Artificial Intelligence
The Artificial Intelligence practice area identifies top professional advisers to the US AI market. It includes advisory and governance services for AI usage, such as data privacy, copyright, regulatory compliance, and responsible usage policies. Contentious matters like liability disputes and intellectual property infringements are also covered.
Banking & Finance
This section covers lending transactions and recognizes work on behalf of lenders and borrowers, including banks and alternative lenders such as credit funds. Transactions may include acquisition financings, refinancing, and general lending. All credit facility structures and methods are relevant. In states without a separate Project Finance recognition, such work may be included here. Property financing work should be directed to the relevant Real Estate section.
Bankruptcy/Restructuring
This area focuses on corporate bankruptcy and restructuring processes for distressed businesses, which can be reorganized or liquidated. It includes advising corporate debtors, investors, asset purchasers, creditors, and committees on corporate restructurings and bankruptcy proceedings. Related litigation, such as disputes in Chapter 11 and Chapter 7 processes, is also included.
Cannabis Law
This section encompasses the full spectrum of work involving cannabis companies. Types of work include M&A and financings, intellectual property for cannabis-based products and medicines, regulatory compliance, and litigation at the state and federal levels.
Capital Markets
Capital Markets covers Debt & Equity, Derivatives, Securitization, and Structured Finance. Equity Capital Markets includes equity offerings like IPOs and follow-on offerings. Debt Capital Markets covers investment-grade debt offerings and high-yield debt offerings. Derivatives involve legal advice on regulatory and transactional issues related to derivatives products. Securitization includes transactions involving various asset classes like commercial loans and mortgages.
See Related Articles:
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- How Much Do Hot Legal Practice Areas Vary from State to State?
- BCG Attorney Search’s Quick Reference Guide to Legal Practice Areas
Climate Change
This practice area includes regulatory, transactional, and litigation work related to climate change. It involves compliance program design and implementation, operational and project-related compliance, representation in regulatory proceedings, and climate change litigation. Carbon markets transactions are also significant.
Communications
This area focuses on regulatory compliance, administrative proceedings, and litigation arising from the communications sector.
Construction
Construction law involves contractual advisory work within the construction industry for developers, contractors, engineers, architects, and clients employing these companies. It covers both litigious and non-litigious matters.
Corporate Crime & Investigations
This area focuses on institutional representations rather than individual ones, covering both civil and criminal investigations. It includes internal and external investigations across various regulated industries like healthcare.
Corporate Governance
Corporate Governance covers advisory and compliance counsel to corporate clients and boards on corporate policies, bylaws, corporate social responsibility, and governance issues in transactional, litigation, and employee benefits matters. Shareholder class and derivative litigation and merger litigation matters are not included here but should be directed to the relevant securities litigation sections.
Corporate/M&A
This chapter includes company acquisitions, dispositions, financing arrangements, mergers, joint ventures, entity selection and formation, operating and partnership agreements, and governance matters. It also covers restructuring transactions designed to change company ownership.
See Related Articles:
- Are You an Attorney Thinking of Changing Legal Practice Areas? A Guide for Changing Legal Practice Areas for Attorneys
- 8 High-Demand Legal Practice Areas for Senior Attorneys Without Significant Portable Business
- Exploring the Future of Law: Top High-Growth Legal Practice Areas for 2023
Crisis Management
This area highlights lawyers who manage multidisciplinary teams to advise clients following catastrophic events, regulatory actions, compliance failures, and corporate crises. It focuses on mobilizing firm resources and managing corporate responses to crises.
Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation
This section covers matters involving employee benefits and compensation plans, including design, implementation, and related taxation issues. It also includes executive compensation agreements and benefits matters in corporate transactions, as well as disputes under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).
Energy
Energy law includes corporate, commercial, regulatory, and capital markets issues in the energy sector. It covers M&A and other transactional work, pure regulatory work related to licensing and compliance, and enforcement actions. The energy section is divided into subsections such as Electricity (Finance, Regulatory & Litigation, Transactional), Nuclear (Regulatory & Litigation), Oil & Gas (Regulatory & Litigation, Transactional), and PHMSA Specialists.
