The National Law Journal: Shifting Scrutiny - State AG Practices Prepare for New Priorities Under Biden
January 3, 2021
O’Melveny State Attorneys General Investigations and Litigation Group co-chair Daniel Suvor is quoted in this National Law Journal article, which discussed the incoming administration’s plan to bolster state AG regulatory power through deeper collaboration in areas such as civil rights, environmental, and antitrust enforcement.
Attorneys predict that the federal presence will allow AGs to expand their efforts and devote greater attention to “core functions” such as financial, consumer, and tech fraud, the publication reported.
“The pendulum will swing from state AGs being the primary civil rights enforcers to the federal government. That relieves pressure on the states to focus on core functions,” Suvor said.
O’Melveny is among the firms with a State AG practice meeting the growing needs of clients in industries that are regulated by AGs such as technology, retail, and pharmaceuticals. Suvor is part of an O’Melveny team currently representing Johnson & Johnson in roughly 2,000 lawsuits, including those brought by an alliance of Democratic and Republican AGs.
Under the Trump administration, the federal government hung back on civil rights and environmental enforcement, which made for fewer lawsuits and investigations into allegedly offending companies. “Our clients are going to have an active federal government again. On top of that, they won’t be able to ignore state AGs,” Suvor noted.
“State AGs have often been overlooked by large corporations. That has changed in the last few years,” Suvor explained. “Now, clients are going to have to think about both federal and state enforcement at the same time.”
National Law Journal subscribers can read the full article here.