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WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

DANGEROUS ENCOUNTERS -  The lifting of pandemic restrictions across much of the country and the resultant increase in human interaction is a welcome development for most after such a long period in isolation. But, as we examine in this week's Law.com Litigation Trendspotter column, trial lawyers say a rise in personal injury litigation, from medical malpractice to motor vehicle accidents and road rage incidents, is "inevitable" with so many people out and about. I'm interested to hear what you think: what types of personal injury claims do you expect to increase as life gets back to something resembling the pre-pandemic normal? Let me know at [email protected] and I'll feature your feedback in a follow-up column.

THINKING SMALL - "Innovation"—it's one of those buzzwords that gets bandied about so much that it simultaneously means everything and nothing. In the legal tech sphere, it's a word that brings to mind futuristic visions of robot judges presiding over cases from hovercrafts while wearing those curly white wigs atop their shiny chrome heads… OK, is that just me? The point is, we often think of legal tech advancements as cutting edge inventions pushing us toward some futuristic landscape, but, as Law.com's Zach Warren writes in this week's Barometer newsletter, law firms are currently directing their tech budgets toward more modest and practical goals. Warren notes that the past 15 months have shown many firms the flaws in their tech infrastructures, diverting their attention from chasing the "next big thing" in legal tech. "The cracks that the pandemic revealed … weren't necessarily client-facing, bet-the-company types of issues," Warren writes. "Instead, law firms found that small processes were the ones that needed changing, particularly those small issues that become exacerbated by working remotely." To receive the Law.com Barometer directly to your inbox each week, click here.

RAIL AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT - Can red tape stop a speeding train? Hogan Lovells and Snell & Wilmer sued Grand County, Utah on Thursday in Utah District Court on behalf of American Rocky Mountaineer, a new luxury rail venture currently selling tickets for its 2021 season. The complaint seeks a declaration that Grand County's licensing and permit process for the rail service is preempted by federal law. Counsel have not yet appeared for the defendant. The case is 4:21-cv-00072, American Rocky Mountaineer v. Grand County State of Utah. Stay up on the latest deals and litigation with the new Law.com Radar.  

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EDITOR'S PICKS

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WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING

CALLED HOME - Recently, Law.com's Andrew Maloney reported on the phenomenon of "boomerang" associates: those who jump ship from one firm to join a competitor only to be lured back by the previous firm in short order. Maloney's article focused on the intense competition for corporate associates in the white-hot U.S. lateral hiring market. But given that boomerangs were invented in Australia (look it up), it's only fitting that we'd see a similar scenario play out on the continent. Only in this case, it involves a seven-lawyer insurance team that includes a partner and three senior associates. As Law.com International's Simon Lock reports, Clyde & Co has reclaimed the team, led by insurance partner Tim Searle, from local Australian firm Wotton + Kearney, less than two years after the majority left to join Wotton. Commenting on his return, Searle said in a statement: "Re-joining Clyde & Co feels like a homecoming and I am excited to be returning to a leading global firm where I built my practice and developed my expertise over many years."

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WHAT YOU SAID

"The Constitution applies to everyone, even bad people."