Environment
The environment chapter features litigation and advisory/transactional support for clients, including corporate due diligence on mergers, brownfield site development, and pollution issues. It includes regulatory compliance, litigation, and enforcement actions related to air, water, wetlands, waste, and endangered species, as well as advice on environmental aspects of M&A, financings, and securities offerings.
ERISA Litigation
ERISA Litigation involves interpreting and enforcing the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, which governs employee benefit plans and beneficiaries' rights. The US Department of Labor and the IRS handle this area.
False Claims Act
This section covers litigation, investigation, and disclosure work related to the False Claims Act, including intervened and non-intervened qui tam actions. Clients include government contractors, pharmaceutical companies, medical device manufacturers, and healthcare systems.
Financial Services Regulation
This area includes:
- Banking Compliance: Regulatory compliance and advisory matters for banks and other financial institutions, including Dodd-Frank, Volcker, Basel III, and anti-money laundering compliance.
- Banking Enforcement & Investigations: Handling regulatory investigations and enforcement actions for financial institutions by bodies such as the Federal Reserve, SEC, OCC, CFPB, and OFAC, including parallel DOJ investigations and internal investigations.
- Broker Dealer (Compliance & Enforcement): Regulatory matters specific to the broker-dealer industry, including Dodd-Frank, Volcker, and SEC compliance, and investigations and enforcement actions by regulatory bodies.
- Consumer Finance: Regulatory compliance, enforcement actions, and litigation related to consumer lending, including mortgage lending, credit cards, auto finance, and other consumer credit forms.
- Financial Institutions M&A: M&A involving financial institutions, including banks, credit card companies, insurance companies, and other financial institutions, focusing on deal-making strength and regulatory handling.
Food & Beverage
This chapter focuses on FDA matters concerning food, dietary supplements, and meat and poultry, including regulatory issues like health claims, IP issues, and commercial matters like taxation, franchise arrangements, and antitrust. It also covers significant litigation and legislation in the beverage alcohol sector.
Franchising
Franchising law involves transactional and contentious work for franchisees and franchisors, including setting up, expanding, and closing franchise arrangements, and disputes arising from contractual obligations.
Government
This chapter includes:
- Government Contracts: Supply contract arrangements, bid protests, litigation, and non-contentious issues like services contracting and organizational conflicts of interest.
- Government Relations: Legislative lobbying for corporate and nonprofit clients, crossing industries from defense to education.
- Political Law: Advice on election campaign organization and financing, corporate election activities, and contentious matters like challenging decisions by election authorities.
Healthcare
Healthcare law covers transactional, advisory, and contentious matters for clients like hospitals, health systems, and insurance companies, including M&A, antitrust issues, qui tam suits, federal investigations defense, Medicare Part D compliance, Stark Law, and the False Claims Act. It also includes pharmaceutical and medical product regulatory issues.
Hedge Funds
This section covers hedge fund formation, launches, spinouts, strategic acquisitions, distressed debt investments, and restructurings.
Higher Education
Higher Education Law recognizes firms and attorneys handling litigation, investigations, regulatory, and transactional matters for higher education providers, including public, private, and private not-for-profit universities.
Immigration
The immigration section focuses on corporate matters, including compliance and auditing work, immigration programs, visa petitions, mobility strategies, M&A-related immigration aspects, and investigations and enforcement defense.
Impact Investing
This practice area covers structuring and documenting impact investment transactions across various assets and strategies, including venture capital, private equity, corporate securities, M&A, commercial lending, fund formation, and early-stage company representation. Clients include philanthropies, fund managers, social enterprises, foundations, and high-net-worth individuals. ESG work is covered in Chambers Specialist Guides.
Insurance
Insurance law includes contentious and non-contentious matters like coverage claims litigation, broker's negligence, reinsurance disputes, professional negligence issues, M&A, capital raisings, demutualizations, and regulatory issues.
