Law And More

Law Student for Research/Bluebooking, Denton, TX - Contract

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Litigation Finance Journal - REMOTE - Researcher/Writer (part-time, contract)

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Comedy Writer, Los Angeles - Contract

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NBC Universal, Stamford, CT - Legal Assistant

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Husband of Deceased Halyna Hutchins - Matt Hutchins - Associate at Latham & Watkins

"The husband [Matt Hutchins] of Halyna Hutchins, the cinematographer who was fatally shot by actor Alec Baldwin with a prop gun on Thursday, is a corporate lawyer in Latham & Watkins' Los Angeles office ... [He] joined Latham as an associate this year. Earlier he was an in-house lawyer at an entertainment company and practiced at Kirkland & Ellis and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom ..." - Reuters Legal, October 22, 2021.

As Matt's LinkedIn profile highlights, his expertise is in transactional law. That includes M&A. He had graduated from Harvard Law School. 

Halyna is originally from the Ukraine. The film industry is a second career. Previously she had been in journalism.

This blog passes along wishes to Matt Hutchins for strength during this tragic time.

Apollo Continues Pivot into Sustainability - Focus on Transition to Non-Fossil Sources of Energy and Game Theory

Recently, Apollo Global Management had announced it was creating the function of Chief Sustainability Officer.

The mission has been to review all investments in terms of its compliance with ESG criteria for Environment, Social and Governance principles. This Law and More article analyses the rewards and risks of that move.

On Friday, October 22nd, the financial giant expanded its reach and branding in sustainability. As it details in its press release it has bet big money on the energy transition to non-fossil sources. Here is the financialese:

"Apollo (NYSE: APO) today announced that funds managed by its affiliates (the “Apollo Funds”) have agreed to invest $824 million in a convertible equity portfolio financing agreement with NextEra Energy Partners, LP (NYSE: NEP) in a 2.5 GW renewable energy generation portfolio (the “Portfolio”). The Apollo Funds committed to the investment as part of the sale of 50% of the Portfolio from NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, a subsidiary of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE) to NextEra Energy Partners."

That portfolio contains 13 utility-scale wind and solar assets. Of those, three facilitate battery storage. 

The transaction had been handled by law firms Allen & Overy and Paul Weiss. 

What does this mean?

Well. to begin with, it's a kind of what's called "virtue signaling." That is, the message is: We are on the right side of global values. Salvation for mankind entails the battery's replacing gasoline.

In addition, Apollo is leveraging its influence to confirm the importance of energy transition. That includes how investors should make their choices. Yes, investors, non-fossil fuels are the horse to bet on.

And, Apollo is positioning and packaging itself as being in the front lines of a business philosophy that goes by the umbrella term "ESG." Apollo publishes an annual report "The Apollo ESG Effect." Here you can read it. 

The stars are aligned that Apollo will impact the energy sector in a major way.

In the global corridors of influence what moves the dial on getting things done are the connections among the movers and shakers. Journalist Hedrick Smith explained those dynamics in his book "The Power Game."

It is interesting to note in Apollo's journey toward being the player in sustainability its long-time legal counsel has been law firm Paul Weiss. Yes, that firm oversaw this most recent transaction. 

The Paul Weiss Chairperson Brad Karp has been a first-mover in the law firm sector's embrace of ESG values. For example, it established the first ESG practice.

Also, on personal level, Karp has mobilized collective action throughout law firms to support causes associated with ESG values. They include push-back against suppression of voters' rights. Those initiatives reinforced Paul Weiss' presence for being a force field in social justice. That fits nicely where Apollo is heading. 

It also can be useful to observe that Apollo's actions may be based on a version of game theory. The genius John Nash brought the erudite discipline mainstream. Recently I have created material for a client on the implications of game theory for the crypto market. 

Essentially, game theory strategy is about optimizing outcomes through ensuring cooperation among those in the loop. That seems to be underlying how Apollo is going about sustainability. The self-interest of all the players is brilliantly locked in. 

Game theory is becoming an increasingly useful lens for assessing investing initiatives. Meanwhile, green is good. It's in the public interest. 

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GUILTY! - Lev Parnas Violated Campaign Laws

"Lev Parnas, a onetime associate of Donald Trump's former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, was found guilty on Friday of violating U.S. campaign finance laws during the 2018 elections." - Reuters Legal, October 22, 2021.

It all came down on him. One question, of course, is: Will this also come down on Giuliani. His brand has become quite wobbly. 

The conviction was for all six counts of federal election law violations. Those included assisting a non-US citizen in donating to a U.S. election campaign, conducting contributions in the names of others, and making misleading statements to the Federal Elections Commission.

These activities were supposed to achieve this objective: Greasing the palms of politicos in order to obtain licenses to sell cannabis in 2018. 

Before the trial, the media had reported that Parnas was laughing - a la Tony Soprano style - about being prosecuted. 

