Above the Law

Navigating Law Firm Mergers: Communication, Culture, And The Marketer’s Influence

Mergers are far more than a press release, and they reverberate through every layer of the firm.

Clio Launches Clio Capital to Provide Fast, Low-Friction Financing For Law Firms

The product, which went live Feb. 26, provides eligible law firms with pre-qualified access to working capital through a streamlined application process directly within the Clio platform.

GenAI: A Slippery Slope Of Too Much Kool-Aid?

How much GenAI writing is too much GenAI writing?

It Took Years For Congress To Enact PBM Transparency, Delinking. What About Vertical Integration?

Experts say the bipartisan Break Up Big Medicine Act — aimed at breaking up vertically integrated healthcare companies — faces slim chances of passing despite recent PBM reforms.

Morning Docket: 03.10.26

* Anthropic sues over Defense Department blackballing with WilmerHale’s help. [BBC]

* Court rules that the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office continues to be run by illegal appointees. [Reuters]

* Ballard Spahr enjoys healthy boost following merger. [American Lawyer]

* Ticketmaster trial thrown for a loop as administration settles its antitrust claims. [Courthouse News Service]

* AI law firm founder says she’s working harder now than she did in Biglaw. [Fortune]

* Brett Kavanaugh claims anyone suggesting that the Supreme Court is issuing far more shadow docket opinions in support of the administration have “short” memories. Brett Kavanaugh is on the Supreme Court because he spent his nomination hearings swearing he didn’t recall anything about his past. [Law360]

* ChatGPT sued for telling a woman to fire her lawyer. [Forbes]

Fright Makes Right — See Also

DOJ Argues Scared Biglaw Firms Show They Did Something Right!: That’s not how the Founders expected EOs to work.

The Former Director Of The DOJ’s Departmental Ethics Office Weighs In: The weakening of the Hatch Act will have long lasting consequences.

These Law Schools Fight To Expand The Legal Pipeline: Check out the Justice & Opportunity Honor Roll!

These Millions Are Ear Marked For Full Rides: The University of New Mexico Law School just got a huge gift!

You Know Exactly How The War In Iran Will End

Trump never loses anything.

The Justice Department Is Lowering Its Ethical Guardrails

For generations, strict limits on the DOJ's political activity helped sustain trust. Weakening those limits threatens to erode it.

AI Contracts Are Moving Faster Than The Laws. In-House Counsel Can’t Wait.

In-house counsel do not need perfect foresight.

Judge Rules That Kari Lake Is Still A Loser

Making the Federal Vacancies Reform Act great again.

8am’s Smart Spend Enhancement: Analogue Thinking In A GenAI World

The unheralded things that aren’t GenAI can still be critical to getting what lawyers want and need to get done.

Legal Ethics Roundup: Ethics Whiplash Over Executive Orders + FL Bondi Complaint, DOJ Takes On State Discipline, Spike In Judicial Conduct Complaints & More

Your tour of all things related to lawyer and judicial ethics, with University of Houston law professor Renee Knake Jefferson.

Anthropic CEO Says Pentagon Ban Less Harsh Than Hegseth Had Threatened

CEO Dario Amodei said he would still sue to overturn the designation of Anthropic as a 'supply chain risk,' but he said the company was 'having productive conversations with the Department of War' — which Pentagon CTO Emil Michael promptly denied.

Morning Docket: 03.09.26

* After about-face on withdrawing lawsuits against law firms, Justice Department uncorks almost 100 pages of vitriol against federal judges for ruling against the administration generally. [NY Times]

* Book publishers sue what they’re calling a shadow library that provided materials for AI training. [Law360]

* John Quinn tells the Brits that American lawyers work harder. Which may be true, but you don’t rub that in! [The Times]

* Profiling the judge who ordered the administration to start issuing tariff refunds. [New York Law Journal]

* The administration is pushing the Supreme Court to weaken the federal judiciary. And so far the Court seems on board. [Reuters]

* Court strikes down… basically everything about how Voice of America has been run. [NPR]

Change Change Change — See Generally

But If We Changed The Rules…: Department of Justice proposes new rule that allows Pam Bondi to decide if any of her lawyers violated state ethics rules. This should work out great!

Trump Over Grades: Law school tells students that prestigious jobs are open if they’re loyal to Trump, and that GPA isn’t much of a factor.

Bye Bye Piece Of The Equity Pie: Arnold & Porter creates income tier.

What If We Just Get Rid Of The Author?: Federal Circuit dissents drop once they invent a new exception to life tenure to get rid of Judge Newman.

DOJ Gives Up Unconstitutional Nonsense Case… OR DO THEY?!?: Trump’s attempt to ruin Biglaw firms who wouldn’t pay him off dies a quiet death in court. Then, within 24 hours, the DOJ tells the court that it’s reversing itself and would like to continue illegally harassing law firms.

Speaking Of Reversals: The Florida Bar opened an investigation into ethically challenged government lawyer Lindsey Halligan. And then immediately announced that it didn’t know anything about that.

AI Could Mess Up The Outside Counsel Relationship: This tech may not replace lawyers, but it might replace which lawyers do the work.