One safe prediction about 2026 is that it will be another momentous year at the U.S. Supreme Court. The matters already on the docket, as well as those likely to arrive, promise many blockbuster decisions that will shape American government and directly affect people’s lives in a myriad of ways. Here are some of the stories to look for.
Legal industry analyst Ari Kaplan hosted his inaugural Ari Kaplan Advisors Legal Tech GC/CLO Roundtable to reflect on the legal industry in 2025 and discuss key challenges, trends and opportunities likely to affect strategic priorities in 2026.
The holidays are a time for reflection: what we have, what we’ve lost, and what we hope to find. For people who’ve lost their freedom, that contemplation and those memories likely hit hard. Incarcerated or free, it’s still the holidays.
What will be the role of the U.S. Supreme Court in the midst of a presidency that is challenging constitutional limits, and at a time when the country is deeply ideologically divided?
There was nothing typical about the past year. The only constant was change. Legal technology announcements rolled out nonstop, making it nearly impossible to stay on top of all the updates. Investment from venture capital and private equity firms was record-breaking. Artificial intelligence advanced faster than any of the technologies that preceded it, and the number of new legal tech AI startups launched in 2025 was so high that it felt like a game of whack-a-mole.
Walk into any law firm today, and you’ll likely find attorneys using artificial intelligence tools for everything from contract analysis to brief writing. Yet if you walk into most state bar associations, you’ll find regulatory frameworks that haven’t caught up to this new reality.
In addition to starting on the path to be a lawyer, Kim Kardashian plays one on TV, in Hulu’s All’s Fair. I watched two episodes, so you don’t have to watch any.
Retirement is a significant life event that often inspires a mixture of fear, excitement and uncertainty. The ABA Senior Lawyers Division recently aired Stephen Herman’s documentary, Retirement on Trial: A Documentary and Panel Discussion for Lawyers Thinking About Their Next Stage, which examines retirement through the lens of lawyers who are both apprehensive and optimistic about this transition.
Scarlett Ungurean, Executive Director at ABA Retirement Funds
The Supreme Court will hear two cases—Trump v. Slaughter on Dec. 8 and Trump v. Cook on Jan. 21—that are likely to substantially change the law as to when the president can fire those in the executive branch of government. President Donald Trump has claimed that it is a “unitary executive,” and that as the head of it, he can fire anyone within it.
