Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%
Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.
Court Watch
An important advantage of establishing a franchise system, as opposed simply to licensing one's intellectual property and know-how, is that it permits the franchisor to exercise significant commercial control over its franchisees while also being insulated from liability. Two recent cases demonstrate and help to clarify this advantage.
Domino's Pizza
In Domino's Pizza, LLC v. Reddy, Bus. Franchise Guide ' 15,501 (Tx. Ct. App. Mar. 19, 2015), one person was killed and another injured when a car driven by a Domino's Pizza delivery driver hydroplaned due to a bald tire and crashed into another vehicle. The guardian of the estates of the injured victim and deceased victim sued the driver, MAC Pizza Management, Inc., a Domino's franchisee, and Domino's itself for negligence. After a trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of the crash victims, determining that the driver was 10% at fault, MAC was 30% at fault, and Domino's was 60% at fault.
Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
Legal Possession: What Does It Mean?
Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.
The Stranger to the Deed Rule
In 1987, a unanimous Court of Appeals reaffirmed the vitality of the "stranger to the deed" rule, which holds that if a grantor executes a deed to a grantee purporting to create an easement in a third party, the easement is invalid. Daniello v. Wagner, decided by the Second Department on November 29th, makes it clear that not all grantors (or their lawyers) have received the Court of Appeals' message, suggesting that the rule needs re-examination.