COVID-19

Working remotely for the first time? Here are lessons from a lawyer who’s done it for 13 years

“The pandemic has done what I never thought possible, validating what I have known for some time: When one works from home, one is actually working. Despite the industry’s negative projections during the early stages of COVID-19, our firm had a profitable year with all of us working from home,” writes Tracey Mihelic, senior counsel at Husch Blackwell.

Jun 1, 2021 2:30 AM CDT

Could international animal rights laws prevent the next pandemic? Rajesh Reddy has a plan

“You can be vigilant in how you work to prevent zoonotic diseases and spillovers from different species, but that doesn’t help you if your neighbors aren’t following the same rules and protocols,” says Rajesh Reddy.

Jun 1, 2021 12:50 AM CDT

How to handle tough conversations on whether to return to the office

The question is on every lawyer’s mind these days: When will management beckon me to return to my law firm office? And the related questions also weigh heavily: Do I want to do it? Can I do it? Will I do it?

May 26, 2021 9:53 AM CDT

As lawyer stress escalates during pandemic, LAP agencies see significant increase in calls

Mental health workers say lawyers are more anxious, stressed, depressed and burned out than ever, which was already a lot. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, may have lessened the stigma around attorneys seeking mental health services.

May 26, 2021 9:15 AM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: BigLaw firm requires tests for unvaccinated; Florida will fine social media for candidate bans

BigLaw firm requires COVID-19 tests for unvaccinated Lawyers and staff members at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom who don’t get vaccines will have to test negative for COVID-19 within 48 hours of their return to the office. The law firm hopes to formally reopen its U.S. offices Sept. 13…

May 25, 2021 4:39 PM CDT

Lawyer cites mother’s COVID-19 death after 6th Circuit blasts ‘striking legal emptiness’ of his brief

An Ohio lawyer sanctioned $1,500 for filing a substandard appellate brief told a federal appeals court on Friday that his failures stemmed from the COVID-19 death of his 96-year-old mother.

May 25, 2021 2:01 PM CDT

These factors help predict whether a law grad will pass the bar on the first or second try, study says

A survey of law graduates who took the New York bar exam in the years before the COVID-19 pandemic has identified six factors that contribute to success.

May 24, 2021 1:41 PM CDT

Remote practice from home in Florida isn’t unauthorized practice, advisory opinion says

A New Jersey lawyer’s remote practice from his home in Florida does not constitute the unlicensed practice of law in Florida, according to an advisory ethics opinion approved May 20 by the Florida Supreme Court.

May 24, 2021 11:51 AM CDT

Making connections is top concern for summer associates, and many want in-person work

The three most desirable law firms to land a summer associate position with are Latham & Watkins; Kirkland & Ellis; and Skadden, Arps Slate, Meagher & Flom, according to a white paper published Monday by Law360 Pulse.

May 24, 2021 9:12 AM CDT

Legal battles over coronavirus restrictions aren’t as novel as the virus—just look back 100 years

Just as public officials at every level have taken steps to control COVID-19, it was much the same a hundred years ago during the Spanish flu. And, like now, some individuals, believing that their rights were violated by such measures, turned to court.

May 24, 2021 9:10 AM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Law school cuts John Marshall name because of slavery link; 2 appellate nominees advance

Following scholarship about John Marshall’s support for slavery, law school removes his name The name of John Marshall, a former U.S. Supreme Court chief justice who wrote seven majority opinions rejecting freedom for slaves, will be removed from a Chicago law school. The John Marshall Law School was a private,…

May 21, 2021 3:33 PM CDT

What’s the connection between legal recruiting, virtual piano parties and Zoom engagement?

Ari Kaplan recently spoke with Dan Binstock, a legal recruiter and co-owner of Garrison & Sisson, a leading attorney search firm. Binstock is also the creator of the Virtual Piano Party.

May 21, 2021 8:55 AM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Lawyer job openings skyrocket; judge resigns after ethics charges

Lawyer job openings increase 150%, report says Lawyer job openings have increased by 150% since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report by legal market data provider Leopard Solutions. As of May 14, there were 8,268 open jobs for lawyers at more than a thousand global law…

May 20, 2021 4:40 PM CDT

Outgoing immigration judge says he encountered ‘soul-crushing bureaucracy’

The assistant chief immigration judge who oversaw judges and staff members in San Francisco has quit in frustration after only 14 months on the job.

May 19, 2021 10:00 AM CDT

Judge is accused of forcing staff to take diet pills, using Facebook aliases, warning of the devil

A domestic relations judge in Birmingham, Alabama, has been accused in an ethics complaint of forcing her staff to take diet pills and abusing prescription drugs herself, resulting in paranoid behavior and the belief that the Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission is "going to kill her."

May 18, 2021 10:20 AM CDT