The Quiet Crisis Of Law Firm Lead Conversion: Why You Don’t Have A Marketing Problem, You Have An Intake Problem

I posted earlier about a provision in the House reconciliation bill that attempts to effectively repeal NEPA by allowing sponsors of projects to pay a fee to avoid any judicial review of NEPA documents.  That provision is not unique, and indeed it looks like House Republicans are trying to develop a new tool to use reconciliation (which can avoid a Senate filibuster) to alter substantive law.  Similar pay to play provisions exist elsewhere in the bill. For instance, Section 41004 creates a similar provision that allows a sponsor of a liquid natural gas terminal seeking approval from FERC to pay a fee and in return get expedited approval and avoid judicial review by any opponents of the projects.  And as I noted in my earlier blog post, Sections 80103 and 80104 use a similar approach to streamline review of certain oil and gas drilling permits. We’ll see if these approaches pass muster with the Senate parliamentarian.  If they do, one can imagine pay to…

As of June 5, 2025, a total of 79 people infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella have been reported from 7 states (Arizona 3, California 63, Kentucky 1, Nebraska 2, New Jersey 2, Nevada 4, Washington 4). Six ill people in Kentucky, New Jersey, and Washington reported traveling to California and Nevada before they got sick. Illnesses started on dates ranging from February 24, 2025 to May 17, 2025. Of the 61 people with information available, 21 have been hospitalized. No deaths have been reported. State and local public health officials are interviewing people about the foods they ate in the week before they got sick. Of the 30 people interviewed, 27 (90%) reported eating eggs. State health officials identified illness sub-clusters at two restaurants. An illness sub-cluster is a group of unrelated sick people who all ate at the same location or event, such as a restaurant. Investigating sub-clusters can help identify a food item eaten by all the sick people that could…

As the Senate takes up the House’s version of the reconciliation bill, I wanted to briefly summarize the main provisions that relate to public lands – in part so readers can be aware of the state of play as to what might (or might not) come to pass in the Senate.  The bill as passed by the House can be found here. Overall, most of the relevant provisions relate to leases for fossil fuel development, particularly oil and gas.  Some other provisions are part of long-term battles over flashpoint projects (such as oil and gas development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge), examples of the ping-pong governance that I have described before. Section 80101 of the bill would require BLM to issue quarterly oil and gas leases in all states with land available for oil and gas development, and provides that land eligible for oil and gas development is any land not prohibited from such development under federal law or land-use plans.  It also provides that at…

If you or someone you know is facing the daunting reality of a felony conviction in San Diego, there is a glimmer of hope. The possibility of reducing a felony to a misdemeanor exists under certain conditions. This legal process can significantly impact your future, allowing you to reclaim rights and opportunities that may have been lost due to the felony conviction. For a free legal consultation regarding this matter, call our San Diego criminal defense lawyers today at (619) 430-2355. Key Takeaways • Felony reduction in San Diego is possible if your crime is a wobbler and you meet specific eligibility criteria. • A Penal Code 17(b) motion allows reductions at sentencing or after probation completion. • Hiring an experienced San Diego criminal defense attorney increases your chance of success. • Reduction restores rights like voting and may improve employment prospects. • A reduced felony can still impact licensing and gun rights, so legal…

Another national park idea the Trump Administration had recently was to offload hundreds of national parks to states and local governments, in order to trim $900 million from the Park Service budget.  The proposal is spare on details, only calling for the “transfer [of] certain properties to State-level management.”  Secretary of the Interior Burgum stated that only about 60 “crown jewel” parks would be off of the list for potential transfer.  As the article notes, most states seem uninterested in taking on the additional cost and responsibility of managing national parks, and in any case, national park status generally is a plus in terms of getting tourists to visit a site. But as with Alcatraz, it’s important to remember there is law here.  And that law probably means that any major change in operations of national parks will have to come through Congress.  First, direct transfer of the ownership of these parks to states,…

A serious all-terrain vehicle (ATV) accident in Clayton left three people injured on Thursday evening, with two victims requiring emergency airlift transportation to local hospitals. The incident highlights the ongoing safety concerns surrounding recreational ATV use and the importance of proper safety precautions when operating these vehicles. Emergency Response to Oak Hill Lane Incident Firefighters with the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District responded to reports of a four-wheel all-terrain vehicle accident with multiple injuries on Oak Hill Lane just before 6 p.m. on Thursday. The swift emergency response was crucial given the severity of the injuries sustained in the crash. Emergency medical personnel quickly assessed the scene and determined that two of the three injured victims required immediate airlift transportation due to their critical conditions. The rapid deployment of air medical services demonstrates how serious ATV accidents can result in…

