Summer’s Over and Big Law’s Real Changes Are About to Take Hold

Here are the day’s top coronavirus stories from the team at Bloomberg Law:

• SETTING BUDGETS: Big Law firms are starting to plan for their longer-term future as they prepare budgets for next year. Some firms are considering opening offices in suburbs while others are thinking permanent office assignments will go away. For firms locked into longer-term leases, they may have more space than they will need. Is anyone going to be interested in taking over that space? One possible answer is companies that offer on-demand work space targeted at lawyers, Bloomberg Law’s Roy Strom writes.
• EVICTION BAN: Under the authority of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Trump administration issued a four-month ban on evictions in order to keep millions of tenants in place in the hopes of preventing the spread of coronavirus. Under the terms of the new edict, tenants earning no more than $99,000 may receive this protection through Dec. 31. Property owners who defy the moratorium are subject to criminal penalties.
• UNEMPLOYMENT CHIEFS: It’s been a tough year to manage a state unemployment agency, and unemployment officials in at least eight states now have resigned or been fired during the pandemic.

Editor’s Top Picks

Skadden Lays Off Some U.S. Professional Staff
Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom has laid off some of its professional staff in the United States. Attorneys were not a part of the cuts announced by the firm.

Legal Analysts Disagree on Interior Project Studies’ Double-Dip
Legal practitioners disagree over the legality of the Interior Department approving more oil and gas projects using studies from earlier unrelated projects since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

Kelley Drye Latest Firm to Roll Back Some Virus-Related Pay Cuts
Kelley, Drye & Warren is the latest law firm to roll back some of the pay cuts it introduced in the spring to counteract the economic impact of the outbreak.

U.S. Jobless Claims Give Mixed Picture With Shift in Adjustments
U.S. unemployment-claims figures gave a mixed picture of the labor market amid government changes to seasonal adjustments to account for distortions from the pandemic.

Texas Supreme Court Temporarily Halts Harris County Ballot Plan
The Texas Supreme Court on Wednesday temporarily blocked Harris County from sending mail-in ballot applications to all of its registered voters in the Houston area.

Federal Court Allows Michigan Migrant Worker Covid-19 Test Rule
Michigan farmers must continue testing migrant workers for Covid-19 before laborers can hit the fields, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

Ohio Lawmakers Pass Covid-19 Business Liability Shield Bill
The Ohio Senate on Wednesday passed a bill that would bar Ohio workers, customers, and health-care patients from suing hospitals and other businesses for spreading Covid-19.

N.Y. Sports Clubs Members Get New Bills From Struggling Gym
Members of New York Sports Clubs, the fitness chain that warned it’s close to bankruptcy, woke this week to find that an automated monthly charge for dues has been fully reinstated as the gyms partially reopen.

Covid Tests, Touted as Free, Spur Bills at Some Doctors’ Offices
Americans are getting hit with unexpected bills for Covid-19 tests and hospital visits, and regulators say the problem often lies with how doctors are billing.

McConnell Raises Doubts on Congress Getting New Stimulus Done
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell expressed doubts about whether Congress can get a deal on another pandemic relief package when lawmakers return to Washington after a month-long recess, despite the Trump administration’s push for a quick, targeted stimulus.

INSIGHT: #TimesUp During Covid-19—Private Sector’s Role in Mitigating Gender Equality Crisis
Covid-19 presents employers the opportunity to showcase their leadership abilities and that they take gender equity seriously. Kaplan Hecker & Fink attorneys outline steps private companies can take to alleviate the disparate impact the pandemic is having on women.

Click here for updates on how federal courts are operating during the pandemic.

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Editor’s Note: The Bloomberg Law news team has been closely covering the legal, regulatory, business, and tax implications of the coronavirus pandemic. This daily email highlights the top stories of the day, across practice areas. To unsubscribe, please adjust your Bloomberg Law newsletter settings. For assistance, contact our help desk at 888-560-2529 or help@bloomberglaw.com.