The value of athletes' personas and related indicia is a bedrock component of the sports industries. Merchandising and endorsement deals date back decades. But this tradition hasn't meant a smooth ride today. Disputes over athlete indicia are as common as those for entertainers. An examination of several court rulings from the past few weeks demonstrates common claims and defenses over licensed and unlicensed uses.
Quiznos successfully beat back a class action challenging its supplier arrangements in Westerfeld v. The Quiznos Franchise Company. One important aspect of this decision is that the Eastern District of Wisconsin court had no problem dismissing a class action challenge to Quiznos' supplier arrangements on the basis that various disclaimer clauses commonly used by most franchisors were fully enforceable and effective to bar the franchisees' fraud and RICO claims.
'Earmark' is a 16th century form of cattle branding. But this case presents a contemporary Congressional earmark that cut out the right of Last Best Beef, LLC to register or enforce its brand.
Buying assets out of a bankruptcy case represents one of the best ways to profit from financial distress. However, just as there is no typical bankrupt company, there is no typical asset sale in a bankruptcy case. Bankruptcy and distressed company investing, while potentially lucrative, is also complex and oftentimes contentious.
Last month, the authors discussed the law in the U.S. and beyond pertaining to the establishment of a child's habitual residence. The next issue to cover, once habitual residence of the child has been established, is whether or not the petitioning party has a right to custody of the child in question.
A look at a recent ruling of importance.
'Parallel proceedings' is a term with which white-collar criminal defense lawyers and in-house counsel are very familiar. It describes the private civil actions that often are concurrently filed when a criminal investigation or charges are disclosed. The civil impact of criminal investigations and prosecutions begin and continue long after resolution of the criminal case. Indeed, once the corporation's alleged fraudulent actions or resulting settlement become public knowledge, often it is only a matter of time before an action is filed against its officers and directors.
Most attorneys involved in the investigation or defense of complex business crimes will turn to private investigators to assist them in developing the facts. Given the breadth and nature of many modern criminal investigations, the use of private investigators is almost becoming a necessity. Yet many basic rules governing their use are unclear or in flux, especially when it comes to monitoring or gathering electronic information.
In the first part of this article, the author discussed the availability of relief for a taxpayer from liability for tax on a joint return that results from his or her spouse's errors or omissions, focusing on the equitable catch-all provided in IRC ' 6015(f). In December 2006, Congress amended the statute explicitly to provide for Tax Court review of IRS determinations not to grant relief under ' 6015(f). Now, the author considers how the Tax Court evaluates these claims in relation to the position of the IRS.
