Above the Law

What Does Your Legal Team Actually Need From AI? 

AI keeps failing the law department. Here’s why.

Litera Relaunches Its Brand Around A Unified Vision: One AI Agent Spanning The Practice and Business Of Law

The relaunch includes a new brand identity, the tagline ‘Raise The Bar,’ an advertising campaign, and a redesigned website.

The Deloitte Legal Report: Trouble For Ostriches

Smart firms will read the Deloitte report and the tea leaves and prepare for change. But large law firms may not make the change until it’s too late.

Coalition Urges Policymakers To Reject No Surprises Act Enforcement Bill

The Coalition Against Surprise Medical Billing launched a campaign opposing the No Surprises Act Enforcement Act, arguing it would worsen IDR process abuse.

Morning Docket: 07.16.26

* DOJ and SEC agree to freeze discovery in SEC’s civil case over the Biglaw insider trading scheme, clarifying that the criminal case will be the main event. [Court Listener]

* WilmerHale faces class action over data breach. [Law360]

* R. Kelly believes he can fly straight out of prison, asking Donald Trump for clemency by citing DOJ weaponization against him. [TMZ]

* Subpoenas for Biglaw capitulators “reopen wounds.” Self-inflicted wounds, but wounds nonetheless. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Thomson Reuters sells majority stake in print business to KKR. TR keeps editorial control and the intellectual property rights. [Reuters]

* Federal government refuses to give New Mexico access to Epstein files as part of a state investigation. [Axios]

* Lively-Baldoni lawsuit drama continues with allegations of “extremely excessive” legal research. [ABA Journal]

* Lisa Graves of Court Accountability chats with our own Joe Patrice about the Supreme Court Term. Marvel at how Joe’s background looks vaguely like a bunch of jabots. [Legal AF Podcast]

* The Kavanaugh hearings were Lindsey Graham in a nutshell. [The Nation]

* Fox News sued for claiming data center critics are Chinese agents. [Courthouse News Service]

Selling Out To Trump Doesn’t Get You Much Anymore — See Also

Turns Out The Biglaw Firms That Bent The Knee To Trump Have Even More To Rue: Those deals keep looking worse and worse.

Todd Blanche Used To Have The Respect Of His Former SDNY Colleagues: Not so much anymore.

Oopsie! Todd Blanche’s Freudian slip during the confirmation hearing isn’t the only thing getting people talking.

Merger? What Merger? Linklaters and Cleary definitely weren’t talking about a merger.

Anarchy In The UK: Kentucky Law’s already messy dean selection process has spawned a lawsuit and no judge in the district wants any part of it.

I Don’t Think Trump’s Remaining Supporters Realize How Much They Are Despised By Non-MAGA Voters

Trump is bleeding support even among his stubborn, uneducated base.

AALL 2026: Focusing On The Aloha

It’s good to pay attention to what AALL is focused on. That’s why this year’s theme was eye-catching.

Another Rumored Biglaw Merger Falls Apart Before It Begins

A reported Linklaters-Cleary Gottlieb courtship fizzled quickly, if it ever existed at all.

Collateral Damage Across The Legal Industry

From firms to law schools, innocent bystanders take heat.

The ‘Explosive Diarrhea’ Bug Was This SCOTUS Lawyer’s Most Unpleasant Argument Yet

After a miserable bout with cyclosporiasis, Chase Strangio is sounding the alarm on food safety.

Todd Blanche’s Former SDNY Colleagues Vouched For Him Last Year. They Won’t Make That Mistake Again.

Eighteen months of tearing down the rule of law has a way of changing minds.

The End-to-End Medical Record Retrieval Playbook

A complete walkthrough of the modern medical record retrieval pipeline — followed by the scorecards, fee agreement language, and ROI worksheet you can hand to your operations lead.

Scam Or Speculation: The Legal Questions Behind Trump’s Crypto Empire

Not everyone who invested in the Trump-branded coins did as well as Trump did...

Nearly 200 Organizations Back Bill To Expand Access To Clinical Trials

Nearly 200 healthcare and patient advocacy organizations endorsed the bipartisan Clinical Trial Modernization Act, which seeks to reduce financial barriers and expand access to clinical trials for underrepresented patients.