Legal Year In Review 2021

INTRODUCTION

Overview of the most significant legal and business developments of 2021

When the year began, we hoped that we would not be writing the 2021 edition of this publication while still grappling with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. With the pandemic approaching the end of its second year, 2021 has, like 2020, been a year like no other. In spite of the continued pandemic, we are pleased to offer updates on many important legal and business developments across a wide variety of industries and practice areas, many of which do not relate to COVID-19. We take this as a positive sign of a return to at least some aspects of pre-pandemic life.

In fact, many of our colleagues chose to write about the "new normal" or the "return to normal." But what does that mean in a year such as 2021? On the one hand, with continued lockdowns and restrictions and fluctuating case counts, many employees have continued to work remotely. Return to office, or RTO, has