Corporate Counsel

Move Faster or Get Bypassed: AI Is Raising the Cost of a Slow Legal Department

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 16:12:00 EST

At a discussion Thursday during Running Legal Like a Business Conference in Las Vegas, panelists explored how AI should help move legal expertise, data and risk intelligence closer to the point where the business makes decisions.

NY Employers Brace for Personnel Records Law as Hochul Signals Need for Amendments

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 13:41:47 EST

Employment attorneys say workers' new right to access personnel files may alter prelitigation information sharing, while New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is pointing to unresolved questions over the new law's scope and implementation.

Growing Asset Manager Callodine Names Veteran Credit Lawyer Will Karim as GC

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 19:52:39 EST

Karim joins the $20 billion asset-management platform after serving as deputy general counsel and head of legal at First Eagle Alternative Credit, bringing experience in fund formation, M&A and investment transactions as Callodine Group continues to expand through acquisitions

Distressed Hospitals Seeking Saviors Must 'Comprehensive Shop' to Minimize Antitrust Risk, FTC Says

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 17:34:05 EST

"If you have not searched broadly for a buyer, we will work expeditiously with firms to investigate whether there is a better buyer and, if the Commission deems it necessary, go to court to block a bad deal," FTC's Daniel Guarnera warned.

When $4,000 of Legal Work Takes 45 Seconds, the Billable Hour Has a Math Problem

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 17:16:32 EST

Speaking at the Running Legal Like a Business Conference in Las Vegas, Clio executive Damien Riehl said corporate legal departments have an incentive to push for pricing that reflects the efficiencies AI creates, while firms operating under fixed-fee arrangements could use the technology to reduce the cost of delivering the work and increase their margins.

In New Study, 41% of Attorneys Say Practicing Law is 'Detrimental' to Mental Health

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 16:58:27 EST

Nearly 37,000 attorneys participated in the survey conducted by mental health expert Patrick Krill, in conjunction with the ABA, and nearly half of them reported high or very high levels of burnout.

National Retail Federation Taps Amazon Counterfeiting Unit Veteran Marissa Bostick as New GC

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 16:13:37 EST

The former federal prosecutor and Motion Picture Association executive joins the nation's largest retail trade group amid heightened industry focus on organized retail crime and regulatory advocacy.

Patent Scholar John Duffy Says He Will Accept USPTO General Counsel Role

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 09:37:40 EST

Duffy, a University of Virginia law professor who has shaped patent law through landmark litigation and scholarship, said he intends to accept an offer to become the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's next general counsel.

Top Lawyer at Packaging Giant Crown Holdings to Retire

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 18:39:38 EST

Adam Dickstein, who has spent nearly two decades with Crown Holdings, plans to retire on Dec. 31, leaving the company searching for a replacement to lead legal affairs at one of the world's largest metal-packaging manufacturers.

AMC Global Media Strikes $120M Settlement With Creatives Behind 'The Walking Dead'

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 17:59:48 EST

Deal appears to be final chapter in 13 years of profit-sharing litigation that also included $200M settlement in 2021 with former executive producer Frank Durabont

FDA Considers Regulating AI-Powered Devices Like Doctors

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 17:34:34 EST

“You have what is essentially a mechanism by which the product continues to evolve and change over time. That in itself is new and poses risks that they haven't really seen before," said Linda Malek, a partner at Crowell & Moring's Health Care and Privacy and Cybersecurity groups in New York.

EU AI Act Article 50: New Guidance Expands Enterprise AI Compliance Obligations

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 11:18:59 EST

The EU AI Act's Article 50 guidance, effective August 2026, expands compliance obligations for enterprises using foundation model chatbots and AI-generated content, requiring transparent disclosure of AI interactions and machine-readable marking of synthetic outputs. Organizations face fines up to 15 million or 3% of global turnover for non-compliance, making immediate action on chatbot notifications and deepfake labeling essential across legal, IT, and business teams.

Former Fox Legal Head Jumps to Sullivan & Cromwell

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 10:28:45 EST

Viet Dinh, who as chief legal and policy officer helped Fox navigate defamation litigation in the wake of Fox News' 2020 presidential election coverage, is joining Sullivan & Cromwell's Los Angeles office as a partner.

Former In-House Counsel's Whistleblower Claim Revived by Appellate Court

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 18:05:49 EST

The appellate court said that although Balla prioritizes the right of a client to freely terminate attorneys, it doesn't give the right to client to engage in "lesser retaliatory actions" against their counsel.

FTC Joins States in Taking Aim at Personalized Pricing

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 17:32:17 EST

The FTC gave several examples of personalized pricing that it said could run afoul of Section 5, including a grocery store charging more for milk based on information that a household had multiple children and a hotel charging more for a room based on information suggesting that the customer was traveling for a funeral.

Former Paul Hastings GC Adele Maloney Joins Ropes & Gray in Top Legal Role

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 17:18:14 EST

The longtime Kirkland & Ellis lawyer, who most recently oversaw risk management as general counsel at Paul Hastings, will succeed retiring Ropes & Gray general counsel Peter Erichsen.

Engineer Turned Lawyer Says Legal Should Be a ‘Co-Builder' of the Business

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 15:11:07 EST

Kirupa Pushparaj became chief legal officer for Mews, a tech provider for the hospitality industry, in April.

Bandwidth Dials Up Internal Candidate as Answer to Legal Chief Retirement

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 13:41:11 EST

Senior vice president of legal Emily Harlan succeeds long-time general counsel Brandon Asbill at the Raleigh, North Carolina-based cloud communications provider.