Abdi Aidid (University of Toronto - Faculty of Law; Yale Law School) has posted Juridification and Regulating the Modern Lawyer (Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics, Volume 37, No. 3) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: To say that lawyers are everywhere is only a slight exaggeration, yet the legal ethics regimes tasked with regulating the profession do not contemplate most of what modern lawyers do. As this Article explains, a major reason for this is juridification, a process describing (i) the sheer growth in the volume and increasing specificity of new laws, (ii) the increase in the authority and reach of judicial dispute resolution, and (iii) the proliferation of law-like procedures and legalistic decision-making in non-juridical organizations. Interestingly, this expansion of lawyer influence occurred against the backdrop of a countertendency in lawyer regulation. Legal ethics regimes self-consciously moved away from expansive, aspirational rule-setting to-with the advent of…

Throughout the month of May, the Law Library received alerts for full-time TTU Law Faculty publications and news. Below is a compilation of those daily alerts for May 1st to May 31st, 2025. Articles, Books, and More Gerry W. Beyer, Drafting Wills to Prevent and Diminish Contests, Est. Plan. Dev. for Tex. Prof., Mar. 2025, at 1. Gerry W. Beyer, ed., Keeping Current—Probate, Prob. & Prop., May/Jun. 2025, at 27. Gerry W. Beyer, Potpourri, 63-2 Real Est., Prob., & Tr. L. Rep., at 4 (2025). Gerry W. Beyer, Intestacy, Wills, Estate Administration, and Trusts Update, 63-2 Real Est., Prob., & Tr. L. Rep., at 5 (2025). Geoffrey S. Corn, [Chapter Within] The Law on Nuclear Weapons (2025). Richard Murphy, Federal Practice and Procedure (May 2025 Update). Richard Murphy, Administrative Law and Practice (May 2025 Update). Stephen t. Black, Weaponizing AI, 16 UC L. Sci. & Tech. J. 177 (2025). Blogs, Op-Eds, and Newsletters Prof.…

[The Trump Administration returned the illegally deported migrant from imprisonment in El Salvador after repeatedly claiming they could not do so.] Kilmar Abrego Garcia. (NA)  Salvadoran immigrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia—illegally deported by the Trump Administration to imprisonment in El Salvador without any due process—is now back in the US. After the Supreme Court ruled that the Administration had to "facilitate" his return, the administration repeatedly insisted they had no power to do so, and otherwise verged on defying court orders. But as Trump admitted, in reality the administration could have secured his return any time they wanted to. Salvadoran President Nayeb Bukele was  keeping Abrego Garcia in prison only because of arrangement with Trump, under which the US paid him to detain Garcia and hundreds of other migrants deported without due process, in violation of the Fifth Amendment. The Venezuelans deported under the Alien Enemies…

A medical malpractice deposition is a critical step in a lawsuit. It requires doctors, expert witnesses, and other medical professionals to provide sworn testimony under questioning from attorneys. Though depositions take place outside the courtroom, they are legally binding, and anything said can be used at trial. Understanding how to prepare for a deposition can make a significant difference in the outcome of a case. This guide will explain what to expect, how to answer questions, and which legal strategies can help protect your rights.   What Is a Medical Malpractice Deposition? Purpose of a Deposition A deposition is a formal legal proceeding where a witness provides testimony under oath before a trial. Attorneys use depositions to gather information, clarify facts, and assess witness credibility. In medical malpractice cases, depositions help attorneys determine whether a doctor’s actions met the standard of care. The plaintiff’s attorney may try to…

Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Trivia Question of the Day! According to data from the 2025 NLJ 500, which five U.S. cities have the most lawyers, and which five firms have the largest offices in those markets? Hint: These are the hottest legal markets in the country, where some of the most profitable Biglaw firms are headquartered. See the answer on the next page. Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Bluesky, X/Twitter, and Threads, or connect with her on LinkedIn. The post The Cities With The Most Lawyers In America appeared first on Above the Law.

