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By Caitlin Tremblay

What's going on in the legal industry this week?

AI startups are courting law students, Yale lost its No. 1 slot in law school rankings, law firms fighting Trump executive orders got backing from fellow firms, and it turns out law school really pays off.

Plus your weekly Career Tracker.

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

State lawmakers in two of the largest legal markets in the United States this week moved to erect firewalls between law firms and outside capital, as investors and lawyers increasingly explore back-office partnerships and other investment deals.

California's State Assembly on Monday approved legislation that would prohibit corporate investors from interfering with or influencing a lawyer's professional judgment regarding litigation. The bill is now before the State Senate for consideration. 

Meanwhile, state lawmakers in Illinois' House of Representatives are considering a bill that would prohibit outside investors from charging any fees to a law firm, as well as controlling a firm's hiring practices, document access or interfering with a lawyer's professional judgment. The Illinois bill, which would also limit lawyers' ability to share fees with out-of-state "alternative business structures," received unanimous approval by a House committee last month and is now awaiting a full vote on the floor, after which the bill would move to the Illinois Senate.

Investors and other non-lawyers are broadly prohibited from owning direct stakes in U.S. law firms. The bills in California and Illinois are responding in part to a form of business partnership that has been gaining attention in the legal industry in recent months: the management services organization, or MSO. 

Read more about the pushback in this week's Billable Hours.

In New York:

Scott Bennett left Cravath to join Sidley as partner and head of technology capital markets … King & Spalding added real estate partner Philip Fitzpatrick from McDermott … Litigation and employment partner Shawn Regan moved to Morgan Lewis from Hunton Andrews Kurth … Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp added entertainment transactions partner Amy Stein Simonds from Pryor Cashman … Millie Warner left Epstein Becker Green for Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler’s employment litigation practice … Pryor Cashman added tax partner Olga Beloded from Curtis Mallet-Prevost Colt & Mosle … M&A and private equity transactions partner Matthew Schwartz moved to Cleary Gottlieb from Gibson Dunn … Simpson Thacher added partners Michael Kuh and Matthew Carpenter-Dennis to its M&A practice. Kuk will be co-head of the sports group and joins from Hogan Lovells and Carpenter-Dennis joins from the NBA where he was assistant general counsel … Securities and M&A litigation partner Sarah Lightdale returned to Latham from Cooley … Winston & Strawn added white-collar and government investigations partner Guy Singer from McDermott. 

In D.C.:

Former chief of the foreign investment review section of the DOJ’s national security division, Devin DeBacker joined Covington & Burling as a CFIUS partner … FDA and life sciences partner George O’Brien moved to WilmerHale from Mayer Brown … Litigation and employment partner Torsten Kracht joined Morgan Lewis from Hunton Andrews Kurth … Winston & Strawn added white-collar and government investigations partner Anne Murray from McDermott … Faegre Drinker hired two partners to its FDA practice: Jeremiah Kelly and Justin Coen, who join from Venable.

In Los Angeles:

Barnes & Thornburg added PFAS-focused product liability partner Joo Cha Webb from Venable … Employment partner Leo Li joined McGuireWoods from Seyfarth Shaw … Data privacy litigation partner Spencer Persson moved to BakerHostetler from Davis Wright Tremaine … Epstein Becker Green added employment partner Jennifer McGeorge from FordHarrison … Simpson Thacher added M&A partner Eric Geffner as co-head of its sports group from Sidley.

In Boston:

Litigation and employment partner Christopher Pardo moved to Morgan Lewis from Hunton Andrews Kurth … Reed Smith added three litigation partners from K&L Gates: Jennifer Nagle, Robert Sparkes and Kathleen Parker … Litigation partner Paul Lewis moved to Haynes Boone from DLA Piper.

In Chicago: 

Ashley Chung, former deputy chief of appeals in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois, returned to Winston & Strawn as partner in its appellate and critical motions practice. Winston also added leveraged finance partner Lee Discher from Kirkland.

In Atlanta:

Buchalter hired corporate partner Erica Opitz from Chamberlain Hrdlicka … Taft Stettinius & Hollister added real estate partner Rick Pilch from Alston & Bird. 

In Dallas:

King & Spalding added