Banque Misr Penalties a 'Wake-Up Call' for Banks Over Hidden Iran Ties, Lawyers Say

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 13:30:45 EST

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Trump administration will start sanctioning foreign banks "every week."

The General Counsel as the Board of Directors' Guide Through the Bill Gates AI Essay

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 08:59:59 EST

Corporate boards should consider the essay's implications for governance, enterprise risk management, and corporate citizenship, with general counsel well-positioned to facilitate discussions on preparedness, employment impact, social safety nets, taxation of AI profits, and emerging existential risks.

Sam Altman, OpenAI Hit With 30 New Claims in One Day Over Canadian School Shooting

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 19:53:39 EST

The latest wave of suits by students, educators and other survivors of the Tumbler Ridge mass shooting advances a novel legal theory that OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman may be liable not only for negligence, but for allegedly aiding and abetting the attack after the company's safety team reportedly urged law enforcement intervention.

Teletrac Navman Names Former RxBenefits CLO Sara Epstein as Chief Legal and Administrative Officer

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 17:04:23 EST

Epstein joins the fleet management and connected mobility technology provider following its acquisition by private equity firm Respida Capital earlier this year, bringing more than two decades of legal leadership experience across healthcare, life sciences, logistics and privacy-related matters.

FTC, 22 States Sue Amazon Over Alleged 'Secret Surcharge' Scheme in Online Ad Auctions

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 22:45:54 EST

Attorneys from Dunn Isaacson Rhee and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher have stepped in to represent Amazon, which the FTC and 22 U.S. states accuse of using undisclosed surcharges to artificially inflate prices in its digital advertising auctions.

Rude Awakening: 'Invasive' US Legal System Shocks Japanese GCs, Execs—Who Law Firms Increasingly Court

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 19:30:32 EST

In Japan, litigation is rare and less confrontational. The adversarial posture and invasiveness of U.S. litigation is often disorienting.

Former Uber Legal Leader Andrew Byrnes Joins Progressive Tech Company Civitech as GC

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 18:23:45 EST

The Obama administration veteran and former Covington partner joins Austin-based Civitech as the political technology company expands its voter data and outreach platform used by Democratic campaigns and progressive organizations.

Formula 1 Owner Liberty Media Taps 35-Year Cravath Partner as Legal Chief

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 16:05:48 EST

Philip Boeckman will succeed chief legal officer Renee Wilm next month as she moves to an advisory role.

Legal Wants to Create More Value. Are Budgets Still Holding It Back?

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 15:43:01 EST

Corporate legal departments increasingly want to be seen as strategic business partners rather than cost centers, but most are still operating somewhere in between, according to a new report.

BJay Pak Departs Alston & Bird for GC Job at Delta Air Lines

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 15:24:20 EST

The former Georgia U.S. attorney had resigned in the wake of Trump's challenge to the 2020 election results before joining the Am Law 50 firm.

Google Avoids Breakup of Advertising Business

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 00:56:35 EST

Google argued a divestiture would be extreme and questioned the Antitrust Division's legal authority to seek a divestiture since Judge Brinkema had not found that Google's purchase of AdX was illegal.

Former Warriors Associate GC Sues Team, Alleges She Was Passed Over for Top Legal Role Before Being Fired

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 19:00:47 EST

Ex-Golden State Warriors associate general counsel Lisa Shelley claims she was denied promotions in favor of less-experienced male colleagues, sidelined during the franchise's search for a new chief legal officer and terminated after raising concerns about an internal workplace investigation.

Opportunity Knocks at Window and Door Maker Andersen for Ex-Cargill Lawyer

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 17:19:47 EST

Kelly McLain becomes legal chief just months after joining Andersen.

Wildfire Liability Deal Collapses as Calif. Legislative Session Ends

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 16:48:52 EST

The Legislature ended its work for the year without taking up a compromise bill that Gov. Gavin Newsom criticized as the inadequate work of insurers and "billboard attorneys."

Predictions Market Upstart Onyx Odds Hires First General Counsel

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 16:18:27 EST

Nicholas Green is a big catch for the two-year-old Onyx, having helped previous employer Underdog Sports raise $1.2 billion in funding.

SEC, CFTC Again Delay Hedge Fund Disclosures as Agencies Weigh Rollback

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 15:54:48 EST

In April, the agencies proposed changes that would exempt half of private fund advisers from reporting requirements.

AT&T Decided Small AI Pilots Weren't Enough, So It Built an In-House Law Firm

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 14:43:34 EST

Legal Edge, a technology-driven center of expertise inside AT&T's legal department, has grown from 24 to roughly 35 people in just six months.

Meta Quietly Resolves Cambridge Analytica Claims as Part of Child-Safety Settlement

Mon, 31 Aug 2026 18:23:09 EST

While attention focused on Meta's $17 billion youth-safety settlement with state attorneys general, the agreement also includes a separate $459 million payment resolving a broad swath of state claims tied to the Cambridge Analytica data-privacy scandal.

Group Asks Procter & Gamble to Preserve Shareholder Access Rights

Mon, 31 Aug 2026 17:42:49 EST

The National Legal and Policy Center is among organizations on both sides of the political aisle asking companies to honor the existing threshold for filing shareholder proposals, even as business groups seek higher barriers for activist investors.

Outside Counsel Need to Know Where Their Matter Fits Among a Client's Priorities, Says 3M Legal Dept. Veteran

Mon, 31 Aug 2026 15:49:28 EST

Norman Pentelovitch, who joined Faegre Drinker as a partner in July, says the best outside counsel understand that their case is rarely the only problem on a client's desk and that a lawyer's job ultimately is to give advice, not simply analyze options.