ABA guidance on lawyer AI use, Biden proposes SCOTUS changes, demand for law grads may cool off soon, NCAA antitrust lawyers may earn over $500 mln ➡

☀️ Good morning from The Legal File! Here is the rundown of today's top legal news:

💼 Lawyers using AI must heed ethics rules, ABA says in first formal guidance

Lawyers must guard against ethical lapses if they use generative artificial intelligence in their work, the American Bar Association said on Monday.

In its first formal ethics opinion on generative AI, an ABA committee said lawyers using the technology must "fully consider" their ethical obligations to protect clients, including duties related to lawyer competence, confidentiality of client data, communication and fees.

Lawyers and law firms are increasingly using AI tools for legal research, document drafting and analysis, and other tasks in litigation, transactional and other work. New legal technology startups have been attracting large investments as the field develops.

Monday's opinion from the ABA's ethics and professional responsibility committee said AI tools can help lawyers increase efficiency but can also carry risks such as generating inaccurate output. Lawyers also must try to prevent inadvertent disclosure or access to client information, and should consider whether they need to tell a client about their use of generative AI technologies, it said.

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🏛️ Biden proposes term limits, code of conduct to rein in 'extreme' Supreme Court

President Joe Biden on Monday proposed sweeping changes to the U.S. Supreme Court that he said were needed to rein in a conservative-led court that was being weaponized to undermine established civil rights principles and protections.

Biden said he would work with Congress to enact a series of reforms, including term limits and a binding code of conduct, but immediate opposition voiced by Republicans in Congress means the proposals have little chance of enactment.

We need these reforms to restore trust in the court, Biden said in a speech marking the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 at the presidential library of former President Lyndon B. Johnson in Austin, Texas.

Biden called on Congress to pass binding and enforceable rules that would require the justices to disclose gifts, refrain from public political activity, and recuse themselves from cases in which they or their spouses have financial or other conflicts of interest. He also urged the adoption of an 18-year term limit for the justices, who currently serve life tenures.

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🎓Good times won’t last for law grads, warns job tracking group

New law school graduates crushed the entry-level job market in 2023, posting record high employment rates and salaries, according to just-published data from the National Association for Law Placement.

But subsequent classes are unlikely to repeat those strong numbers, NALP officials warned last week. The red-hot market for lawyer talent in 2022 and early 2023 has already cooled, NALP noted, and recent data shows law firms have dialed back new associate recruiting.

The Class of 2023 graduates are likely to be the final benefactors of the talent wars, said NALP Executive Director Nikia Gray in a report released Thursday.

Many 2023 law graduates were hired in 2021 and 2022, when busy law firms were competing fiercely for new associates and lateral attorney hires. Starting associate pay climbed from $205,000 to $215,000 at many large firms in 2022, and firms doled out multiple bonuses to entice associates to stay.

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💸 Law firms in $2.7 bln NCAA accord could earn more than $500 mln

Law firms Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro and Winston & Strawn spent years battling the National Collegiate Athletic Association over rules against paying student-athletes.

They could now earn more than $515 million from part of a landmark $2.7 billion settlement resolving antitrust claims against the NCAA, which they said will reshape the college sports landscape.

The firms presented the deal to a U.S. judge in California for approval.

On top of the $515 million, the firms can ask for fees annually for a decade based on the pool of money schools use to compensate students.

The settlement resolves three lawsuits that broadly claimed the NCAA’s rules prohibiting payments to athletes violated U.S. antitrust law. One case focused on compensation for the commercial use of athletes' names, images and likenesses, another lawsuit was about athletic service, and a third involved restrictions on payments tied to academic achievements.

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👋 That's all for today, thank you for reading The Legal File, and have a great day!

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