Intellectual Property
Intellectual Property law covers patent, copyright, and trademark disputes, trade secrets litigation, licensing, and IP commercialization. It includes specialized subsections for patent and trademark, copyright, and trade secrets work. Related sections include International Trade: Intellectual Property (Section 337) and Nationwide Life Sciences.+
International Arbitration
This area includes commercial and investor-state international arbitrations, disputes under various institutional rules and ad-hoc proceedings, and arbitral enforcement expertise. Chambers USA does not cover domestic arbitrations but focuses on commercial and insurance arbitration.
International Trade
This chapter covers customs planning, compliance, and enforcement, export controls and economic sanctions, trade policy and trade remedy, and CFIUS-related national security issues in transactions and investments.
Investment Funds
Investment Funds are divided into:
- Venture Capital Fund Formation: Formation work for venture capital funds.
- Private Equity: Fund Formation: Formation of private equity funds, including buyout, secondaries, hybrid, debt, real estate, and infrastructure funds.
- Investor Representation: Work for Limited Partners, including institutional investors and secondaries funds.
- Regulatory & Compliance: Regulatory and compliance work for non-registered funds.
- Hedge Funds: Hedge fund formation, launches, spinouts, strategic acquisitions, distressed debt investments, and restructurings.
- Registered Funds: Formation, transactional, and regulatory compliance work for registered funds, including mutual funds and ETFs.
Labor & Employment
Labor law involves representing corporates in dealings with labor unions, collective bargaining negotiations, strike avoidance, and NLRB proceedings, as well as wage and hour class and collective actions, OSHA, and other workplace safety issues. Employment law covers litigation related to discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, employment-related restrictive covenants, and non-contentious matters like workforce restructuring and employment issues in mergers and takeovers.
Law Firm Defense
This practice focuses on defending law firms in high-stakes civil litigation, particularly malpractice claims, and may include bankruptcy and fraud claims.
Leisure & Hospitality
This industry section covers legal services for clients in the leisure industry, including real estate, employment, OSHA, corporate/commercial matters, and financing.
Life Sciences
Life sciences law focuses on the commercialization of life sciences products, IP issues, licensing, and acquisition of new products, FDA issues, drug and device safety, and litigation related to product liability.
Litigation
Litigation chapters focus on commercial proceedings before state and federal courts, circuit courts, and the US Supreme Court. It covers pre-trial negotiations, trial preparation, summary judgment motions, trials, appeals, and enforcement proceedings. Chambers USA focuses on commercial disputes and white-collar crime, including government investigations, alternative dispute resolution, and arbitration specialists.
Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations
This area covers individual and company representations in external and internal investigations, enforcement proceedings, white-collar criminal trials, and appeals, involving issues like insider trading, healthcare fraud, antitrust, corruption, and FCPA breaches. Related sections include False Claims Act, Healthcare, and Antitrust.
Litigation: General Commercial
General commercial litigation involves civil disputes between business entities. It excludes work covered in standalone tables like IP, antitrust, and bankruptcy litigation.
Litigation: Securities
Securities litigation includes insider trading, shareholder disputes, contested M&A bids, reorganizations, corporate governance disputes, director and officer liability, and other non-compliance matters.
Litigation: Medical Malpractice Defense
This section covers defending medical professionals facing claims of malpractice, including trials, administrative proceedings, and appeals on state and federal levels, representing doctors, hospitals, insurers, and healthcare providers.
Media & Entertainment
This section covers work related to film, television, music, publishing, theatre, art, social and digital media, including litigation (IP, contractual, antitrust, First Amendment) and non-contentious matters (production, financing, distribution).
