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WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

MIDWEST, MID-MARKET, TOP DOLLAR - What's that again about "coastal elites"? As Law.com's Andrew Maloney reports, East Coast and West Coast firms weren't the only big law firms with banner years in 2021. Several law firms in the Midwest showed big gains in revenue or profit, highlighting how some firm fortunes also rose partly through midmarket deals and work for small and midcap clients. Some Midwest firms outpaced their peers in the legal industry. For instance, Missouri-founded Am Law 100 firms Polsinelli ($697.3 million) and Husch Blackwell ($476.7 million) grew their revenue about 13% and 14%, respectively, this year. That's above the 10.9% average calculated by Citi Private Bank for firms in the second half of the Am Law 100. Meanwhile, Second Hundred firms such as Shook, Hardy & Bacon ($414.9 million), Michigan-based Honigman (roughly $295 million) and Spencer Fane ($188.5 million) likewise saw double-digit increases in revenue, beating the industry average for firms in this group too. And much like the firms at the top of the Am Law 200, these Midwest firms pointed to a mix of things they can control (such as talent and hybrid work) as well as things they can't (inflation, the war in Ukraine) as top challenges to navigate this year and beyond.

THE YOUNG AND THE RECKLESS - Two lawsuits on opposite sides of the United States—each alleging flaws in Snapchat's Speed Filter—appear to be headed to the same place: in front of a jury. As Law.com's Kathy Tucker reports, appellate courts in both Georgia and California have now rejected Snap Inc.'s defense of immunity under the Communications Decency Act. As a result, judges are taking a different view of lawsuits alleging the company made a dangerous product. District Court Judge Michael Fitzgerald of the Central District of California denied a motion to dismiss Carly Lemmon's lawsuit from Snap Inc. on March 31 after being overruled by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on the Communications Decency Act defense. "This shift from treating Defendant as a publisher or speaker to treating Defendant as a product manufacturer changes the way that the Court interprets the allegations," Fitzgerald said. He revisited the case "guided by the Ninth Circuit's focus on the design of the Snapchat app rather than whether it's a content neutral tool." Fitzgerald said he is now "satisfied" that allegations in the lawsuit are "sufficient to allege causation premised on the theory that the Speed Filter's design encouraged Plaintiffs to drive at dangerous speeds." "It is extremely foreseeable that minors and young adults would use the Speed Filter to record themselves driving at excessive speeds, and even more so if there are potential reward 'trophies'  for so doing," the judge said.

WHO GOT THE WORK?℠ - Brookfield Business Partners has agreed to acquire automotive retail technology provider CDK Global for approximately $8.3 billion. The transaction, announced April 7, is expected to close in the third quarter of 2022. Bermuda-based Brookfield is advised by a Davis Polk & Wardwell team that includes partners Leonard Kreynin and Cheryl Chan. CDK Global, which is based in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, is represented by a Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison team including partners Scott Barshay and Kyle Seifried. >> Read more on Law.com Radar and check out the most recent edition of Law.com's Who Got the Work?℠ column to find out which law firms and lawyers are being brought in to handle key cases and close major deals for their clients.