Original Jurisdiction

Original Jurisdiction aims to provide sharp, balanced, and sometimes amusing commentary on law and the legal field. With the significant role that law and legal professionals play in American society and politics—both positively and negatively—it’s crucial to have platforms that shed light on these often closed-off and complex areas, especially as the legal industry grows in size and influence.

National, Trade/B2B

English

Newsletter (Digital)

Outlet metrics

Domain Authority

Ranking

Global

N/A

Country

N/A

Articles

Judicial Notice (06.08.25): Noisy Withdrawals

2 weeks ago | davidlat.substack.com | David Lat

This week’s Judicial Notice is sponsored byChambers-ranked and Harvard-educated, Jeff is the trusted closer for high-stakes disputes. His battle-tested system of managed communications empowers clients to make clear, strong decisions in a calm, informed environment. It makes the right resolution obvious. If settlement seems impossible, call him. Last week wasn’t exciting for me. And I’m fine with that, since next week will be hectic (for reasons I’ll explain in next weekend’s Judicial Notice).
The Top 20 Most Profitable Law Firms (2024)

3 weeks ago | davidlat.substack.com | David Lat

Tired of talking about Trump stuff? You’ve come to the right place. Let’s turn our attention to another topic that people love to discuss: money—specifically, how much of it Biglaw firms made in 2024.1The answer: a lot. Here are the key financial metrics for Biglaw as a whole, from The American Lawyer’s 2025 Am Law 100 rankings (based on 2024 performance):Total gross revenue: $158.3 billion, up by 13.3 percent. Revenue per lawyer (RPL): $1.28 million, up by 5.2 percent.
As Biglaw Shrinks From Taking on Trump, Boutiques Step Up

3 weeks ago | davidlat.substack.com | David Lat

A version of this article originally appeared on Bloomberg Law, part of Bloomberg Industry Group, Inc. (800-372-1033), and is reproduced here with permission. The (detailed and lengthy) footnotes contain material that did not appear in the Bloomberg Law version of the piece. You can think of the footnotes as “bonus content” for Original Jurisdiction subscribers. Four well-known litigators—Karen Dunn, Jeannie Rhee, Bill Isaacson, and Jessica Phillips—left Paul Weiss last month.
Judicial Notice (06.01.25): Heartburn

3 weeks ago | davidlat.substack.com | David Lat

This week’s Judicial Notice is sponsored byWith a presence in over a dozen cities across the United States and Asia, Lateral Link boasts an expert recruiting team of former practicing attorneys dedicated to sourcing top-tier legal talent for a diverse clientele, including major international law firms and Fortune 500 companies. To learn more about Lateral Link, please visit our website. Guess what I received in the mail the other day?
Debra Wong Yang - Gibson Dunn - podcast interview

1 month ago | davidlat.substack.com | David Lat

Is it just me, or are crises popping up all over the place? Major corporations, top law firms, and leading universities—among many other institutions—seem to be lurching from one crisis to another. And they need help—often from lawyers and law firms. So it was an opportune time for me to welcome to the podcast one of the nation’s leading experts on crisis management: Debra Wong Yang, a longtime partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, where she chairs the crisis-management practice.
Judicial Notice (05.26.25): Sturm Und Drang

1 month ago | davidlat.substack.com | David Lat

This week’s Judicial Notice is sponsored byLexSelect helps lawyers work 12x faster by eliminating tedious, low-value tasks and freeing up time for high-value, billable work. It seamlessly extracts and cites text from any PDF—including transcripts, affidavits, contracts, and expert reports—cutting up to 50 hours of manual work per trial down to just 4. Save time, reduce errors, and stay focused on what matters: advocating your case and serving your clients.
SCOTUS Clerk Hiring Watch: OT 2025 And Beyond

1 month ago | davidlat.substack.com | David Lat

It’s hard to believe, but the current Term of the U.S. Supreme Court—October Term 2024, in SCOTUS parlance—is almost over. We’re presumably done with oral arguments—last week’s arguments in the birthright-citizenship cases constituted a special session—and now we’re just waiting for opinions to come down (or not come down, as the case might be). Here’s something else I’ve been waiting for: the names of the law clerks for October Term 2025 that I’m still missing.
Judicial Notice (05.18.25): The Other ‘Ninth Circus’

1 month ago | davidlat.substack.com | David Lat

This week’s Judicial Notice is sponsored byBriefCatch is the trusted legal writing expert of over 22,000 legal professionals, 40 Am Law 200 firms, and 70 courts. It provides real-time insights to help you write with precision, clarity, and confidence—and now it can even handle your Bluebooking. To learn more about BriefCatch Enterprise and how it’s helping legal organizations achieve better client outcomes, schedule a meeting with one of our experts.
Paying It Forward: Sandra Leung

1 month ago | davidlat.substack.com | David Lat

Current time: 0:00 / Total time: -48:52Audio playback is not supported on your browser. Please upgrade. I’m very proud of the guests I’ve hosted on the Original Jurisdiction podcast, who are some of the most interesting and influential figures in the world of law. But I recently noticed a significant gap in their ranks: I’ve never hosted the general counsel or chief legal officer of a publicly traded company.
Judicial Notice (05.12.25): Checks And Balances

1 month ago | davidlat.substack.com | David Lat

This week’s Judicial Notice is sponsored byChambers-ranked and Harvard-educated, Jeff is the trusted closer for high-stakes disputes. His battle-tested system of managed communications empowers clients to make clear, strong decisions in a calm, informed environment. It makes the right resolution obvious. If settlement seems impossible, call him. To all the moms out there, I hope you had a delightful Mother’s Day.