See Related Articles:
- Are You an Attorney Thinking of Changing Legal Practice Areas? A Guide for Changing Legal Practice Areas for Attorneys
- 8 High-Demand Legal Practice Areas for Senior Attorneys Without Significant Portable Business
- Exploring the Future of Law: Top High-Growth Legal Practice Areas for 2023
Mining & Metals
This industry-focused table includes exploration, development, production agreements, transactions related to royalties, sales structures, taxation, engineering, processing, refining contracts, project financing, and refinancing.Native American Law
This area includes representing tribes, private companies, or state governments in dealings with tribes, focusing on gaming law, regulatory work, casino development, land, energy, water rights, and environmental matters.Natural Resources
Natural Resources law covers mining and minerals exploration, development and production agreements, royalties, project finance, taxation, engineering, processing, refining contracts, sales structures, and environmental issues.Occupational Health and Safety
This section covers health and safety in the workplace, regulatory compliance, OSHA and MSHA inspections and audits, and litigation related to workplace injuries and workers’ compensation.Offshore Energy
This section includes transactional and contentious work for offshore energy contexts, such as oil rigs, terminal facilities, renewable energy infrastructure, and maritime offshore services. Clients include energy companies and financial institutions.Oil & Gas Litigation
This area covers disputes in the up-stream oil and gas industry, including subsurface and surface rights disputes, lease interpretations, royalty class actions, nuisance claims, rule of capture disputes, and issues from horizontal drilling. Regulatory litigation is covered in other sections.Outsourcing
Outsourcing law covers transferring business administration and services to external providers, including IT, business process, and legal process outsourcing, as well as disputes from unsuccessful contracts.Private Credit
This practice focuses on representing non-bank investors, particularly private equity and investment firms, acting as lenders in private credit transactions. Debtor-side work should be included in Banking & Finance submissions.Privacy & Data Security
Privacy and Data Security law covers compliance with federal and state privacy and information management laws, data security breaches, state Attorneys General investigations, FTC actions, and international data security issues. The AdTech subsection includes regulatory and compliance issues in the AdTech space.Private Equity: Buyouts
This section focuses on private equity transactions like LBOs, M&A, recapitalizations, and restructuring-related matters at both high-end and mid-market levels.Private Equity: Fund Formation
This section covers forming private equity funds, including LBOs, secondaries, hybrid, debt, real estate, and infrastructure funds, with particular attention to the sponsor side.Private Equity: Secondaries
This practice area handles GP-led and LP-led transactions in the private equity secondary market, focusing on buying and selling existing interests in private equity funds.Products Liability
Products Liability law involves claims for financial compensation from manufacturers or sellers of faulty products, such as contaminated food, medicine, and occupational hazards. It includes toxic tort cases, particularly asbestos exposure, and firms representing plaintiffs in products liability litigation.Products Liability: Regulatory
This section covers regulatory and compliance advisory work related to product safety, Consumer Product Safety Commission issues, pre-product launch risk assessments, labeling requirements, and challenging product recalls. Food & Beverages regulatory work is covered separately.Projects
Projects law includes Power, Oil & Gas, Mining & Metals, LNG, PPP, and Agency Financing. Each subsection focuses on specific project financing and development work, such as traditional power generation, renewable energy, oil and gas projects, and mining projects.Psychedelics Law
Psychedelics Law covers regulatory compliance with evolving psychedelics policies, disputes, intellectual property, and real estate issues. Clients include pharmaceutical companies, medical practitioners, start-ups, and psychedelic-assisted therapists.Public Finance
This practice area covers financing transport and social infrastructure through public funding, excluding PPP structures. Firms may represent public entities or financial counterparties.Real Estate
Real Estate law includes corporate matters related to real estate, such as M&A of large real estate holding companies, fund and REIT transactions, private equity, and public securities. It also covers zoning, land use, real estate finance, and REITs.Registered Funds
Registered Funds law covers fund formation, transactional work, and regulatory compliance issues for mutual funds, ETFs, business development companies, and other registered funds.REITs
REITs law involves structuring and transactional advice for real estate investment trusts, including IPOs, joint ventures, M&A, REIT formation, investment work, restructurings, tax issues, litigation, financings, and special committee representations. The REITs: Maryland Counsel table targets specialists in REITs under Maryland law.Retail
Retail law covers legal services for large national retailers, including real estate, planning, land use, franchise, IP, trademark, e-commerce, employment, tax, advertising, regulatory, consumer protection issues, and disputes.Securities Litigation
