What was previously considered a “once in a generation” disaster may be a new normal. According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, three of the top five deadliest and most destructive California fires have occurred in the state since 2018:

• November 2018 – Fire “Camp” in Butte County, 153,336 acres destroyed, eighty-five deaths.
• January 2025 –...

Lateral partner moves are commonplace in the legal profession. Navigating such moves raises tricky and complex issues under the Rules of Professional Conduct (RPC). In addition, partners contemplating lateral moves should be mindful of their fiduciary duties to their current firm. Conversely, law firms should be mindful of their ethical obligations. This article explains the ethical issues faced by laterally...

Law firms hiring lateral lawyers should be careful that they are not conflicting themselves out in the process. This is because a lateral lawyer’s conflicts are imputed to the new firm under the Rules of Professional Conduct (RPC). This principle applies to lateral partners as well as associates.

Law360 published “Assessing Whether Jarkesy May Limit FINRA Prosecutions” , written by partners Barry Temkin and Kate DiGeronimo, on August 30, 2024. You can read the article here (subscription required), or click on the link below.

This article will be published in the August 2024 issue of International Institute of Loss Adjusters (IILA)’s The International Monitor.

This July 9, 2024 update was written with the invaluable follow up research and assistance of Mariah Patuel, one of our summer interns. It represents his views and not those of the firm or any of its clients.

————————————-

UPDATES...

Partner Barry Temkin wrote “Are SEC and FINRA Administrative Hearings Unconstitutional?” which the New York Law Journal published on May 9, 2024. Click below to read the full article.

This article was published in ARIAS-US Quarterly, Q1 2024.

In late May 2023, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals issued a detailed and complex decision that demonstrates in unusually lucid fashion that the interconnected worlds of U.S. and U.K. insurance and reinsurance law, despite being populated by a people “divided by a common language” and separated by the proverbial “pond”,...

This article was published in IACP (International Association of Claim Professionals) Declarations 2022-2023 Year in Review, pp.39-43. You can see the article, attached, or download the article here: https://lnkd.in/g98GB-rF

On May 23, 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 35 (“AB 35”) into law. This Bill provided sweeping reform to the longstanding Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA). MICRA, which...

In 1996, the London Engineering Group (LEG) first introduced a set of model defects clauses applying to physical loss or damage to insured property caused by defects in material, workmanship, design, plan, or specification, known as LEG 1, LEG 2, and LEG 3. Since then, only the LEG 3 version has undergone any revisions. The three LEG clauses provide varying...

Because arbitration is generally considered a more efficient forum for dispute resolution than litigation, insurers may include mandatory arbitration provisions––often with New York law and forum provisions––in their contracts. New York has served as a preferred forum for arbitration because it provides “access to a convenient forum which dispassionately administers a known, stable, and commercially sophisticated body of law.”