ. Nominee

    New Jersey's new U.S. senator, freshly sworn-in Democrat George Helmy, hopes the Senate will vote after the election on the long-stalled nomination of Adeel Mangi to the Third Circuit, which includes his state.

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    Cozen O'Connor Benefits Pro Joins McCarter & English

    McCarter & English LLP has expanded its Philadelphia office this week with the addition of a former Cozen O'Connor attorney who moved his employee benefit-focused practice after more than five years.

  • Pennsylvania Powerhouse: Cozen O'Connor

    Cozen O'Connor's commitment to its home base of Pennsylvania continued to propel its success in the last year, with the firm steering high-profile Keystone State clients such as the University of Pennsylvania and helping to secure the exoneration of a wrongfully convicted Philadelphia man who spent nearly four decades in prison.

  • Philly Legal Org Fights Attorney's Race Bias Claims

    The Defender Association of Philadelphia says a Black former public defender has no basis for racial bias allegations stemming from her allegedly discriminatory firing, arguing that her claims were investigated and rejected by the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission.

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    Med Mal Trio Jumps From Obermayer To Marshall Dennehey

    A growing medical liability caseload in the Philadelphia courts and the surrounding region led a former partner at Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel to bring his practice and two colleagues to Marshall Dennehey PC.

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    Federal Judicial Picks For 3 States Advance To Full Senate

    The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee sent four judicial nominations to the full Senate on Thursday, including that of a former U.S. attorney nominee whose confirmation was blocked by Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, before he became a vice presidential nominee.

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    Law Firm Bottom Lines Likely To Benefit From Fed Rate Cuts

    Average U.S. law firm revenue rose at a historic clip during the first half of 2024, but law firm financial experts are predicting a further influx of business for midsize and large firms primarily as a result of increased transactional activity following Wednesday's interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.

  • Pennsylvania Powerhouse: Hangley Aronchick

    A roster of fewer than 50 high-quality attorneys with deep roots in the state who are accustomed to handling significant cases has kept Hangley Aronchick Segal Pudlin & Schiller one of the top firms in Pennsylvania over the last year.

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    Montgomery McCracken Adds White Collar Litigator In Philly

    Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads LLP expanded its litigation services in Philadelphia with the recent addition of a white collar and defense attorney who left Saxton & Stump after more than a year to join the firm.

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    GCs Expect Bigger Budgets And Deeper Focus On AI In 2025

    Fifty-five percent of general counsel saw a budget increase in 2024 for their legal departments, and that number is expected to rise even higher next year, according to a new report from alternative legal service provider Axiom.

  • Pa. Judge Confirmed As GOP Leader Bemoans Dems' Tactics

    The Senate voted 52-41 Tuesday to confirm Mary Kathleen Costello as U.S. district judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, but first the chamber's top Republican took time to blast judiciary policymakers for backing what he said were Democratic initiatives regarding the federal bench.

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    GC Base Salaries At Big Companies On The Rise

    General counsel base salaries at companies making $5 billion or more in revenue has increased from last year, while their total compensation has decreased, according to a report released Tuesday by the Association of Corporate Counsel and Empsight International LLC.

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    Better Days Ahead For Associates, Recruiters Say

    Things are looking up for associates, recruiters say, as a strong economic outlook for the legal industry appears to be driving increased demand for younger attorneys after two straight years of layoffs.

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    Holland & Knight Slams Suit Over Ex-Atty's Client Info Access

    Holland & Knight LLP urged a Pennsylvania federal judge on Monday to throw out what it called a "scattershot and vague" lawsuit alleging that a former firm partner unlawfully accessed a client's confidential documents in order to gain an upper hand in the partner's contentious divorce proceeding.

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    Former PNC Bank Atty Joins McNees Wallace In Pittsburgh

    A former chief counsel with PNC Bank is leaving the world of in-house for McNees Wallace & Nurick, where she will help boost the firm's work in fiduciary litigation and disputes involving trusts and estates.

  • Pennsylvania Powerhouse: Kline & Specter

    Kline & Specter may not be responsible for the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas' reputation for "nuclear verdicts," but some of the firm's recent wins — including an eye-popping $2.25 billion jury award against Monsanto — haven't hurt that perception, while multimillion-dollar settlements and verdicts around Pennsylvania have shown it's not just a matter of home-court advantage.

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    Schnader Harrison Inflated Bills Before Collapse, Suit Says

    A Philadelphia-based real estate company caught up in a contract dispute over an allegedly botched North Carolina development project has accused the defunct Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis LLP of engaging in a "phantom billing scheme" to boost the firm's revenue ahead of its eventual dissolution last September.

  • Pennsylvania Powerhouse: Lynch Carpenter

    Lynch Carpenter established itself as one of Pennsylvania's high-performing firms in 2024, from involvement on the plaintiffs' steering committee overseeing the $600 million deal to resolve the East Palestine, Ohio, train derailment litigation, to its assistance in achieving a settlement in CPAP medical device litigation of at least $479 million, as well as several wins in the realm of tuition reimbursement from universities that eliminated in-person learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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    Why Ballard Spahr Leaned On An AI Startup For Litigation

    While initially hesitant about using generative artificial intelligence because of confidentiality concerns, Ballard Spahr LLP eventually adopted an AI tool from a startup that cut down on time spent in litigation.

  • Kennedys Adds 2 Knowledge Management Pros In London

    Kennedys said on Monday it has boosted its back-office technology and knowledge management teams with the hire of two experienced experts in legal procedures and practices and IT.

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    The 2024 Regional Powerhouses

    The law firms on Law360's list of 2024 Regional Powerhouses reflected the local peculiarities of their states while often representing clients in deals and cases that captured national attention.