Securities litigation involves insider trading, shareholder disputes, contested M&A bids, reorganizations, corporate governance disputes, director and officer liability, and non-compliance matters.Securities Regulation
Securities Regulation covers advisory and enforcement matters before the SEC, internal audits, investigations into accounting irregularities, mortgage and credit market matters, short selling, auction rate securities, financial fraud, and clients like accounting firms, corporates, investment funds, and broker-dealers.SPACs
SPACs law involves legal advice for taking Special Purpose Acquisition Companies public, acting for issuers and underwriters, securing capital for acquisitions, and completing de-SPAC transactions. Lawyers often specialize in capital markets and M&A sectors.Space Law
Space Law covers transactional, regulatory, and contentious work in the space industry, including space exploration, safety, infrastructure, sustainability, commercialization, robotics, space mining, and microgravity manufacturing. Matters include M&A, financing, restructuring, launch agreements, government procurement, regulatory compliance, intellectual property, insurance, and risk management.Sports Law
Sports Law covers commercial and regulatory work in the sports sector, including IP, contracts, antitrust, First Amendment litigation, production, financing, and distribution concerns.Startups & Emerging Companies
This section covers work for emerging growth companies, startups, individual investors, and VC funds, including early and late-stage venture financings, venture capital partnerships, regulatory compliance, advisory work, and IPOs.Tax
Tax law covers transactional work like corporate partnership structures, tax planning, spin-offs, negotiating tax-free acquisitions, and tax controversy work, including IRS examinations, tax-based litigation, and transfer pricing.Technology
Technology law covers contractual agreements in the technology field, M&A, financing, employment law, strategic alliances, joint ventures, stock exchange listings, corporate governance, e-commerce, licensing agreements, strategic alliances, blockchain, cryptocurrency, cybersecurity, and IP mandates.See Related Articles:
- Cracking the Legal Fortune: Top 10 Practice Areas with the Highest Salaries
- How to Find Your Ideal Practice Area
- Helping You Decide Where to Practice Law: Frequently Asked Questions
Telecommunications
Telecommunications law involves transactional and litigation advice to telecoms companies, wireless operators, TV/radio broadcasters, and regulatory issues like government inquiries, investigations, compliance proceedings, interconnection and resale laws, multimedia agreements, and licensing activity.Transportation
- Aviation: Finance: This table focuses on financings, leasing, capital markets transactions, M&A, restructurings, workouts, bankruptcies, and clients like airlines, banks, lessors, lenders, authorities, private equity firms, and corporate jet operators.
- Aviation: Litigation: This area covers accident defense litigation, aviation insurer issues, product liability claims, wrongful death disputes, class actions, and commercial disputes for manufacturers, carriers, helicopter companies, and insurers.
- Aviation: Regulatory: This table spans representation before the DOT, FAA, STB, and other agencies, including reauthorization of air traffic control systems, congestion issues, global alliances, market entry, licensing, UAS matters, regulatory proceedings, and transactions. Clients include manufacturers, carriers, airports, financial institutions, and trade associations.
- Rail: This section covers advice to railroads and shippers on rail rates litigation, fuel supply/surcharges, access rights, M&A, contract litigation, regulatory issues, and proceedings before the STB.
- Transportation: Road (Automotive): This practice area includes transactional and contentious work in the automotive industry, such as vehicle and product safety, franchising, environmental, labor and employment issues, autonomous vehicles, and matters at the intersection of technology and automotive work. Clients include parts and vehicle manufacturers, transportation companies
About Harrison Barnes
Harrison Barnes is a prominent figure in the legal placement industry, known for his expertise in attorney placements and his extensive knowledge of the legal profession.
With over 25 years of experience, he has established himself as a leading voice in the field and has helped thousands of lawyers and law students find their ideal career paths.
Barnes is a former federal law clerk and associate at Quinn Emanuel and a graduate of the University of Chicago College and the University of Virginia Law School. He was a Rhodes Scholar Finalist at the University of Chicago and a member of the University of Virginia Law Review. Early in his legal career, he enrolled in Stanford Business School but dropped out because he missed legal recruiting too much.
Barnes' approach to the legal industry is rooted in his commitment to helping lawyers achieve their full potential. He believes that the key to success in the legal profession is to be proactive, persistent, and disciplined in one's approach to work and life. He encourages lawyers to take ownership of their careers and to focus on developing their skills and expertise in a way that aligns with their passions and interests.
