Hey there,

After much scourging of the internet, here are 3 stories that will go perfectly with that first cup of coffee for the weekend (or the last beer, we don’t discriminate!)

• If you are putting together your fall reading list, Daan Vansimpsen has some excellent picks for legal professionals right here to squeeze in.

• Metrics not only help measure, but they help align different teams with what you do. Deborah Jones lists the key metrics that legal teams need to track.

• As law librarians and knowledge managers prepare their firms’ post-pandemic budgets, Feit has shared insights and negotiation strategies in the interview

Feature Highlight

You know how your business teams download, edit and send out contracts from a template you shared?

Or how they send emails to get approval from different people, based on conditions (like say, deal value is >$100,000)?

Well, you should tell them to stop.

With SpotDraft, they can generate a contract and send it for approval in minutes. Because that’s all the time it should take.

If you want to see this in action, just click here, and we will get in touch!

Legal Leader Highlight

“Law schools need to start doing a better job of training lawyers to practice law and not just understand common law."
- Nicole Black

And to sign off, here is a Halloween playlist because all spook needs some funk. ‘Tis that time of the year anyway!

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Hi there,

Meta, Facebook’s parent company, is being dragged to Court by a Chicago-based tech firm, MetaCompany, for stealing their name. What multiple statements has the tech firm given against the social media platform?

Also, the U.S. President Joe Biden signed legislation to raise the country’s debt ceiling by $480 billion, and pushed the deadline to December 3rd, 2021. What if the country fails to raise the debt ceiling, and can a $1 trillion coin really put a stop to the crisis?

All this, and much more, when you scroll below👇

What’s in this issue 📰

1. Chicago-Based Tech Firm To Take Facebook To Court

2. House Passes Bill To Raise US Debt Ceiling

3. Define Relationships Between Contracts

4. Tackle In-house Legal Problems With Creative Solutioning

5. What Else Is Making The News In Legal?

CHICAGO-BASED TECH FIRM TO TAKE FACEBOOK TO COURT

A Chicago-based tech firm, MetaCompany, goes to court against Facebook, claiming that the social network has stolen its name and ‘livelihood’ by rebranding itself to Meta. 

What is Meta?

In the recent Facebook Connect 2021 event, Mark Zuckerberg introduced the future of social network Facebook - Meta, a set of virtual spaces integrating today’s social experiences, expanded into three dimensions or projected into the physical world.  The possibility of teleportation as a hologram is yet another milestone the organization looks forward to achieving. To reflect and incorporate all the products they build in the future, Mark says that they would want to be seen as a metaverse company, since Facebook doesn’t fully encompass everything the company does now, and is closely linked to one product. 

MetaCompany Public Release

Nate Skulic, founder of MetaCompany clearly mentioned in the letter posted on their homepage that the Facebook lawyers had been consistently asking them to sell their domain registrations. On October 20th, 2021, they had declined Facebook’s offer and maintained their requirements.

Meta has yet to respond to these allegations.

‍What else? 

Other than these allegations, many firms such as M-sense Migräne have tweeted on Meta’s logo being similar to theirs, “We are very honored that @facebook felt inspired by the logo of our migraine app - maybe they’ll get inspired by our data privacy procedures as well.”

Facebook parent company Meta is shutting down its face recognition system “as part of a company-wide move" to limit the use of the technology in its products.

HOUSE PASSES BILL TO RAISE US DEBT CEILING

Early October this year, US legislation passed a bill raising the US debt ceiling to $28.9 trillion pushing off the deadline for debt default only until December.

‍What is the ‘debt ceiling’?

The debt ceiling is the maximum amount of national debt - typically set by the law - that the US Department of Treasury can issue to different federal agencies. Almost every year, since 2011, America is on the verge of hitting the biggest economic crisis of the debt ceiling until it is raised. Every year the country starts off with a budget but ends up spending, due to wars or investments during recessions. The Treasury keeps a daily record of the debt.

‍WHAT’S NEXT?

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell wrote a letter to the president, Joe Biden, saying that he would not help Democrats in raising the debt limit again.

The Congress will have to find a longer-term solution in December. For now, the $480 billion raise in debt ceiling will give enough time for Democrats to raise the borrowing authority through the procedural move, known as reconciliation, which would not require republican votes.

During the heated debate between Republicans and Democrats, some in the democratic camp suggested that the U.S. Treasury can issue a $1 trillion platinum coin to bypass the debt ceiling if Republicans refuse to raise it. Will they issue the coin in December?

DEFINE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN CONTRACTS

Trouble relating various contracts? Or do you wish to establish a hierarchy between your contracts? Think of all the time you can save if only you could attach any supporting documents such as invoices, notes, etc., to your contracts!

