Inaugural Foley Publication Unpacks Top Business and Legal Trends Facing Key Sectors in 2023

Foley & Lardner LLP today published its inaugural edition of Foley Forward: Trends 2023. Informed by the latest sector trends and market drivers, the publication brings insights from across four key sectors: Energy, Health Care & Life Sciences, Innovative Technology, and Manufacturing.

The latest publication builds upon Foley’s commitment to looking beyond the law to deliver creative, practical, and effective solutions to the evolving demands facing clients. It is intended to help clients – who increasingly seek holistic insights from advisors who know their business and markets as deeply and profoundly as they do – see around corners and predict broader trends’ implications as they navigate an unprecedented market and operating environment.

Foley Forward: Trends 2023 unpacks the landscape of the constantly evolving demands to help position companies for success, providing valuable insights across the following sections:

Energia

Amid the rapid acceleration of energy convergence, Foley expects more businesses to focus on merging traditional forms of energy sources with clean energy sources. As companies navigate the clean energy transition, the focus remains on accessing the benefits of the landmark Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which will catalyze projects that decarbonize the energy sector through its unprecedented funding and new and expanded tax credits. ESG is also increasingly vying for airtime in the oil and gas boardroom as leaders determine how best to tackle environmental, social, and governance topics – while managing compliance and reputational risks. At the same time, more renewable manufacturers than ever are considering onshoring or nearshoring manufacturing facilities in the United States, creating disruption and opportunities for the entire value chain.

• A rápida aceleração da convergência energética
• ESG: Staying Top of Mind in the Oil & Gas Boardroom
• Condições favoráveis para o Onshoring em 2023
• IRA traz oportunidades de energia e fabrico
• Os créditos fiscais IRA beneficiam a energia e a indústria transformadora

Cuidados de saúde e ciências da vida

After passing telehealth statutes in response to COVID-19, Foley anticipates states will hone in on modifications to telehealth modalities required for appropriate standards of care in 2023. At the same time, companies providing clinical trial services via telehealth have to deal with whether the carrying out of the clinical aspects of a trial is considered part of the practice of medicine. Each practice standard requirement and compliance requires state-by-state analysis, and failure to adhere to such standards could subject study sites, investigators, and staff to unwarranted enforcement. Within life sciences, several high-profile patent cliffs between now and 2030 are expected to rock the biopharma sector and reshape the market – increasing pressure on larger companies to replenish their pipelines, regardless of whether that comes from in-house R&D or new partnerships and acquisitions. In terms of deals, private equity investment in health care should anticipate scrutiny by government regulators, media, and some health care practitioners as questions arise if profit-driven goals conflict with patient care quality.

• 2023 Tendências da telemedicina e da saúde digital
• O impasse das patentes biofarmacêuticas: 2023 e mais além
• Escrutínio crescente do capital privado nos cuidados de saúde
• Considerações sobre a realização de ensaios clínicos descentralizados

Tecnologia inovadora

Following years of corporate investment into innovative technologies, Foley expects more businesses will take advantage of the synergistic combination of serverless computing, edge computing, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning to drive further efficiencies, experience, and performance. The combination of mobility, AI, and data analytics will be crucial elements of effective SaaS applications going forward. With AI disruption moving from future to current state, Foley anticipates 2023 will be the year of widespread adoption due to generative AI technologies such as ChatGPT that will push human capacity to new realms. In terms of investments, the prospects for increased M&A activity holds steady – assuming the economy remains stable and valuations remain attractive. A myriad of new cybersecurity and data privacy laws will come into effect this year, requiring organizations to update their global cybersecurity and data privacy programs accordingly.

• Perspectivas de fusões e aquisições para 2023
• Para onde se dirige a computação em nuvem em 2023?
• ChatGPT: O arauto da IA generativa em 2023?
• O que esperar em 2023: Tendências em matéria de cibersegurança e privacidade dos dados
• Para onde se dirige o SaaS em 2023?
• What’s Next for Blockchain Tech and Crypto in 2023?

Fabrico

The ever-resilient manufacturing sector has been bruised – and battered – in recent years through the pandemic, raw material shortages, increased labor costs, rising interest rates and geopolitical events. Looking ahead, Foley expects manufacturers will face key disruptors, including greater financial distress, increased costs, and the transition to electric vehicles – but there will be room for opportunities for growth through acquisition, cost recovery, and innovation. At the same time, the incentives provided by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) – which include new and expanded tax credits aimed at boosting onshore American manufacturing – represent significant opportunities for manufacturers in critical industries, particularly in those industries that are key players in the administration’s goal to address climate change. As attention on federal laws that regulate the conduct and organization of businesses to promote competition heats up, manufacturing companies should actively prepare for heightened antitrust scrutiny of their business practices in 2023. Manufacturers are also expected to face heightened ESG expectations to ensure their supply chains don’t include any products made using forced or child labor.

• Antitrust: Aumentar a expansão, a revisão e a aplicação
• Três prováveis factores de perturbação e oportunidades para os fabricantes em 2023
• Manter o "S" em ESG: Direitos Humanos e Cadeia de Fornecimento
• IRA traz oportunidades de energia e fabrico
• Os créditos fiscais IRA beneficiam a energia e a indústria transformadora

To read Foley Forward: Trends 2023, click here.

# # #

Sobre Foley & Lardner LLP

Foley & Lardner LLP é uma sociedade de advogados de renome que se encontra no nexo dos sectores da energia, dos cuidados de saúde e das ciências da vida, da tecnologia inovadora e da indústria transformadora. Olhamos para além da lei para nos concentrarmos nas exigências em constante evolução que os nossos clientes enfrentam e actuamos como consultores empresariais de confiança para oferecer soluções criativas, práticas e eficazes. Os nossos 1.100 advogados, distribuídos por 25 escritórios em todo o mundo, trabalham em parceria em toda a gama de compromissos, desde aconselhamento empresarial a trabalho de PI e apoio a litígios, proporcionando aos nossos clientes uma solução de equipa única para todas as suas necessidades. Por quase dois séculos, a Foley tem mantido seu compromisso com o mais alto nível de serviços jurídicos inovadores e com a administração de nosso pessoal, empresa, clientes e comunidades que servimos.