Top 10 in Law Blogs: Discourse on the billable hour, vaccine passports, and SPACs

By Michelle Newblom on April 16, 2021

Every blog post featured in this week’s line-up is a fantastic example of blogging done right. We have bloggers providing us with timely information—Sheppard Mullin offering a great blog post on President Biden’s newest Executive Order—and bloggers taking the time to craft detailed, informational posts on the longer side—Clio sharing a great breakdown on boutique firms versus Big Law. You can’t go wrong with any of these picks from our top ten. Read on to hear more about the billable hour, what to watch out for from “cannabis firms,” and the discourse surrounding vaccine passports.

Top 10

Caution to employers using social media to vet potential new hires

With social media at an all-time peak, it can be tempting to scour the internet when looking to vet candidates. Emily Siu‘s post on Spring Law‘s Employment & Human Rights Law in Canada blog goes over why that may not be the best idea—legally. She references the Ontario Human Rights Code and uses a casual tone to explain the legality behind the situation. That, coupled with the digestible length, make this an informative and easy-to-read blog post—stay tuned for part two next week which will discuss the risks of hiring bias and social media in more detail.

Passport rejected — a new twist in the COVID-19 passport chapter

“Vaccine passports” have been a global topic of conversation as the world attempts to navigate a post-COVID landscape. However—as Seyfarth points out on Employment Law Lookout—not only are conflicts between the public and private sectors causing a hold up, the ideological differences throughout the U.S. will likely prevent any federal laws from passing. They list which states’ governors have already made their opposition to vaccination passports clear. This post is organized and scannable, and features a section common to many Seyfarth blogs—a Seyfarth Synopsis—which summarizes the blog post from the get-go.

The billable hour – friend or foe?

A topic of discussion that came up the other night on Clubhouse—the newest up-and-coming social media app—was the billable hour. Zena Applebaum shares that in her mind, “the Billable Hour is the scapegoat for everything that is wrong with the legal industry.” She authors a concise post reflecting on the dialogue that took place and the complicated subject that is the billable hour. Zena’s voice shines through in this piece, and her conversational tone makes it feel like you were a part of the very Clubhouse discourse she’s recounting. Check out her thoughts at 3 Geeks and a Law Blog.

11th Circuit says websites need not be accessible

This blog post written by Thomas Crane is the perfect example of a good blog post—with its eye-catching title and discussion of an interesting, controversial case. As he explains, the Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits public places of accommodation from erecting barriers to persons with disabilities. But in a recent case, a man who is blind tried to order prescription drugs online from Winn-Dixie, which does not use software compatible with his screen reader software. The Eleventh Circuit ruled that the company did not erect any barriers since ordering is possible in-person. He closes the post with a brief reflection on this troubling ruling, available at the San Antonio Employment Law Blog.

Trouble brewing in SPAC-land?

In a detailed, comprehensive post, Kevin LaCroix dives into the world of SPACS and takes a look at the increase in litigation as well as the SEC’s relation to the matters. He separates his post into three different sections—focusing on the SEC’s statement on accounting for SPAC warrants, the formation of the SPAC task force, and New York State Court SPAC-related litigation. Kevin is another blogger with a defined voice, and though the topic may be convoluted for some, he breaks it down in a user-friendly way like he always days on his blog, The D&O Diary.

Boutique law firms: What they are and why you should run one

We read Zena’s take on the billable hour, and now we’re here to explore Carissa Tham‘s perspective on boutique law firms vs. Big Law. One thing to note is that in this longer post, Carissa does a great job breaking it down into many different sections and inserts a lot of images—turning what could be an overwhelming wall of text into a visually appealing post. She also begins the post with a quick summary of what she’ll be discussing. Carissa goes over the definition of boutique firms, the benefits of working at one, and why you should run one on Clio’s Blog.

Employers need to pay attention to sexual orientation and gender identity protection policies

The transition from the Trump to the Biden administration was definitely noticeable for businesses, as the landscape shifted from pro-business to pro-employee. Henderson Franklin‘s Scott Atwood explores what the passing of the Equality Act—intended to amend Title VII and several other laws to specifically provide protections for “sexual orientation and gender identity”—could mean for employers on Southwest Florida Business and IP Blog. Scott also encourages businesses to pay attention to updating handbook policies and trainings and ends the post with a “key takeaways section”—something any blogger unsure on how to close out a post can implement.

Cannabis lawyers and law firms: The good the bad and the ugly

One of the nation’s biggest cannabis lawyers, Hilary Bricken of Harris Bricken certainly knows what she’s talking about as she explores some of the bad behavior she’s seen from firms who claim to have cannabis practices. She identifies five distinct trends, including the suburban law firm with the “cannabis guy” and the cannabis law firms that take equity in their clients’ cannabis businesses. Not only are some of their behaviors sloppy, they can even be dangerous Hilary emphasizes on Canna Law Blog.

How law firms can manage changing consumer expectations

Stacey Burke took to Twitter when formulating this post, asking her followers “how client behavior and your response to it have changed in the past 12-18 months.” She includes some of their responses and provides some insight on how to improve both external and internal communications. She also takes a look at empathy in professional interactions and how to manage expectations in these changing times. Stacey’s post—available in its entirety at My Case Blog—is formatted nicely with her inclusion of bullets, quotes, and headers.

Russia Russia Russia! The Biden Administration imposes tough sanctions on Russia

Fatema Merchant and Mario Torrico of Sheppard Mullin co-author this timely post on President Biden’s latest Executive Order. This follows the increase in concern about Russian troops along the Ukrainian border as well as the 2021 Threat Assessment report that cited Russia as presenting “one of the most serious intelligence threats to the United States.” Fatema and Mario split this blog post up into four sections, using bullets to make the article even more scannable, and hyperlinking when necessary. For more background on these new sanctions, visit Global Trade Law Blog.