One of how Barnes provides support to lawyers is through his writing. On his blog, HarrisonBarnes.com, and BCGSearch.com, he regularly shares his insights and advice on a range of topics related to the legal profession. Through his writing, he aims to empower lawyers to control their careers and make informed decisions about their professional development.
One of Barnes's fundamental philosophies in his writing is the importance of networking. He believes that networking is a critical component of career success and that it is essential for lawyers to establish relationships with others in their field. He encourages lawyers to attend events, join organizations, and connect with others in the legal community to build their professional networks.
Another central theme in Barnes' writing is the importance of personal and professional development. He believes that lawyers should continuously strive to improve themselves and develop their skills to succeed in their careers. He encourages lawyers to pursue ongoing education and training actively, read widely, and seek new opportunities for growth and development.
In addition to his work in the legal industry, Barnes is also a fitness and lifestyle enthusiast. He sees fitness and wellness as integral to his personal and professional development and encourages others to adopt a similar mindset. He starts his day at 4:00 am and dedicates several daily hours to running, weightlifting, and pursuing spiritual disciplines.
Finally, Barnes is a strong advocate for community service and giving back. He volunteers for the University of Chicago, where he is the former area chair of Los Angeles for the University of Chicago Admissions Office. He also serves as the President of the Young Presidents Organization's Century City Los Angeles Chapter, where he works to support and connect young business leaders.
In conclusion, Harrison Barnes is a visionary legal industry leader committed to helping lawyers achieve their full potential. Through his work at BCG Attorney Search, writing, and community involvement, he empowers lawyers to take control of their careers, develop their skills continuously, and lead fulfilling and successful lives. His philosophy of being proactive, persistent, and disciplined, combined with his focus on personal and professional development, makes him a valuable resource for anyone looking to succeed in the legal profession.
About BCG Attorney Search
BCG Attorney Search matches attorneys and law firms with unparalleled expertise and drive, while achieving results. Known globally for its success in locating and placing attorneys in law firms of all sizes, BCG Attorney Search has placed thousands of attorneys in law firms in thousands of different law firms around the country. Unlike other legal placement firms, BCG Attorney Search brings massive resources of over 150 employees to its placement efforts locating positions and opportunities its competitors simply cannot. Every legal recruiter at BCG Attorney Search is a former successful attorney who attended a top law school, worked in top law firms and brought massive drive and commitment to their work. BCG Attorney Search legal recruiters take your legal career seriously and understand attorneys. For more information, please visit www.BCGSearch.com.
Harrison Barnes does a weekly free webinar with live Q&A for attorneys and law students each Wednesday at 10:00 am PST. You can attend anonymously and ask questions about your career, this article, or any other legal career-related topics. You can sign up for the weekly webinar here: Register on Zoom
Harrison also does a weekly free webinar with live Q&A for law firms, companies, and others who hire attorneys each Wednesday at 10:00 am PST. You can sign up for the weekly webinar here: Register on Zoom
You can browse a list of past webinars here: Webinar Replays
You can also listen to Harrison Barnes Podcasts here: Attorney Career Advice Podcasts
You can also read Harrison Barnes' articles and books here: Harrison's Perspectives
Harrison Barnes is the legal profession's mentor and may be the only person in your legal career who will tell you why you are not reaching your full potential and what you really need to do to grow as an attorney--regardless of how much it hurts. If you prefer truth to stagnation, growth to comfort, and actionable ideas instead of fluffy concepts, you and Harrison will get along just fine. If, however, you want to stay where you are, talk about your past successes, and feel comfortable, Harrison is not for you.
Truly great mentors are like parents, doctors, therapists, spiritual figures, and others because in order to help you they need to expose you to pain and expose your weaknesses. But suppose you act on the advice and pain created by a mentor. In that case, you will become better: a better attorney, better employees, a better boss, know where you are going, and appreciate where you have been--you will hopefully also become a happier and better person. As you learn from Harrison, he hopes he will become your mentor.
To read more career and life advice articles visit Harrison's personal blog.