With SpotDraft's new Related Document feature, you can define contract relations and add supporting documents to any contract type, all from a single dashboard. This way, whether it’s an MSA related to a specific SOW or an amendment to an enforced contract, it’s only a click away!

You’ll be able to establish four types of relations, namely, Parent, Child, Addendum and Amendment. Watch it in action below👇

Request a Demo

TACKLE IN-HOUSE LEGAL PROBLEMS WITH CREATIVE SOLUTIONING

JP Kirkley, Associate General Counsel at VSP Global, discusses why law firms were not his cup of tea, how he tackles in-house problems with creative solutioning, and much more!

In this episode of Legal Matters, we catch up with JP Kirkley, who wears many hats. He is also a Board Member at Travis Credit Union and an Adjunct Professor at Pepperdine Law. He talks to us about his motivation that landed him to pursue an in-house career rather than following the path of law firms.

Read the Interview here

‍WHAT ELSE IS MAKING THE NEWS IN LEGAL?

• Russia to fine Google, Telegram  this month for repeatedly failing to delete content that was deemed illegal, as per law for ‘Internet Sovereignty’

• Northern Ireland’s health minister to sue Van Morrison, the singer, for COVID-19 criticism

• WRAP Technologies report first law enforcement agency in Canada with Active Duty Officers carrying BOLAWRAP

• Yahoo officially pulls out of China as the country’s version of GDPR, the new Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL) comes into effect.

• ‍Courts in the UK and USA rule that Artificial Intelligence (AI) cannot be the inventor of new patents.

With that, we come to an end with this month’s SpotDigest. We’ll catch you in the next one, until then take care and stay well!

Cheers,

Pranjali Garg

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Hey there,

Any content that isn’t related to the US elections and aftermath will be buried this week. But in case you need a break, I’ve put together the most interesting and thought provoking ideas for you to read.

• When will the legal industry become customer-centric? Mark A. Cohen talks about how law lags business in customer-centricity and provides a 35-point list on how to do better  

• The LexisNexis Rule of Law Foundation: Doing Good for the Sake of Doing Good. Stephen Embry explores LexisNexis' Rule of Law Foundation and its several partnerships to build holistic environments in law, globally.

• A GC's Blueprint For Improving Legal Industry Diversity. Laura Schumacher provides a 3-pillared approach at improving legal diversity and stimulating minority participation.

Legal Leader Highlight

“In the new paradigm, legal education will morph from a place to a process; appointed time to on-time and in real-time learning; and an artisanal delivery model to a tech-enabled, scalable one.”
‍- Mark A. Cohen

Feature Highlight

Meanwhile, the mad scientists at SpotDraft’s Product and Tech teams, didn’t understand why we had to open a contract over and over to know some detail - or why we should ever worry about missing a renewal (especially for historical contracts)

Long story short, you don’t have to do that on SpotDraft.

They’ve made a bunch of other small, but awesome things like this. Check them out here.

We’ve all seen plenty of “Call X and X and Sons Lawyers…” ads on TV in our time (lawyers reading this: does this bring back Legal Ethics class?). 99% Invisible covers these ads and how they’ve affected public perception of lawyers in an interesting episode, Call Now.

Psssst: November 6th was Love Your Lawyer Day. Let people know subtly, but keep your wishlist ready.

Stay cool, stay hydrated.

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Hi there,

The global community is finally planning to move away from the century-old international tax system. What does this mean for multinational corporations and tax havens?

Meanwhile, how is legaltech shaping up in 2021? All this, and much more, when you scroll below 👇

IN THIS ISSUE 📰

1. The New Global Tax Agreement
2. How Facebook Is Building LegalOps, Diversity, And More?
3. LegalTech Trends 2021
4. Data-Driven Contracts With SpotInsights
5. Other Stories Shaking Up Legal In October

ONE TAX TO RULE THEM ALL

Over 130 countries, representing 90% of global GDP, agreed to a new two-pillar framework for international tax reform proposed by the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD).

‍The Proposal

‍Pillar One of the framework will allow countries to tax multinational corporations operating in their jurisdiction, regardless of whether the business has a physical presence there.

Pillar Two calls for a global minimum corporate tax of 15%. However, this tax slab will only apply to MNCs generating annual revenues above $868 million.

‍Why Now?

‍First, the current international tax system is obsolete and is not optimized for a modern digital economy.

Second, large companies are notorious for shopping around for competitive tax rates among low-tax countries. For example Apple, Facebook, and Google have set up their European headquarters in Ireland because of a very low corporate tax rate.

Finally, countries have no claim over the profits earned by digital companies selling goods and services in their markets, unless the business has a physical presence in the country.

‍What’s next?

‍The deal will also address the problem of tax havens to an extent by enforcing a tax floor on competition over corporate income tax.

The OECD estimates that an additional $150 billion in taxes can be collected once the global corporate minimum tax is enforced.

