DA In Gilgo Beach Killings Case Talks Advances In DNA Use

The case regarding multiple killings along Gilgo Beach has captivated the New York tristate area ever since women's mutilated bodies were found in 2010 on the stretch of Long Island.In addition to being gruesome, the case has charted new legal waters, as it has seen evidence from a newer form of DNA testing for the first time pass stringent court admissibility standards, setting an example in New York that could come into play in other jurisdictions.Law360 sat down with Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney, who began prosecuting architect Rex Heuermann in 2023 on what now are charges that he murdered seven women, to discuss the case. Heuermann maintains his innocence, has pled not guilty and is in custody awaiting trial.

The debate regarding whether incarcerated people who perform work are employees and thus entitled to federal wage and hour protections is set to continue to develop.

The U.S. Department of Labor's proposed rule to end employers' ability to pay workers with disabilities less than the federal minimum wage comes as time is running out to end the long-standing but controversial program before Republicans take back the White House and Congress. Here, Law360 explores the debate over the program and what ending it would mean for both employers and workers.

When it comes to artificial intelligence, most early adopters fear the so-called hallucinations that the systems can produce. But one scholar says the creativity those hallucinations represent is actually a valuable feature lawyers should embrace. At the 25th annual Burton Awards, Law360 caught up with Megan Ma, a research fellow and the associate director of the Stanford Program in Law, Science, and Technology and the Stanford Center for Legal Informatics, also known as CodeX. Ma talks about just why hallucinations aren't all bad, the guardrails needed to stay on the right side of legal ethics, and the power academia has to help shape the future uses of AI in the legal profession.

Twenty years ago, patent attorney Greg Raymer made poker history by toppling the largest tournament field ever to secure a record $5 million prize at the World Series of Poker’s main event, further fueling the so-called poker boom that pushed the game’s popularity to new heights.  Raymer joins Law360 for a conversation about the path to his momentous achievement – from a private practice and corporate counsel attorney with a serious poker habit on the side to eventual champion – and what he’s been up to for the last two decades since his win.

The 96th annual Academy Awards is set to air on Sunday night. And behind the scenes of the bright lights, golden statues and celebrities in couture fashion walking the red carpet, there is, of course, a lawyer making sure it all goes to plan.  For 33 years, that job belonged to Quinn Emanuel founding partner John Quinn, who served as general counsel to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and whose firm still serves as the organization’s primary outside counsel. In this special Law360 interview he joins Law360 editor-at-large Alex Lawson to talk about all that the job entails and what it’s like being the top legal adviser behind Hollywood’s biggest night.

Psychedelics, a class of hallucinogenic drugs with powerful mind-altering capabilities, are having a moment. While some have been used by traditional healers for thousands of years, as a matter of law today they are federally illegal substances considered to have no medical value. But the field is at an inflection point. As clinical research grows, and state and local laws change, the future of psychedelics policy is being shaped by a wide range of interests, including healthcare workers, government regulators, pharmaceutical startups and traditional use advocates. On this episode of Law360 Explores: Psychedelics, we investigate the emerging medical promise, the grassroots decriminalization movement and the activists focused on fair access and equity, all of which will determine where the industry goes from here.

How did some of the world's biggest tech companies come to benefit from a legal supershield making it almost impossible to sue them? The strange saga of Section 230 began 30 years ago with a notorious penny stock firm later made famous by Hollywood, and has now wound its way to the U.S. Supreme Court. This week, in a special partnership episode between our Supreme Court podcast The Term and our investigative podcast series Law360 Explores, we track down the story of how a law passed with little fanfare decades ago became an aegis for a fledgling internet industry, and why many critics now want to pierce its armor.

It’s time to take your seat inside the prestigious legal classroom, where law professors teaching a century-old curriculum engage in Socratic dialogue to shape you into thinking like a lawyer. But is that the most effective way of teaching, for all students? On this episode of Law360 Explores: The Law School Promise, we investigate how outdated methods like one final exam and cold calling can negatively impact students, and some of the ways that legal education reforms could change the curriculum for the better.

Before the law school journey even begins, you must first wind your way through a rigorous admissions process that includes not just letters of recommendation and statements of purpose, but the notoriously arduous LSAT exam. An exceptional score can open doors at the nation’s most prestigious universities, but is it the fairest way to measure candidates’ potential? On this episode of Law360 Explores: The Law School Promise, we investigate whether the law school admissions process makes sense, and whether a system that emphasizes a test score so heavily is leaving qualified law school applicants behind.