Firms' Back Offices Brace for Generative AI Impact: The Morning Minute
The news and analysis you need to start your day.
August 18, 2023 at 06:00 AM
4 minute read
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WHAT WE'RE WATCHING
WORLD PROBLEMS - For months, rising global tensions and toughening cross-border regulations have kept law firms busier than ever advising clients on how to successfully—and legally—operate a multinational organization. Now, as Law.com's Gina Passarella writes in this week's Barometer newsletter, law firms could start to feel the pain their clients are experiencing—and one already has. Dentons' decision to end its longtime combination with Chinese firm Dacheng came amid regulatory one-upmanship between the U.S. and China that has restricted investment between the nations' entities. At the same time, new Chinese regulations make certain legal work near impossible to do. Now, other firms could follow Dentons' lead. "Typically, the lure of the market size is too strong to keep anyone away for too long," Passarella writes. "But safety of their lawyers on the ground and an inability to protect client information from being seen by Chinese regulators may be the tipping point firms need to close up shop in the region." To receive the Law.com Barometer directly to your inbox each week, click here.
EMERGENCY MERGERS - What do onetime Philadelphia mainstay Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis and Am Law 200 firm Stroock & Stroock & Lavan have in common? As Law.com's Amanda O'Brien reports, failed merger talks, pension concerns, and a steady trickle of partners lateralling to other firms, for a start, with the key difference between the two firms, beyond their size and status, being their ability to continue operations. Stroock continues to hunt for a merger partner, shoring up its business model in an attempt to become a better merger candidate by ending its pension system last week. Schnader, on the other hand, recently announced its dissolution at the end of the month following its own failed merger talks and a declined credit extension request to its bank. And while one can hardly call Stroock's attempts to merge "a last resort," given the extended timeline of the firm's various discussions, Schnader's attempts to merge mere months before the firm announced its dissolution offer a warning for firms who've found themselves in a similar position.
ON THE RADAR - Cannabis delivery service Budee Inc., Driven Deliveries Inc. and Stem Holdings Inc. were hit with a wage-and-hour class action Aug. 15 in California Superior Court for Los Angeles County. The suit was brought by the Haines Law Group on behalf of drivers and other non-exempt employees for the defendants. The complaint claims that the defendants failed to pay overtime compensation or provide meal and rest breaks to the plaintiff class. The complaint also contends that the defendants failed to reimburse drivers for cell phone expenses incurred while using the app to make deliveries. Counsel have not yet appeared for the defendants. The case is 23STCV19509, Solis v. Budee, Inc. Stay up on the latest state and federal litigation, as well as the latest corporate deals, with Law.com Radar.
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Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
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