It will unlock a fairer distribution of profits for countries allowing digital MNCs to operate in their markets.

The global tax overhaul will take effect in 2023.

A PEEK INTO HOW FACEBOOK IS BUILDING LEGALOPS, DIVERSITY, AND MORE...

Akshay Verma, Director - Head of Legal Operations at Facebook, discusses how the world’s largest social network is transforming legal operations and spearheading diversity in legal among other things in episode #9 of LegalMatters by SpotDraft.

Read the Interview here

LEGALTECH ADOPTION ON THE RISE

Entering the final quarter of 2021, things are looking tremendously positive for legaltech. A study by The Association of Corporate Counsel’s and Exterro surveyed 250 in-house counsel and legalops professionals across 18 countries. This is what they found:

• Nearly two-thirds of the respondents believe that legaltech is now a must-have.

• Of a list of 14 technologies, respondents ranked matter management, e-billing, and contract management as the most effective technologies for their legal department.

• 77% of respondents want to leverage technology to improve contract management, followed by 40% for data privacy and 25% for litigation activities.

• A majority of respondents are looking for legal software that is simple to use, and support interoperability and automation.

• More than 50% of respondents are planning to purchase legal software in the next 12 months.

DATA-DRIVEN CONTRACTS WITH SPOTINSIGHTS

Do you ever wonder how many contracts your legal team works on in a quarter? Or how much time it takes to complete a contract from start to finish?

With SpotInsights, you now can. This one-of-a-kind dashboard tracks contract metrics at a granular level, helping you drill down and demonstrate the impact of legal’s performance across org-wide contracts.

This tool not only allows you to cultivate a data-first culture in-house but also enables you to identify bottlenecks in the contracting process and improve the efficiency of the company at large.

Request a Demo

WHAT ELSE IS MAKING NEWS IN LEGAL?

• Can an AI become a patent holder? UK and US courts rule that only humans can be granted patents, while Australia and South Africa recognize AI on only domestic patents.

• More trouble for Facebook as a second whistleblower agrees to testify before the Congress after she shares documentation of "potential criminal violations" with US law enforcement.

• The US Department of Justice sets up a National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team amid rising crypto-related criminal activity.

• ‍Pandora Papers saga continues as it casts a light on the offshore deals and assets of the global rich.

With that, we come to an end with this month’s SpotDigest. We’ll catch you in the next one, until then take care and stay well!

Cheers,
Kevin Fernandes

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Hey there,

It is December already, and I am still in denial about how quickly 2020 has zipped past. But a thin silver lining: there has been some pretty fantastic content last month.

• Negotiate Your Next Tech Contract Like a Pro - Brian Gregg of McNees Wallace & Nurick gets right to the point in this useful piece.

• Google Leegle - a superb interview with Mary Shen O’Carroll, Google’s Director of Legal operations.

It is holiday season after all, and we wanted to send you off with something nice. We put together an end to end playbook to negotiate NDAs which can be adapted to negotiate any other contract type as well.

Download your copy of the NDA Negotiation Playbook for free here! 🎁

Feature Highlight

Organizing contracts and searching anything within, isn’t the kind of work that gets anyone pumped (not speaking for Marie Kondo). So of course, we built something to fix that.‍

Introducing Tags!

‍Historical contracts or new, organize your contracts better by creating custom tags. Use them as a filter while you search through them too!

Legal Leader Highlight

“If we can teach the next generation of lawyers not only to embrace technology but innovative thinking, so we can deliver legal services to the public more efficiently and effectively, then we can reach the people who aren’t currently receiving any legal services at all.”
- Andrew Perlman, Dean, Suffolk Law

And just in case this flew under your radar, here is a teardown of Kanye West’s contracts. I guess contracts aren’t all Yeezy! (please forgive me for this joke, it was right there)

Lastly, if you are reading this, I wish you and your loved ones the best: health, patience and resilience to get through both, the good times and bad.

Until we meet again - Merry Christmas, happy new year, and happy holidays all around!

For previous SpotDigest editions, visit here.

Hey there,

First off, happy, happy new year. While literally nobody wants to look back at last year, I came across some articles that spoke about the most consequential developments that happened. Have a read, and find out how and why this will shape 2021 for us:

• 20 for 2020: The Legaltech Trends that Defined the Year, by everyone’s favorite blogger, Robert Ambrogi.

• Legal Industry Trends for 2021, as the tectonic shift from 2020 brings in its own superpowers (and challenges.)

• The Geek in Review Ep. 99 – The Who, What, and Why of #LegalTech with Kristin Hodgins and Jason Wilson. I loved this personally, because it goes into why legaltech has the same folks involved in discussions.

I am a big fan of a proper contract management system - it really is smart work over hard work. But I am a bigger fan of those who do more with less.