How are legal professionals and law firm managers adapting to rapid advances in artificial intelligence? Justin Cary of Drummond Woodsum in Portland, Maine, joined host Jared Correia in this recent episode of “Adventures in Legal Tech” to explore AI upskilling in the legal industry. Here are some takeaways from the discussion. How to Get Started What are the first steps in training your lawyers and staff to realize the benefits of AI tools? Here, Justin weighs in. The ‘Red Herring’ of AI Training Where does AI upskilling go wrong? Justin takes a look at the problem of data. A Human Trust Gap While building trust with AI products creates its own challenges, you shouldn’t overlook the need for trust among human stakeholders. Here, Justin explains why. Hear the Full Conversation Curious to learn more? Check out this episode below. The post ‘Adventures In Legal Tech’: The Challenges Of AI…

[No, says a magistrate judge.] From a decision by Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui (D.D.C.) in In re: Search of One Device and Two Individuals (decided last month but just released Tuesday): The videos [of the arrest] showed the defendant and [Redacted] on top of each other, falling down the stairs while being tackled by police officers. While they all were tumbling down, a gun fell from their area. Defendant's [Redacted] exclaimed right away that the gun was [Redacted]. The gun was in fact registered to [Redacted] and [Redacted] had a license to carry it. The defendant was prosecuted on the theory that he was the one possessing the gun, which would be a crime because the defendant (but not the man he was fighting, whose gun this was) was a felon. Among other things, the court rejected the request for a warrant to search defendant's phone: The affidavit here does not "demonstrate that [[Redacted]] was engaged in [illegally possessing a firearm] and keeping…

Many law firms have pro bono programs since they want to perform good work with the skills they obtained through the practice of law.  Indeed, some law firms take the saying “to those much is given, much is expected” and try to pay it forward by performing pro bono work.  However, law firms do not need to be “do gooders” to be interested in pro bono work since pro bono work oftentimes gives junior associates a valuable opportunity to gain practical experience they might not obtain working on typical client matters. When I was a Biglaw associate, I did not get much courtroom experience or familiarity with litigation tasks from working on client matters. Our law firm would never send me or another junior associate to court to advocate for a client since the firm would most likely send one of the partners. It was even rare for a senior associate to take a deposition at the firm, since partners handled pretty much all of the practical tasks…

From a decision by Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui (D.D.C.) in In re: Search of One Device and Two Individuals (decided last month but just released Tuesday): The videos [of the arrest] showed the defendant and [redacted] on top of each other, falling down the stairs while being tackled by police officers. While they all were tumbling down, a gun fell from their area. Defendant's [redacted] exclaimed right away that the gun was [redacted]. The gun was in fact registered to [redacted] and [redacted] had a license to carry it. The underlying criminal prosecution of the defendant was for that defendant's allegedly possessing a firearm as a felon, but the government applied for a search warrant seeking, among other things, [redacted]'s DNA, which in context appears to be the DNA of the person who was fighting with defendant. (As is often the case with opinions that contain multiple redactions, one needs to guess at what each redaction relates to.) [Redacted] has lived,…

The Trump administration came to the Supreme Court on Friday morning asking the justices to temporarily pause an order by a federal judge in Massachusetts that requires the Department of Education to reinstate nearly 1,400 employees who were fired as part of a reduction in force in March. U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer urged the Supreme Court to intervene, arguing that U.S. District Judge Myong Joun “is attempting to prevent” the Department of Education “from restructuring its workforce, despite lacking the” power to do so “several times over.”  The Supreme Court directed the challengers in the case – including a group of blue states, led by New York, as well as the District of Columbia, public school districts, and teachers’ unions – to respond to the Trump administration’s request by 4 p.m. on Friday, June 13.  The dispute has its roots in the March 11 announcement by the…

Recently, lawsuits alleging violations of the quiet hours restrictions of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) have been filed with increasing frequency.  One law firm which has been among the most frequent filers of this category of lawsuit has been The Law Offices of Jibrael S. Hindi. What Are the TCPA’s Quiet Hours Restrictions? Readers will be familiar with the guidelines addressing telemarketing during particular times of day.  Specifically, the TCPA’s applicable implementing regulations, found at 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c)(1), provide, in pertinent part: “[n]o person or entity shall initiate any telephone solicitation” to “[a]ny residential telephone subscriber before the hour of 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. (local time at the called party’s location).” 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c) further states that these restrictions are “applicable to any person or entity making telephone solicitations or…

We trust doctors, nurses, and healthcare professionals with our lives, but what happens when that trust is broken by a preventable mistake? While not every negative medical outcome is grounds for a lawsuit, some errors cross the line into medical malpractice. This legal term can have profound implications for both patients and providers. In this post, we’ll explain what legally qualifies as medical malpractice, how it differs from general medical mistakes, and what you can do if you or a loved one has been harmed by negligent care. ⚖️ What Is Medical Malpractice? Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare provider deviates from the accepted standard of care, and that deviation causes injury or harm to the patient. To have a valid malpractice case, four legal elements must generally be proven: Duty – The medical provider had a legal obligation to treat the patient. Breach – They failed to meet the standard of care expected in their field. …