Now that 2021 is behind us, we’re faced with a new year looming before us, and the only thing that can be easily predicted is continued unpredictability. Pandemic surges have led to rescheduled conferences, canceled travel plans and delayed office reopenings. As a result, it’s no easy task for law firms seeking to lay the groundwork for a successful 2022. Pandemic-related uncertainty must be factored into the mix, and resiliency needs to be at the core of a law firm’s business plan.
From technology behemoths buying up dynamic startups to market-leading utility companies joining forces, there is a clear trend of market consolidation in the U.S. In the quest to curb the monopolization of industries, President Joe Biden signed an executive order in July promoting competition in the economy—which signals an upcoming increase in antitrust investigations for the legal industry.
For a change, let’s talk about change. I would like to start with one of my favorite statesmen, Sir Winston Churchill, who said, “To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.”
Conservatives look at 2022 in the U.S. Supreme Court with great anticipation, while liberals feel dread for what is likely to come. But all, on both sides of the political aisle, agree that 2022 is going to be a momentous year for the Supreme Court.
I’ve mentioned it more than once: Occasionally, some law-related television is simply too “real” for me to enjoy. When explaining this phenomenon, I often use Breaking Bad as an example. I’ve still never seen the entire series (I made it into season three), and although I’m a massive fan of the spinoff Better Call Saul, Breaking Bad did such a great job of portraying methamphetamine addicts that—as a practicing criminal defense attorney—I found it challenging to watch.
In December, the Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” program resumed under President Joe Biden's administration. The immigration policy, formally known as the Migrant Protection Protocols, requires the U.S. government to return certain asylum-seekers to Mexico pending the adjudication of their immigration cases in American courts.
Ari Kaplan recently moderated a discussion with the following chief executive officers for the final Ari Kaplan Advisors CEO Roundtable of 2021 about trends, challenges and opportunities in the past year and the year ahead.
Although 2021 certainly had important developments in the U.S. Supreme Court, there also was a sense of it being a year of waiting for the blockbuster cases to come in 2022 on abortion rights, the Second Amendment, and separation of church and state. As we look back at the court in 2021, what was most significant?
In many ways, 2021 felt like the year that would never end. The pandemic dragged on, and new variants popped up like whack-a-moles. The resulting instability resulted in an increased reliance on remote working software, as lawyers put into place technology that provided the flexibility that their firms needed to transition to a dispersed workforce should the need arise.