To kick off your 2021, here is a free template to manage your contracts with Google Sheets -> Download your Free Copy 🎁

Feature Highlight

Oh, speaking of proper contract management systems, do you know what is the biggest advantage of one?‍

Reports and analytics.‍

SpotDraft’s reports feature gives you a full picture on all your contracts, and contracting process within seconds. Check it out here:

Legal Leader Highlight

“The silver lining of 2020 is that we have been forced to consider changes that were long overdue and then given the opportunity to implement those changes. We will all be beneficiaries of these changes – but those who will benefit the most are those the legal system is meant to serve.”
- Robert Ambrogi

In case you want to leave behind more than just the last year, here are some job postings that might be of interest:

• Splunk - Contract Manager - SaaS / Legal Commercial (Remote)

• Spotify - Senior Legal Counsel - Original Content

• Apple - Legal Counsel, Music Publishing

• Roku - Director/Senior Counsel of Business and Legal Affairs - Ad Product

I will leave you with this:

See you next month! 👋

For previous SpotDigest editions, visit here.

Hey there! 👋

Wow, it is already February. Given that time is now moving at a merciless speed, I am going to get to the point quickly.

Say hi to #LegalMatters - top GCs across the globe featured in a series of informal, informative and immersive interviews. Here is Brian M. Dunn [Unifonic, ex Property Finder], the ideal candidate to kickstart it. 👇

• On to the most inescapable news of last month: The GameStop Saga.

• Gibson Dunn has done a superb piece exploring the potential regulatory and litigation fallout from the incident.  

• The last, important feature from last month is Coca-Cola’s GC Bradley Gayton on Robert Ambrogi’s podcast, discussing diversity.

Feature Highlight

Now, did you know SpotDraft has its own integrated e-signatures? Sure, it is unlimited and free, but that is the smaller sell compared to how smooth the experience is.

Check it here:

Legal Leader Highlight

"Once you are siloed, it is very hard to break away from that notion because you will be caught in an everlasting loop of micro-tasks without the opportunity to explore your abilities. In fact, most of these tasks are the ones that an organization should not be paying a lawyer to do."
‍- Brian M. Dunn, Head of Legal and Compliance, Unifonic Inc

Zoom mishaps is the flavor of the Covid professional season - here is our favorite.

That wraps up this month’s SpotDigest. Once again, if there is anything you want to see in this newsletter that would make it more interesting for you, or if you want to let me know how we’re doing, I am all ears.

Cheers!

For previous SpotDigest editions, visit here.

Hey there! 👋

It’ll be one full year since the first COVID-19 lockdowns worldwide. That isn't a reason to celebrate, but if you are reading this and doing well, I am so, so happy. With the vaccine around the corner, good things are happening all around.

For example - it is only the 2nd edition of #LegalMatters and we interviewed the legendary 3xGC and author of the 10 Things blog - Sterling Miller🔥 . Here, he covers how in-house lawyers can demonstrate value, the major challenges for today’s GC and what he loves about this job. 👇

• For over 12 years, Geoff Zodda has been placing lawyers, GCs, and other professionals in organizations where they belong. In this podcast, he talks about job stability for lawyers during the end phase of COVID, what legal employers are looking for, and other trends to come.

• In any company, there are teams that bring in the money and teams that spend it. Where does a legal team fit in here? What does it take for them to demonstrate value? Find out here 👈

Feature Highlight

Now, in the "101 ways SpotDraft makes your life easier” news, did you know we integrate with Salesforce? Not only can your sales team dynamically generate and execute contracts right from their CRM, but your contracts will also play super nice with the tools that your business teams use! 💪

Check it out! 👇

Legal Leader Highlight

"While firms are typically involved in putting out fires, in-house professionals are actively involved in shaping the future of the company. Here you’re an advisor - helping the business proactively and avoiding roadblocks right from the start.”
- Sterling Miller, CEO, Hilgers Graben PLLC and author of the Ten Things blog

In time for Spring, here is a really good read 📖:

Never Split The Difference is written by Chris Voss, a former FBI hostage negotiator. The book takes an interesting look at conversations and how fundamentally “meet me halfway” might not be the best tactic towards either party getting what they want.

So ends this month’s tiny capsule of the internet that is actually useful for you. Take care of yourself and I will see you soon.

For previous SpotDigest editions, visit here.

Hey there!

One ship. That is all it took to capsize ~$54 billion in global trade (+supply-chain delays) until tugboats helped unblock the Suez Canal.

