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Fed Court Believes It Can't Consider Copyright Issue
The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California ordered defendant Artisan Pictures to show cause why a suit against it for payment of film-acquisition rights shouldn't be remanded to state court. The federal court noted it 'likely lacks' subject matter jurisdiction over the declaratory suit, even though the case involves whether copyright claims over licenses for film music were time barred. Sakkis v. Artisan Pictures Inc., CV 08-00049 MMM (JCx).
Cahoots Productions entered into an 'Acquisition of Rights Agreement' with Artisan purportedly for payment of a share of money from the movie 'Blue Hill Avenue.' Cahoots assigned its rights to Dino Sakkis, including authority for Artisan to pay Sakkis $77,720. Artisan executed a 'Distributor's Acceptance' to pay Sakkis directly but later held back on paying Sakkis by citing third parties' claims that licenses for music used in the movie weren't valid. Sakkis then filed suit in Los Angeles Superior Court for a declaration that Artisan was obligated to pay him on the ground that the supposed copyright claims over the music licenses were barred by the three-year statute of limitations of the Copyright Act. Artisan removed the case to the federal district court based on the copyright claims.
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
A Lawyer's System for Active Reading
Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.