Law.com

If the pressure law firms and legal departments are feeling comes from the same source, shouldn't that align them?

Kroger is embroiled in litigation brought against it by Albertsons, which claims Kroger breached its contractual duty to take "any and all actions" to secure approval of its $24.6 billion acquisition of Albertsons.

"Given the embarrassment of the AI hallucinations and mistakes of law in the two TROs and the preliminary injunction, it would be an understandable—though obviously unjust—temptation for the judge to want to find a way to prove that, even with correct law and fact, his initial view should prevail," Judge Jerry Smith wrote for the appellate court.

Only 62% of MDL judges were white in 2025, and 32% of those were white men, who made up less than half for the first time in 2018, according to Law.com data.

Sources say the next few weeks are crucial, as Weil attempts to close a deal for a firm that just last year generated $2.077 billion in revenue and $5.593 million in profits per partner.

Illinois attorneys have been penalized for the missteps involving AI, but so far no judges have been caught running too far afoul of the Illinois Supreme Court’s AI policy. So what happens when one does? For insights on judicial discipline in the AI era, Law.com's Madeline King spoke with Daniel W. Linna Jr., a professor at the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law; Ray McKoski, a retired Lake County judge who serves as vice chair of the Illinois Judicial Ethics Committee; and Judge Jeffrey Goffinet, who retired from the First Judicial Circuit Court in Williamson County in August. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/gZBSZ7Aj

In the legal tech world, it's all connected. Or at least it's getting there.

Midsize law firms have been active this year in hiring new C-suite leaders from inside and outside the legal industry, writes Law.com's Tom Spigolon. He spoke with Chad Collins, COO of Texas-based Kane Russell Coleman Logan PC, who said the complexities and time requirements for business administration of law firms led many in the legal industry to depart from traditional attorney leadership. “In some ways, it can be absolutely as risky for lawyers to practice administration as it can be for administrators to practice law,” Collins said. “It's really imperative that you safeguard the business from some of those key risk issues.” For further insights, Spigolon also spoke with Dennis Doucette, managing partner of Procopio Cory Hargreaves & Savitch, and Daniel Peracchi, CLM, the COO of Atlanta-based Drew Eckl & Farnham. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/gw-8Jmpu

Real estate investment firm Fairstead Capital Management's malpractice suit against law firm Paul Weiss will continue rather than holding for an underlying appeal, a New York judge has ruled. Fairstead originally retained Paul Weiss to advise it on removing two executives who allegedly sought to either take over Fairstead or alternatively create a new competitor. Fairstead is making use of multiple law firms in its various cases related to the cases. So far, more than half a dozen firms have entered the litigation for various parties across New York and Delaware, including Kasowitz LLP; Paul Weiss; Simpson Thacher & Bartlett; Skadden, Arps, Meagher, Slate & Flom; Quinn, Emanuel, Urquhart & Sullivan; Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnel; and Ross Aronstam & Moritz. From Law.com's Ryan Harroff: 🔗 https://lnkd.in/g2tAyCrt

Would relying more heavily on project-based billing or flat fees—enabled by new efficiency tools—please clients and help to improve lawyer mental health? In an April study done by The Stress & Resilience Institute in conjunction with Law.com’s parent company, 73.9% of respondents cited billable hour pressures when asked about workplace factors that impact mental well-being. In an era where the value of hourly billing is under fire because of efficiencies created by artificial intelligence, some say this traditional billing method might not only be antiquated, and not fully reflective of the work put in by associates but may also be having an outsized effect on psychological health. To find out more, Law.com's Jon Campisi spoke with Duane Morris associate Luis Ferro; Lawrence Krieger, a Florida State University law professor; Paula Davis, founder and CEO of the Stress & Resilience Institute; and Patrick R. Krill, a legal adviser and educator. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/gzM5xDjM