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    Trio Of BigLaw Mergers Expected To Drive More Deal Talks

    After months of a relatively steady pace of law firm mergers and acquisitions, the trio of proposed BigLaw tie-ups announced in recent days will likely spur more firms toward entertaining similar deal talks, experts say. Here, Law360 offers a snapshot of the proposed deals.

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    K&L Gates, AltaClaro Partner On Gen AI Supervisory Course

    Legal training provider AltaClaro released a generative artificial intelligence supervisory course for law firm partners that it developed with law firm K&L Gates LLP.

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    3rd Circ. Won't Undo Philly DA's Immunity From Cop's Suit

    The Third Circuit won't revive a Philadelphia police officer's lawsuit alleging that city District Attorney Larry Krasner violated his civil rights by hitting him with a murder charge that was ultimately tossed, finding that the officer couldn't overcome the immunity granted to prosecutors when advocating on behalf of the state.

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Expert Analysis

  • How To Find Your Inner Calm When Client Obligations Pile Up Author Photo

    In the most stressful times for attorneys, when several transactions for different partners and clients peak at the same time and the phone won’t stop buzzing, incremental lifestyle changes can truly make a difference, says Lindsey Hughes at Haynes Boone.

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Can I Support Gen Z Attorneys? Author Photo

    Meredith Beuchaw at Lowenstein Sandler discusses how senior attorneys can assist the newest generation of attorneys by championing their pursuit of a healthy work-life balance and providing the hands-on mentorship opportunities they missed out on during the pandemic.

  • Law Firm Cybersecurity Should Not Get Lost In The Cloud Author Photo

    A recent data leak at Proskauer via a cloud data storage platform demonstrates key reasons why law firms must pay attention to data safeguarding, including the increasing frequency of cloud-based data breaches and the consequences of breaking client confidentiality, says Robert Kraczek at One Identity.

  • Advice For Summer Associates Uneasy About Offer Prospects Author Photo

    There are a few communication tips that law students in summer associate programs should consider to put themselves in the best possible position to receive an offer, and firms can also take steps to support those to whom they are unable to make an offer, says Amy Mattock at Georgetown University Law Center.

  • How Law Firms Can Cautiously Wield AI To Streamline Tasks Author Photo

    Many attorneys are going to use artificial intelligence tools whether law firms like it or not, so firms should educate them on AI's benefits, limits and practical uses, such as drafting legal documents, to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving legal market, say Thomas Schultz and Eden Bernstein at Kellogg Hansen.

  • Keys To Managing The Stresses Of Law School Author Photo

    Dealing with the pressures associated with law school can prove difficult for many future lawyers, but there are steps students can take to manage stress — and schools can help too, say Ryan Zajic and Dr. Janani Krishnaswami at UWorld.

  • Can Mandatory CLE Mitigate Implicit Bias's Negative Impacts? Author Photo

    Amid ongoing disagreements on whether states should mandate implicit bias training as part of attorneys' continuing legal education requirements, Stephanie Wilson at Reed Smith looks at how unconscious attitudes or stereotypes adversely affect legal practice, and whether mandatory training programs can help.

  • Ditch The Frills And Start Writing Legal Letters In Plain English Author Photo

    To become more effective advocates, lawyers need to rethink the ridiculous, convoluted language they use in correspondence and write letters in a clear, concise and direct manner, says legal writing instructor Stuart Teicher.

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Can I Negotiate My Separation Agreement? Author Photo

    Kate Reder Sheikh at Major Lindsey discusses how a law firm associate can navigate being laid off, what to look for in a separation agreement and why to be upfront about it with prospective employers.

  • DoNotPay Cases Underscore Hurdles For AI-Fueled Legal Help Author Photo

    Recent legal challenges against DoNotPay’s "robot lawyer” application highlight pressing questions about the degree to which artificial intelligence can be used for legal tasks while remaining on the right side of both consumer protection laws and prohibitions against the unauthorized practice of law, says Kristen Niven at Frankfurt Kurnit.

  • For The Future Of Legal Practice, Let's Learn From The Past Author Photo

    At some level, every practicing lawyer is experiencing the ever-increasing speed of change — and while some practice management processes have gotten more efficient, other things about the legal profession were better before supposed improvements were made, says Jay Silberblatt, president of the Pennsylvania Bar Association.

  • Why All Law Firms Should Foster Psychological Capital Author Photo

    Law firms will be able to reap great long-term benefits if they adopt strategies to nurture four critical components of their employees' psychological wellness and performance — hope, efficacy, resilience and optimism, says Dennis Stolle at the American Psychological Association.

  • A GC's Guide To Litigation, Inspired By Sun Tzu's 'Art Of War' Author Photo

    With caseloads and spending increasing, in-house counsel might find themselves called to opine on the risks and benefits of litigation more often, and they should look at five Sun Tzu maxims from the ancient Chinese classic "The Art of War" to inform their approach to any suit, says Jeff Golimowski at Womble Bond.

  • Mentorship Is Key To Diversity In The Legal Industry Author Photo

    Not only can effective mentorship have a profound impact on women and people of color entering the legal field, but it also benefits mentors and the legal profession as a whole, creating a true win-win situation for all involved, says Natasha Cortes at Grossman Roth.

  • ChatGPT Is A Cool Trick, But AI Won't Replace Lawyers Author Photo

    Generative AI applications like ChatGPT are unlikely to ever replace attorneys for a variety of practical reasons — but given their practice-enhancing capabilities, lawyers who fail to leverage these tools may be rendered obsolete, says Eran Kahana at Maslon.

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