A New Normal for Gibson Dunn Litigator

In a new recurring feature, Bloomberg Law is asking how Big Law attorneys are getting by in an age of work from home. First up is Gibson Dunn & Crutcher’s Anne Champion, a partner based in New York.

Litigator at Work: Champion has moved her high-powered litigation practice -- which has included work like helping CNN’s Jim Acosta and Playboy’s Brian Karem win back their press access to the Trump White House -- to her home office because of the coronavirus.

Guest Stars: The new setup has produced some comedic moments for Champion who said, “my kids are never more interested in me than when I’m on a video call.” She added, “They love to interrupt, pop into the video, and wave to everyone. At least they are cute and easy to forgive!”

Mary Ellen Egan has the story.

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DAILY BRIEF

Business of Law

Litigation Funder Wins Trademark Case Against Former CEO
The former CEO of litigation funding company Oasis Legal Finance Operating Co. misused the company’s trademarks by branding his new ventures with “Oasis” after being fired, a Chicago federal court said.

Lawyer With Security Clearance Denied Look at Classified Filings
A lawyer’s security clearance didn’t allow him to see classified information filed by federal prosecutors with the court in his client’s criminal trial for providing material support to a terrorist organization, the Second Circuit said Thursday.

Sharpton Renews Criticism of Skadden Over Attorney Diversity
Civil rights advocate Rev. Al Sharpton has renewed criticism of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom over diversity, this time over what he said was a lack of minority representation in the firm’s recently announced partner class.

Legal Tech

Lights, Camera, Friction: Courts Lurch Into a Virtual Future
Problems big, small and ridiculous have popped up as courts practice social distancing to manage the pandemic. As the kinks get worked out, virtual court may point the way to a fairer and more efficient justice system.

Judiciary

Federal Circuit Opinions Surge as Virus Worries Cancel Arguments
A recent coronavirus-related increase in the volume of Federal Circuit opinions could help future litigants in related disputes at the court. The Federal Circuit generally issues an opinion for any case in which it doesn’t hear argument. The number of opinions is up after the court canceled arguments in half of the cases in April.

WAKE-UP CALL

Schiff Hardin Slashes Pay Up to 50% for Some Practice Areas
In today’s column, at least 19 big and midsize law firms announced cost-cut moves in the last week, as they focus on surviving the Covid-19 crisis; Norton Rose; Hogan Lovells; Dentons; and K&L Gates announced new pay cuts; Reed Smith raised eyebrows by announcing bigger pay cuts for associates than for counsel; Freshfields said it’s still in the market for U.S. talent; and class action lawyers predict Covid-19 will spark an “explosion” of worker lawsuits.

CORONAVIRUS UPDATES

• More than 659,183 people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with Covid-19 and 31,856 people have lost their lives. Global confirmed cases of Covid-19 surpass 2,150,000 worldwide, with deaths topping 142,000.
• Some tech advances in state courts could withstand the pandemic, experts on a panel hosted by the Council for Criminal Justice said Thursday. “All this technology that everybody has had to essentially learn overnight is going to be a critical resource for us to use going forward to help state dollars in each of your budgets,” Laurie Dudgeon, director of Kentucky’s administrative office of the courts, said on the virtual panel. She said she expects a decline in funding for the state court system following the pandemic.

• The District of Rhode Island requested twice-weekly status reports on the Wyatt detention facility, which primarily houses pre-trial defendants and ICE detainees. Those reports should include the number of detainees total, the number tested, the amount of staff tested, and an outline of the measures being taken to reduce the spread of the virus.

Follow the latest changes in court operations using our interactive map.

Follow Bloomberg Law reporters on Twitter as they track updates from courts across the country with the hashtag #COVID19Courts.

PRACTITIONER INSIGHTS

INSIGHT: The Covid Tipping Point—GCs Are Chief Resilient Officers
For years, we’ve waited for legal’s tipping point to arrive. We’re here to say: This is it, write Catherine Kemnitz and David Pierce, with Axiom. General counsels have become their organization’s chief resilience officer, and they need to make the cost-to-risk decisions that will showcase the legal organization as the pinnacle of that resiliency.

INSIGHT: Businesses Better Brace for Post-Coronavirus Lawsuits
Companies are focusing on critical legal and business issues during the pandemic, but it’s beyond question that many plaintiffs’ attorneys will be focusing significant effort on converting the Covid-19 pandemic into a profitable flow of litigation work, Alston & Bird attorneys warn.

INSIGHT: M&A Trends to Expect in the Wake of Covid-19
Merger and acquisition activity is grinding to a halt during the coronavirus pandemic, Locke Lord attorneys write. However, M&A activity will pick up again once things return to “normal,” and they explore several trends in purchase agreements they expect to see.

INSIGHT: Planning for Government Antitrust Merger Litigation During and After the Pandemic
The Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice have made quick changes to the merger review process in light of the coronavirus pandemic. With merging parties already facing more scrutiny, Kirkland & Ellis LLP partner Peter McCormack says they now need to expect more uncertainty and longer delays, and consider preparing for litigation.

INSIGHT: College Admissions Scandal Shows Ethical Lapses By Prosecutors
William V. Roppolo, co-chair of Baker McKenzie’s North American trial team, highlights three ethical issues from the recent disclosure that prosecutors in the college admissions scandal wanted the mastermind of the scheme, turned informant, to “bend the truth” and “nail [them] at all costs.”

WORKFLOWS

Willkie Farr & Gallagher announced that Michael G. Babbitt has joined as a partner as part of the Intellectual Property practice in Chicago | Locke Lord’s Austin office has expanded the Public Finance Practice Group, adding Adam Harden as a Partner, and John Hall and Justin Rodriguez as Senior Counsel; the group joins from Norton Rose Fulbright | Davis Wright Tremaine reports that Spencer Persson has joined the Los Angeles office as partner in its Technology + Privacy & Security practice from Norton Rose Fulbright | Barnes & Thornburg hired corporate attorney Tan Le as a partner in Chicago | Bressler, Amery & Ross added former Morgan Stanley and Citigroup in-house lawyer Joseph L. Calabrese as a principal in its financial institutions group in New York, and Megan Cannella joined as counsel in New Jersey from Faegre Drinker | Akerman’s Chicago office added Joel Sestito to the Real Estate Finance Practice and Kevin Shortsle to the Intellectual Property Practice Group | Winston & Strawn hired leveraged and acquisition finance lawyer Monica Barton as partner in the London office.

Correction: The Workflows in the First Move published April 15 should have said that Akerman tax lawyer Robert Wall and litigators Bryan Scott and Steven Hemric came from Spilman Thomas & Battle PLLC.

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