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WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

BUDGET CUTS, BACKLOGS AND BACKLASH - Add court administrators to the long list of people who are having a crappy time during the pandemic. As state judiciaries across the country struggle with the logistical—and, in some instances, constitutional—challenges associated with both remote and in-person proceedings, they're also dealing with slashed budgets, growing case backlogs and criticism from attorneys eager to get back to some semblance of business as usual. In our latest Law.com Litigation Trendspotter column, we look at how that trio of intertwined challenges—while not completely new—is being exacerbated by COVID-19, and why things might get worse before they get better.

A WHOLE NEW WORLD - At the risk of getting too cheeky with the wordplay, I suppose one might describe New Law firms and alternative legal service providers as quite literally a growing threat to Big Law! (You know, because they're physically growing in size and geographic reach?) But seriously folks, as Zach Warren writes in this week's Law.com Barometer newsletter, the globalization of New Law is accelerating, even during a global economic downswing. Markets that were previously the purview of only the largest law firms are beginning to see competition that isn't only local firms, but also fellow multinational firms presenting alternative structures. It represents a new battleground for a business development fight that has largely been waged in the past decade in the U.S. and U.K. To receive the Law.com Barometer directly to your inbox each week, click here.

DRUG BUST - Teva Pharmaceutical Industries was sued Thursday in Connecticut District Court over allegations that the company's years-long strategy of increasing prices for generic drugs defrauded investors. "This is an action to recover significant investment losses suffered as a result of a massive fraud that led investors to believe that Teva–the world's largest generic drug manufacturer–was experiencing strong financial growth over a number of years based on fundamentally sound business practices when, in fact, Teva's performance was being driven by an illegal practice of colluding with other drug manufacturers to systematically increase the price of scores of generic drugs," the complaint alleges. The court action was brought by Cohen & Wolf and Rolnick Kramer Sadighi on behalf of a group of investment funds. Counsel have not yet appeared for the defendants. Stay up to date on major litigation nationwide with Law.com's Legal Radar.

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