There are two lessons to be learned here:

0. very few world events will not be turned into meme-fodder

1. small lapses can sometimes lead to huge consequences. Like forgetting when a contract renewal is due‍

More on that later. First, let’s dive right into what Harry Borovick, Senior Legal Counsel at LiveRamp said about proactive lawyering and developing commercial awareness in the 3rd episode of #LegalMatters 👇

News In Minutes ⏱️

Bailing Out On Your Mailbox? 🚫 📮

Sending emails is an ordeal. Among many other problems, there is

- difficulty in tracking attachments

- lack of immediacy

- poor interpersonal experiences

Hence lawyers are switching over. Flexible resourcing group Obelisk Support noted a gradual increase in alternative communication channels to the ol’ email - notably WhatsApp, Slack, and LinkedIn Messenger.

Where does communication happen at your workplace? And what's great about it?

Shaky Job Market?  📉

Stat: Even as U.S. non-farm payrolls surged last month, the legal sector lost 1,400 jobs across law-firm lawyers and staff. And the ones who are still on the job are dealing with burnouts and/or increased workloads.

So if you have friends who are finding it hard to look for a job, or are just looking for a change, here’s a list of resources that can help:

1. VF Corporation is looking for a Legal Counsel, Digital and Privacy in Greensboro, NC

2. Greenoaks Capital is looking for a Legal Counsel at their San Francisco, CA office

3. Abound is looking for a Head of Legal & Compliance (remote position)

Parking Ticket 🚦

The Ever Given is free, but the legal drama is a lot better than the memes!

- The owners are suing the operators for this sticky mess, and

- Egypt’s Suez Canal Authority wants a $1B compensation bite from this pie

But for a ship that is registered in Panama, has a German technical manager, is owned by two Japanese companies, and is being leased by a Taiwan-based conglomerate, jurisdiction can get slightly tricky.

Suddenly, this 👇 starts looking a lot better.

Feature Highlight

Speaking of unfortunate faux pas - have you ever had to renew negotiations with an existing customer just because you forgot their renewal date? We hope you haven't.

But tracking all those dates can get messy. So, we built-in a reminder and notification stack that scours through your contracts, finds out renewal, expiry, or due dates, and sends a reminder to you well in advance. This is what being unstuck looks like 🎉

Legal Leader Highlight

“I realized that there is the possibility for great appreciation of legal functions, especially from sales teams, if by being involved at an early stage, legal can support sales strategy and pitches from conception, rather than pitch on one basis and have to come back for iterations.”
- Harry Borovick, Senior Legal Counsel at LiveRamp

What is common between Netflix and high performing in-house teams? It is always more about the people and less about the process.

‍No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention by Reed Hastings and Erin Myers is as much for in-house legal leaders as it is about entrepreneurs. The authors dive into Netflix’s unconventional culture at work. Think - unlimited vacations or very generous severance packages. Get your copy on Amazon.

That’s a wrap! If you've read this far, why not spread the ❤️ with your friends? Simply forward this email or send them or send them this link!

As always - stay safe, cautious, and hydrated. Until next time! 👋

For previous SpotDigest editions, visit here.

Hi there,

China is just two months away from enforcing a new data protection law that’s supposedly stricter than the GDPR. What does this mean for companies operating in and out of the country?

Also, why is the SEC unhappy with Coinbase’s latest offering? All this, and much more, when you scroll below 👇

IN THIS ISSUE 📰

1. China Gets Its Own GDPR

2. An Assistant To Help You Stay On Top Of Your Contracts

3. The SEC Plans To Take Coinbase To Court

4. A Guide To Building Business-centric In-house Legal Teams

5. Other stories shaking up the legal industry

CHINA GETS ITS OWN GDPR

China has passed the Personal Information Protection Law or PIPL, making it the country’s first comprehensive data protection law.

PIPL comes into effect on 1 November 2021, and will provide a framework for collecting, transferring, and processing of Chinese citizens' data.

Modelled after the GDPR

PIPL borrows several elements from the EU’s GDPR with a major takeaway being the extraterritorial clause, which will enforce PIPL on companies operating inside and outside China.

Like the GDPR, PIPL also allows users to access, copy, correct, modify, and delete their personal information besides withdrawing consent to processing personal data.

‍Stricter regulation

The PIPL contains a few unique clauses of its own, such as:

Companies located outside China need to appoint an in-country representative to oversee PIPL compliance.

PIPL does not have a concept of legitimate interest, thus making it mandatory for companies to collect proper consent from users before they can access their personal data.

Finally, under PIPL, companies cannot refuse to do business with users who do not give their consent to data collection and processing.

What’s next?

PIPL will give the Chinese government greater control over cross-border data sharing and regulate foreign companies better.

As far as penalties go, non-compliance and violations of PIPL can attract fines worth RMB 50 million or 5% of the business’ annual turnover, besides revocation of rights to do business in the country.

‍AN ASSISTANT TO HELP YOU STAY ON TOP OF YOUR CONTRACTS

Trouble following contract events, missing important contract requests, difficulty prioritizing contract activities??... Does any of this sound familiar? If yes, then you have a deficiency of contract notifications!

