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WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

RECESSION READY? - After two years of stunning financial growth in the legal industry, some in Big Law are bracing for a recession. While nothing is certain, the specter of a recession is looming, as economists continue to throw out the chances of a downturn, amid rising interest rates, inflation and geopolitical tensions. In the event of a downturn, law firm leaders and industry observers told Law.com's Andrew Maloney they are expecting the rate of office openings and the competition for talent to slow, while putting more focus on counter-cyclical practice areas. Those dynamics could also put pressure on billing rates and shift some of the leverage away from employees and back to law firm management for issues such as compensation and whether personnel can work remotely, industry observers added.

LEAK PROOF - Lawyers and former clerks are opening up about the options available for, and the consequences associated with, cooperating with the investigation into the April leak of a draft U.S. Supreme Court opinion that would topple the constitutional right to abortion. The ongoing investigation is linked to Chief Justice John Roberts Jr.'s effort to uncover who provided to a media outlet the draft of what would be a precedent-breaking opinion. According to CNN in a story published Tuesday, Roberts is close to asking clerks to sign affidavits saying they were not involved in the leak. Requests for clerks' phones are also rumored to be coming. National Security and Government Investigation attorney Mark Zaid suggested to Law.com's Brad Kutner that clerks could band together to deny compliance with requests for cell phone access. "The optics of declining to do so [alone] could create an adverse inference that the individual has something to hide even though the decision could rightly be one based on principle alone," he said. "Frankly, if I were a clerk, I would encourage as many clerks and staff as possible to decline as a group to turn over their personal data."

WHO GOT THE WORK?℠ - Bernard J. Bobber and Corissa L. Pennow of Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart have entered appearances for Johnson Controls International, the Ireland-headquartered building equipment manufacturer, in a pending collective employment action. The action, filed April 3 in Wisconsin Eastern District Court by Parmet PC, centers on the defendant's use of Kronos payroll and timekeeping software and alleges that a 2021 ransomware attack on Kronos' systems resulted in overtime pay violations. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge J.P. Stadtmueller, is 2:22-cv-00414, Henderson v. Johnson Controls Inc. >> Read the filing 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.