Ten Things: Best Legal Blogs for In-House Counsel (2015)

First, I want to wish everyone all the best for the holiday season and for a safe and prosperous 2016.  Second, I thought I would keep this edition of “Ten Things” on the lighter side and, hopefully, on the less wordy side too — especially after last week’s missive on becoming general counsel.   Back when I was general counsel I once told my team that if you send me something I will read it, pretty much no matter what.  I am not sure if that is a positive or a negative but it certainly kept me informed about what was going on in Legal and around the company.  I’m not saying that everyone needs to have the same approach I have to reading things.  In fact, sometimes it’s nice if someone can point out things worth reading (vs. having to dig them out yourself).   That’s my plan for this post.

Over the course of the last several years, legal blogs have exploded.  There are probably several blogs for just about any topic of law you are interested in.  Blogs can be very helpful tools for in-house counsel (or any lawyer for that matter), in particular for finding answers to legal questions quickly or for staying on top of new issues.  Over time, I have identified a number of blogs that I like to read regularly and that I think are particularly well written and useful to in-house counsel.  While I certainly hope that my blog fits this bill for you, I know there are many very talented legal writers out there, covering really interesting topics.  This edition of “Ten Things” will list some of my favorite legal blogs (and the topics they cover).  I highly encourage you to check these out over the next several weeks and if any interest you, follow them regularly. Or just keep the list handy in case you need it later down the road.  So, and not in any particular order, here are my top ten legal blogs for in-house counsel (2015 edition):

1. Presnell on Privileges (www.presnellonprivileges.com/).  Discusses issues and case law around various privileges such as attorney-client and work product, as well as those not as well-known such as accountant-client, common interest, self-critical analysis, insurer-insured, etc.  There is a very handy index as well.
2. Adams on Contract Drafting (www.adamsdrafting.com/blog/). Excellent posts on common and not so common issues regarding drafting contracts.  Sometimes he writes about specific contract clauses, sometimes it may be just a common phrase or sentence used frequently in contracts.  Always interesting and always helpful. Also good: The Contracts Guy (http://www.thecontractsguy.net/).
3. Corruption, Crime & Compliance (www.blog.volkovlaw.com/).  Well written discussions about compliance and ethics topics including white-collar crime and anti-bribery.  Second place: FCPA Professor (http://www.fcpaprofessor.com/).
4. Employment and Labor Insider (www.employmentandlaborinsider.com/).  One stop shop for issues involving employment litigation, including age discrimination, the Americans with Disabilities Act, non-competes, sexual harassment, telecommuting, and wage and hour issues.
5. Chronicle of Data Protection (www.hldataprotection.com/).  My “go to” blog for all things data security or data privacy related.  Always on top of breaking issues and always putting forth practical solutions to data privacy issues.  Also check out: Privacy Law Blog (http://privacylaw.proskauer.com/).
6. Electronic Discovery Law (http://www.ediscoverylaw.com/).  If your company has lawsuits involving e-discovery (and who doesn’t) this is almost indispensable.  Access to case law, statutes/rules, and timely articles on cutting edge issues involving electronically stored information.
7. Global Regulatory Enforcement Law (www.globalregulatoryenforcementlawblog.com/).  A smorgasbord of information about all things involving global regulatory enforcement including antitrust, government contracts, government investigations, etc. (Plus I finally got to use “smorgasbord” in a sentence…).
8. Trademark and Copyright Law (www.trademarkandcopyrightlawblog.com).  Everything you could want to know about trademarks, copyrights, unfair competition, domain disputes, defamation, and more.
9. The In-House Advisor (www.in-houseadvisor.com).  There is always something interesting discussed in this blog. It’s aimed squarely at in-house lawyers and covers a wide variety of issues especially on litigation and risk avoidance.
10. Arbitration Nation (www.arbitrationnation.com).  Hmmm, I wonder what this blog is about?  Kidding aside, an excellent resource for all things arbitration. Honorable Mention: JAMS ADR Blog (http://jamsadrblog.com/) – mediation/arbitration issues around the globe.

A few other very helpful “non-blog”/”blog-ish” resources for you to consider: Above the Law, Risk and Compliance Magazine, Lexology.com, Corporate Disputes Magazine, and Corporate Counsel Connect (disclaimer: I write articles for Corporate Counsel Connect but there are many other excellent writers contributing as well).

As you can imagine, there are dozens of great legal blogs out there.  An easy way to find a good blog is to use a search engine with the general topic (e.g., “e-discovery”) and the word “blog” in the search box.  Also, the blogs I listed above tend to focus on U.S. law.  If you have a blog you like (including blogs dealing with the law in non-U.S. jurisdictions) and it’s not on my list, please share it with the readers of “Ten Things.” Just note it in the “leave a comment” section at the bottom of the post.

Sterling Miller

December 29, 2015

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