Luckily, we have a remedy! Introducing the official SpotDraft Slackbot, a nifty integration that helps you stay up-to-date with a variety of contract notifications and events ranging from review requests to scoped comments.

Watch it in action here 👇

There's also a lot more that we do at SpotDraft, why don't you go ahead and...

Request a Demo

THE SEC PLANS TO TAKE COINBASE TO COURT

The US SEC sent a Wells notice to Coinbase, indicating the regulator’s intentions to sue the company if it were to launch its new financial product, Coinbase Lend.

‍What is Coinbase Lend?

Coinbase Lend allows customers to loan their USD Coin (USDC) balance in return for a 4% APY. USDC is a stablecoin created by Coinbase whose value is tied to the US Dollar and is relatively immune to price fluctuations.

Security or Note Security

The bone of contention is whether Coinbase Lend is a security or not. Coinbase argues that Lend is not an investment scheme, but instead a lending program that uses a customer’s existing USDC balance on the platform.

On the other hand, the SEC labels it as a security offering under the Howey and Reves tests, but did not provide any further clarification when requested.

‍Fallout

Following this news, Coinbase’s stock has contracted by 8.84% since September 7. The general cryptocurrency market has also taken a hit, with Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other altcoins shedding between 10%-30% of value over the past week.

‍What’s next?

Many view this as the SEC’s effort to influence greater authority over cryptocurrency trading and lending while also safeguarding traditional investment avenues.

Meanwhile, Coinbase is not giving in easily, with CEO Brian Armstrong putting out a tweet saying, “If we end up in court we may finally get the regulatory clarity the SEC refuses to provide. But regulation by litigation should be the last resort for the SEC, not the first.”

A GUIDE TO BUILDING BUSINESS-CENTRIC IN-HOUSE LEGAL TEAMS‍‍

Adam Glick, Intercom’s Head of Legal, is a staunch believer in keeping legal intervention in business matters to a minimum. This not only helps achieve business objectives quickly but also positions the legal team as a driver of growth within the organization.

In this episode of #LegalMatters, Adam shares his insights on cultivating a business-first legal approach, managing a dynamic legal team at hypergrowth businesses, and much more!

Read the Interview

WHAT ELSE IS MAKING NEWS IN LEGAL?

• India scraps the controversial retrospective tax law and agrees to refund Cairn Energy PLC $1 billion in outstanding claims.

• El Salvador becomes the first country to recognize Bitcoin as an official legal tender, fueling mainstream cryptocurrency adoption in the process.

• The EU proposes the world’s first AI Act that classifies AI systems, identifies risk and covers angles such as prohibitive practices, ethical standards, among other things.

• ‍Concerns for mental or brain privacy emerge as neurotechnologies, like Neuralink and others, take off.

• US Federal Judge rules in favor of Epic Games and instructs Apple to ease App store rules regarding payment methods.

With that, we come to an end with this month’s SpotDigest. We’ll catch you in the next one, until then take care and stay well!

Cheers,

Kevin Fernandes

🤔 Received this email from someone else? Click to subscribe to SpotDigest, hear from us directly. Or checkout our previous editions here.

Hi there,

Rebellions are built on hope 💫
But contracts... are built on collaboration.

That, dear reader - would be the only Star Wars reference in this newsletter, I promise ✋. If you are a fan, I hope you had as much fun geeking out as some of us did. And if you’re not, we got some pretty great content for you nonetheless. 📖

The 4th edition of #LegalMatters features Shiv Vyas, GC of Compusoft Group. It is an interesting discussion on the impact commercially-minded GCs can bring to the table. Catch the full interview here.👇

NEWS IN MINUTES ⏱️

Okay, now for something a little different. If you’ve ever had smart ideas to hack together simple tools/tech that lawyers can use, this is your time to shine.

• No Code Sports League is exactly what it sounds like - a programming-free hackathon for lawyers. Not only is it loads of fun, but you also stand to win prizes 🏆 Read all about it right here.

• Then there's a frenemy story that left us somewhat confused - Amazon and Microsoft team up to defend against facial recognition lawsuits. With elements like training algorithms to differentiate people of color and a few (mis)used photos, this is an interesting case overall to exercise your argumentative skills 🏛️.

FEATURE HIGHLIGHT

Hey, you’re still here - so let's discuss what we were talking about at the start of this email - contract collaboration. Editing contracts feels better as a team sport. So we built something very, very cool - real-time multi-editor support on SpotDraft. 💣

See changes to your contract, as they happen. Leave comments or clarify doubts instantly. And collaborate the way you’ve always wanted to. 👇

LET NUMBERS TELL YOUR STORY

Exhibit your work with SpotInsights 💡

With SpotInsights - legal departments can create intuitive visual dashboards to display their value, understand their workload, and use this data to optimize their processes. We know it is a lot to digest, so here's a sneak-peek 👇

LEGAL LEADER HIGHLIGHT

"It is important to find the time to upskill at work and to do that, you cannot be spending 24x7 on negotiating contracts and putting out fires.”

