Commercial Law

Features

This article explores the boundaries of the follow-the-fortunes doctrine. Does it have any limits? Does a cedent have carte blanche to impose its claims decisions and allocations of claims settlements upon a reinsurer without question? Do the answers to the questions depend upon whether the dispute is before a court or an arbitration panel?

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An insurer has a duty to defend a claim that is arguably within the policy's coverage. While some courts look solely to the complaint to determine the existence of a duty to defend, other courts consider extrinsic facts. This article discusses the parameters of the duty to defend, and identifies the evidence to be considered in analyzing that duty.

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In a blow for insurers and contrary to the weight of authority in multiple other juridictions, the California Court of Appeals for the Fourth District recently reversed the trial court on its so-called "no stacking rule" and affirmed the trial court in its "all sums" liability allocation.

Features

The Patent Reform Act of 2007 may soon be recycled as The Patent Reform Act of 2009 and reintroduced in the new Congress. Should this reform become the law, it is likely that inventors will still invent. The author's fear, however, is that without strong patent law, investors will no longer want to invest in unprotected ideas.

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In the early "wild west" days of the Internet, legal remedies always seemed a step behind the intellectual property dilemmas presented by the new technological medium. Congress has gradually responded by enacting new laws to tackle high-tech loopholes, and the courts have creatively applied traditional concepts in an effort to prevent unscrupulous people from exploiting others' Internet-based intellectual property.

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Grip sites tell a business what some customers think, even though their opinions are not necessarily those that the business wants to hear ' and certainly not those that it would want other customers or potential customers to hear. They could serve as a warning system to companies that their products or services are not being well received and that they are suffering from bad word of mouth. Gripe sites also, theoretically, add to the public good as forums for discussion and create better-informed customers. But there are, or should be, many other and better ways to obtain this information, such as through a company's own Web site and toll-free customer service numbers.

Features

False Endorsement/No Preemption<br>Song Copyright/Implied License<br>Video-Game Statutes/Unconstitutionality

Features

The recording industry estimates that music piracy has cost it billions of dollars during the past 15 years. Facing the potential for an industry-wide collapse, the RIAA undertook its aggressive litigation campaign to protect itself and its constituents from copyright infringement by suing individual file sharers. After fighting a public relations battle over some of its tactics, the RIAA has chosen to temper its aggressiveness. The RIAA is instead forming relationships with ISPs that maintain the online accounts of the consumers.