Emerging Litigation Podcast

“Facing the prospect of major financial fallout from an attack, C-suites around the world have turned to cyber insurance. Insurers are issuing more policies, and the amounts of protection available are increasing. In 2020, according to data proprietary to the team I lead, the global insurance community saw the first cyber insurance program to exceed $1 billion — and the second. However, the moment...

Besides its people and the quality of their free snacks, an organization’s intellectual property is often its most valuable asset. Whether it’s a patent or a trademark, a graphic design or proprietary market information, or just the unique way they do what they do. Companies must protect their innovations or risk significant damage to their future prospects.   Assessing the vulnerabilities of such...

Wildfires are causing more destruction in North America than at any time in recorded history.  In 2010 they consumed 3.4 million acres, but nearly tripled to devour more than 10 million acres in 2020. They also have been responsible for numerous injuries and loss of life, razing thousands of homes, displacing wildlife, destroying natural resources, and even spewing air pollution thousands of miles...

As brokerages focus on enhancing user experience, they risk shifting their customer’s focus from serious financial decisions to a game-like experience.  Some think this is a good thing. That it will help engage the next generation of traders. Others think it's a bad thing. That it will create a more spastic type of trader with unrealistic expectations on potential returns. State and federal r...

For  30 years attorney Daniel R. Karon has successfully represented plaintiffs and defendants in class-action and individual lawsuits. He's also chair of one of the leading class action conferences for lawyers, judges and law professors: the American Bar Association National Institute on Class Actions. He's passionate about educating up-and-coming lawyers. He teaches and writes extensive...

Nothing illustrates the tragic consequences of building decay more than the June 24, 2021, collapse of the Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida, which claimed the lives of nearly 100 residents. The event raises questions about the building inspection process not only in Florida but around the country. What caused this calamity? Who is responsible? How many other buildings are in similar con...

It's not a matter of if, but when. Of course, I'm talking about a sky speckled with commercial drones, bringing us our precious products and pharmaceuticals, or performing work in high places humans find dangerous, like inspecting bridges and buildings, monitoring crops and livestock, and keeping an eye on pipelines and oil rigs.  What must companies know about deploying a drone fleet? W...

Damage awards in litigation against physicians, hospitals, and other healthcare providers have been coming in bigger and bigger, with juries awarding more than $20 million in a string of cases that should send chills down the spines of defendants and counsel.  What are the factors behind this trend? Besides the severe (or even alarming)  nature of the harm alleged, what is fueling these mega verdi...

Law firms are sweet targets for hackers given the rich data they store, from intellectual property to confidential merger details to personal and health information and more.  The last decade is littered with headlines about data hacks and ransomware attacks at even the most sophisticated global law firms. Yet, according to the 2020 Legal Technology Survey Report conducted by the American Bar Asso...

Cryptocurrency assets now exceed $1.5 trillion globally. What a great innovation, as is the magic that makes these transactions possible. Of course, I’m talking about blockchain. The possibilities are endless on both counts. No central authority. No regulators. But (there’s always a but), thanks to the world’s miscreants, desperados and other baddies there is escalating potential for theft of thes...

President Biden  has called for the doubling of offshore wind energy capacity by 2030. To say the process for getting such projects up and running is complex is an understatement. There will be plenty of obstacles to the administration's lofty goal. Where will these impediments to development arise? What role will states play? How will NGOs react to this ambitious ramp-up? Joining me to discu...

Artificial intelligence has the capability to truly revolutionize how litigators work, and also how companies can avoid litigation in the first place.  It can not only do the work of hundreds of people in mere seconds but can be used to predict liabilities before they become liabilities, and outcomes when disputes arise.  Joining me to discuss the incredible present-day applications of AI in law a...

It’s now been more than 18 months since the world was besieged by the novel coronavirus pandemic. In addition to the human toll, it disrupted our lives in ways big and small, new and old, as it raced across continents, first visiting North America in January 2020. There are an estimated 15,000 lawsuits relating to the outbreak, with some 350 filings directed toward the healthcare and medical commu...

Unscrupulous contractors have been ripping off the federal government for as long as there has been a federal government. President Lincoln, tired of being sold lame mules and rancid rations, signed the Federal Claims Act into law during The Civil War. In the last two decades the government, with the help of whistleblowers, has raked in more than $20 billion. Joining me to discuss this important c...

The cost of ransomware to businesses is estimated to have doubled since 2019 to $20 billion, according to Coveware. Policyholders turn to their insurance policies to recover losses which average more than $230,000 per incident. More than half (56%) of ransomware victims paid the ransom to restore access to their data last year, according to a global study of 15,000 consumers conducted by global se...

Civil unrest. Peaceful protests. Massive marches. Riots. Looting.  Which of these things are not like the other? Recent social outrage over police shootings of Black people -- these events in particular -- have sent people to the streets by hundreds of thousands. In some cases these constitutionally protected activities are followed by property damage, injury and death. Observers continue to debat...

Participation in labor unions is less than half of what it was 40 years ago. It has seen an uptick in the service sector, but a sharp decline in manufacturing. According to economist Heidi Shierholz decline in union rolls is partly responsible for today's yawning income inequality gap. Recently we've seen the formation of a modest union at Google and a movement among Amazon workers. We&a...

Leave it to people to seize on any opportunity to take advantage of good intentions. The federal government has made available many millions of dollars under the CARES Act, subsets of which are the Paycheck Protection Program and SBA lending which comes with some forgiveness provisions. Fraudsters are popping up. Some are being indicted. Others are paying fines. But this is just the start since mo...

When, in addition to damage, injury and even death, a catastrophe ravages a regional economy, should that be taken into account when valuing the business loss claims brought by a policyholder?  The UK Supreme Court recently came down on the issue in a test case based on a batch of different company policies giving some hope to policyholders. What impact will it have on COVID business interruption...

To consumers, class actions can be an invaluable tool when they need to level the playing field in disputes with large companies whose resources far outweigh those of  individuals.  Two important class action cases are currently before the Supreme Court.  One case, TransUnion v. Ramirez , involves innocent consumers who were erroneously added to the government's watch list for terrorists and...

What does the future hold for psychedelics in America? How are states approaching the ownership and use of these drugs, either for recreational or their controlled therapeutic use? Listen to my interview with Griffen Thorne , an attorney in the Los Angeles office of Harris Bricken LLP .  He focuses on corporate, transactional, intellectual property, data security, regulatory, and litigation matter...

More of us are working from home and, given it often has advantages, it's an arrangement that is likely to continue for many of us.  This raised the general question: Is your home officially "the office," with all the attendant rules and norms? What new risks do employers face? What new ways can employees find themselves in trouble? We're also getting vaccinated. That's gr...

As we see liability actions relating to plastics creeping into the nation's dockets, what types of claims will survive? How much more of this might we see? And if it really hits the fan, how will insurance companies respond? Will policyholders find protection in their comprehensive general liability policies? Their directors and officers policies? Other policies?   It was my pleasure to inter...

What efficiencies have been foisted upon our nation's courts as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic?  What has worked and what has not? Are we going to see permanent implementation of things like webcam hearings and virtual trials?  It was my pleasure to interview Alison Besunder on this timely and evolving subject.  It’s based on her article — Crisis is the Mother of Change: How a Pandemic Spa...

What can legitimate cannabis companies do to level the playing field, not only against others who walk the straight and narrow, but dealers still thriving on the black market? It was my pleasure to interview Ausra Deluard and Jennifer Oliver for what was an informative and even surprising podcast. It’s based on their article — Clearing the Haze: State Laws and Private Plaintiffs Critical to Preser...