- Shiv Vyas, GC, Compusoft Group

A question for you: Is it a crime to share your Netflix account/password?

Apparently, according to Netflix's user terms, and a federal law that prohibits you from sharing passwords. Read about this proposition here. 📺

And just like that, this month's SpotDigest comes to an end. We created a beautiful page with an archive of our old editions. Please have a look, share it with your friends, and get SpotDigest some love.

Cheers!

Kevin Fernandes

Maybe it is too early to celebrate, but with vaccination rollouts and places opening up again, it is hard not to feel positive; feels like the first few steps in leaving behind an incredibly painful time.

But I will reserve the happy tears for now, and get you started on some of the best legal-tech content that came out last month.

For our latest edition of #legalmatters, we spoke to the wonderful Colin Levy of WordRake. A legal thought leader who is passionate about marketing, an avid gamer, and a technology enthusiast - Colin is very interesting, to say the least. Find out more here.👇

NEWS IN MINUTES 🕛

• Grab some 🍿 for this one: in what promises to be a very, very interesting case, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis had signed into law, a bill to moderate social media content. Now the first legal challenge has been filed against this case. What is to come? Read about it here.

• “A key issue highlighted by respondents in relation to developing talent and skills, was simply how little time was available to learn new technology in an industry that is typically very time poor.” - Legatics’ Barriers to Legal Technology Adoption survey focused on law firm attorneys, but the results ring alarmingly true for legal professionals across the board.

FEATURE HIGHLIGHT 💡

“I love poring over contracts after every review and redlining.”

- Nobody, at any point in time

SpotDraft’s auto-redlining feature is built to decrease TAT for contracts dramatically. Here is a quick look at how it works. 👇

If you want to see how SpotDraft can help execute contracts at ⚡ speed, hit us up for a demo!

And just like that, this month's SpotDigest comes to an end. We created a beautiful page with an archive of our old editions. Please have a look, share it with your friends, and get SpotDigest some ❤️.

Cheers,

Kevin Fernandes

PS: Please continue staying safe and sanitized. And have fun - you’ve earned it.

The Tour de France mishap from June 28 shares the same flavors of a contract catastrophe, and reconfirms something legal professionals have known for all time. Minor errors can often lead to uncontrolled accidents. 🌋

AVOID CONTRACT ACCIDENTS WITH FLAIR

Reviewing and editing contracts is time-consuming, difficult, prone to errors, and more importantly, is the definitive determinant of your contracting success.

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Enter, automated contract review and editing-

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Always helps to have an extra pair of 👀 doesn’t it?

NEWS FOR THE LEGAL WORLD

• No other fintech company has come under so much legal scrutiny as Robinhood in recent months, prompting fintech commentator Ron Shevlin to call them The $30 Billion Cockroach Of Fintech. The Minnesota Law Review also published a strongly titled article on Robinhood’s latest affairs and how the company manages to get by despite legal action.

• Speaking of tech co. lawsuits, only last month the State of Ohio sued Google alleging “discriminatory and anti-competitive practices.” This wouldn’t be Google’s first, and they are quite confident they’ll defend themselves in court. But is Ohio’s plan to lay the groundwork for increasing regulations? Read to find out.

• Despite a social media onslaught, better sense prevailed, and Tour de France hit the brakes on any plans of pursuing legal action against the fan. However, the fan has been charged by the French Police and will be judged in October.

SPORTS WRAP 🎾⚽

The wait is over 🌟

World #1 Ashleigh Barty won 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-3 against Karolina Pliskova, ending Australia's 41-year drought for a Women's Wimbledon title since Evonne Goolagong. “I hope I made Evonne proud,” Barty said after the trophy presentation.

Just Djo-king 👑

Novak Djokovic wins his 6th Wimbledon and equals a record 20 Grandslam Titles with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. The win also puts the Serb three-quarters of the way to the first calendar Grand Slam of all four majors since 1969.

That's a first 🏆

It might be Argentina's 15th Copa America, but Lionel Messi has finally won his first major trophy (discounting the Olympic Gold) with the national team - a prize that has eluded him for too long. He still needs to discuss his contract situation with Barcelona though.

A mouthwatering final 😋

What's the most delicious thing in the world? 🍕 if you asked me, but if you asked the Italians today, it would be the taste of victory in the Euro 2020 as they beat England 3-2 on penalties to lift the trophy for the 2nd time after 53 years.

That’s the end of this edition of SpotDigest. Get yourself a 🍾 or a 🍸 (depending on who you were supporting), and take extra good care of yourself. We’ll see you next month! 👋

Cheers,

Kevin Fernandes

Received this email from someone else? Click to subscribe to SpotDigest, hear from us directly. Or check out our previous editions here.