Feedspot selected Law and More as one of The Top 100 Legal Blogs.

Marketing communications. It’s about results. Not quantity. Not clickbait. Not even influence. Together we will get those results. Clients range from American Express to industrial accounts. Fees customized for your unique budget. Complimentary consultation - janegenova374@gmail.com.

Junior Lawyers Admit: Being Back in Office Is Not So Bad

The return-to-the-office has been an adjustment for lawyers.

However, once the transition is mastered, many junior lawyers are conceding that, no, it's not all that bad. Actually, it's good to have the face time. Even if that's with only one person. Also, being there in-person could be important in getting ahead. Here is today's The New York Times article on those unexpected developments. 

Instead of triggering a massive walk-out being back in the office overall is being experienced as a a positive experience. At least by some.

So, all those cultural commentators about the changing preferences of the workforce could be way off. The Office might not be an oppressive institution. It could have multi-dimensional utility. 

Some are enjoying the social aspect. No, co-workers aren't the annoying critters depicted on that former series "The Office." 

Others treasure the availability of help. That could be as simple as having an IT expert nearby to fix a glitch.

Or, it could be more complex. And a possible career game-changer. There are junior lawyers who might find, as Paul Weiss Chairperson Brad Karp had reported in The Wall Street Journal interview, that the help could be awesome. It could represent the giant leap forward on the learning curve. Karp shares this anecdote: In real time in the office partners shared with him when he had been an associate the strategies they were using with clients. They would mute the conference call and relay the wisdom Karp might not have ever picked up on his own. Or which only could have come years later. 

Another surprise about back-at-the-office is that some lawyers are coming in five days during weekdays, even if not required.

Here is an observation: In general, professionals seem to be engaging in more interaction. Even if it's not in-person.

Right now, my client in crypto calls me on the phone often. That didn't happen during the worst of COVID. To my surprise, I welcome the immediacy and intensity of phone communications. That gives me the opportunity to pitch ideas for the YouTube scripts I'm creating. Doing that has enhanced the client relationship - and generated more work for me. Since the late 1980s I have been operating from a home office. The social isolation was what I found an advantage. Now, I'm not so sure. 

Feedspot selected Law and More as one of The Top 100 Legal Blogs.

Marketing communications. It’s about results. Not quantity. Not clickbait. Not even influence. Together we will get those results. Clients range from American Express to industrial accounts. Fees customized for your unique budget. Complimentary consultation - janegenova374@gmail.com.

And, some are showing up all five days during the weekend, even if that's not required.  

Robert Durst Charged with Wife's Murder - Houdini Act Almost Over

"Robert Durst has been charged in suburban New York City with murdering his first wife, Kathie Durst, who vanished without a trace in 1982. A state police investigator filed a criminal complaint on Tuesday at a town court in Lewisboro, New York, accusing the disgraced real estate heir of second-degree murder." - Daily Mail, October 22, 2021.

Yes, Durst had been sentenced to life in prison for the 2020 murder of his close friend Susan Berman. And, yes, after contracting COVID, he's on a ventilator. 

But, those who loved Kathie will be relieved that more of Durst's Houdini act - that is escaping out of the justice system, is being dismantled. 

There's now probably a collective prayer that Durst survives COVID. Then he can be put on trial for Kathie's death. We have been waiting decades for this.

Feedspot selected Law and More as one of The Top 100 Legal Blogs.

Marketing communications. It’s about results. Not quantity. Not clickbait. Not even influence. Together we will get those results. Clients range from American Express to industrial accounts. Fees customized for your unique budget. Complimentary consultation - janegenova374@gmail.com.

Big Banking - AI Has Been Replacing Lawyers, Much More to Come

"Morgan Stanley figures it’s saved legal staffers 50,000 hours of work and $10 million in attorney fees by using robot Libor lawyers instead of only the human kind. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. says computer algorithms sped things up 'drastically.' These banks aren’t alone in adopting AI, and the revolution likely won’t stop with the Libor transition ..." - William Shaw, Yahoo Finance, October 22, 2021.

Before Big Banking embraced AI humans trained in law would have to manually focus on complexities such as floating rate options. That would be to make decisions about such things as new interest rates. Also they would be struggling to figure out if what they came up could also be applied to loans and swaps.

Of course, right now AI doesn't take care of everything. Ernst & Young estimates that each player in Big Banking still spends about $100 million a year on this sort of thing. And that isn't all. Next, after the decisions are made, at least by the banks, there is the haggling. 

However, the positive results from using AI is opening the door to further applications. Should lawyers be wary? Yes. A whole niche could be snatched away from their law firms. 

Feedspot selected Law and More as one of The Top 100 Legal Blogs.

Marketing communications. It’s about results. Not quantity. Not clickbait. Not even influence. Together we will get those results. Clients range from American Express to industrial accounts. Fees customized for your unique budget. Complimentary consultation - janegenova374@gmail.com.