Data protection authorities and an executive order to the FTC are closing down on big-tech companies, and Amazon is caught between the fences. Who will win the data battle?

Meanwhile, cyberattacks are getting deadlier, causing losses greater than the combined GDPs of Denmark, New Zealand, and Singapore, forcing authorities to take proactive measures. All this, and much more, when you scroll down 👇

IN THIS ISSUE 📰

• Amazon v/s GDPR - and an $887 million penalty record

• Something better than emails to send contracts

• US' answer to cyberattacks

• How to go from a US military sergeant to a general counsel

• Other stories shaking up the legal industry

AMAZON V/S GDPR - AND A NEW $887 MILLION PENALTY RECORD

In its 10-Q SEC filing last month, Amazon disclosed a ~$887 million fine imposed against it by the Luxembourg National Commission for Data Protection (CNPD).

The allegation: That Amazon’s data handling procedures do not comply with the EU GDPR. Luxembourg CNPD’s imposition is based on a case presented in 2018 by La Quadrature du Net - a French privacy rights group, over the way the eCommerce company collects and uses customer data.

There is also considerable clout over how Amazon collects/uses data from independent sellers on its platform. In an antitrust hearing last year, Jeff Bezos couldn’t guarantee that the company didn’t ever use seller data to gain a competitive advantage.

The repercussion: Amazon is now neck-deep in data-related troubles. The FTC is already monitoring its MGM merger. And recently, President Biden issued an executive order urging the FTC to establish rules on surveillance and the accumulation of data.

Couple that with a June 2021 ruling by the ECJ that national data protection authorities across the EU can pursue cases against tech giants even when they are not the lead watchdog for that company, and Amazon could potentially be looking at a potpourri of legal cases against it.

What’s Next: This is the largest fine under the GDPR, beating a $50 million penalty on Google. And just like them, Amazon will appeal against this decision. Interestingly, Google's appeal was dismissed by a French court earlier this year.

This could be the inflection point, not just for the GDPR, but how regulations related to data collection and usage are enforced against tech companies in general. Or, it could be yet another long-drawn court battle.

SOMETHING BETTER THAN EMAILS TO SEND CONTRACTS

If you’ve lost many contracts in email thread rabbit-holes, this is something you will definitely appreciate👇

Presenting SpotDraft’s counterparty workflow feature 🎉 that lets you collaborate faster, track edits better, and send contracts easily.

All contracts are nested within one intuitive interface so you can track conversion, follow up on reviews/edits, and even sign them without having to open your mailbox!

There's also a lot more that we do at SpotDraft, why don't you go ahead and...

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US' ANSWER TO CYBERATTACKS

This month, a bill called the Cyber Incident Notification Act was proposed in the US Senate. The bill aims at streamlining the reporting of cyberattacks by identifying authority channels and laying down guidelines for certain companies in the event of an attack.

Meanwhile, the State Department is offering cryptocurrency rewards of up to $10 million for information and location of state-backed hackers targeting US government systems.

Why now?

• In 2020, ransomware and cyberattacks racked up losses worth $1 trillion, a steep 50% jump from 2018.

• In 2021 alone, the USA saw two high-profile attacks involving Colonial Pipeline and JBS S.A.

• New attacks are extremely dangerous as hackers are shifting towards disrupting operations over stealing data.

• The FBI director even compared new-age cyberattack threats to the 9/11 terror attacks.

Legal sector - a target?

One study revealed that in the last 12 months, 95% of legal organizations struggled with data breaches resulting from human error and phishing attacks.

GOING FROM A US MILITARY SERGEANT TO A GENERAL COUNSEL

Lisa K. Lang is not your conventional counsel. The current Kentucky State University GC began her career as a US Military sergeant before serving as an Assistant General Attorney and working in various in-house capacities.

In this episode of #LegalMatters, Lisa shares insights on navigating the in-house environment, networking tips for lawyers, and her philosophy on life.

Read the interview

WHAT ELSE’S MAKING NEWS IN LEGAL?

• The US Senate proceeds with the $1 Trillion Infrastructure Bill that has left many cryptocurrency enthusiasts bitter.

• Apple’s controversial NeuralHash, which will inspect iPhones in the US for child abuse content has ignited privacy concerns.

• The FTC unanimously sided with the customers in the controversial Right to Repair debate.

• Zoom settled an $86mn class-action privacy lawsuit for sharing user personal data with Facebook, Google, and LinkedIn.

Finally, the IPCC did not mince any words in its latest 3,949-page report. We now see spiraling surface temperatures and skewed climate patterns giving way to extreme heat waves, tropical storms, and other weather anomalies. Time for sunscreen… or a sustainable lifestyle. Until next time!

Cheers,
Kevin Fernandes

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