The DOJ's intervention, and the judge's ultimate decision, has exposed tensions between the DOJ and FTC, and within the FTC itself, and public scrutiny is far from over as the case heads to the Ninth Circuit on appeal.
In the last five years, the courts have instead began wading into policy setting without the tools and resources to fully consider all the issues and various interests. Thus, the recent congressional efforts to consider these questions is welcome and, frankly, overdue.
Fifteen states had argued that they and their public universities shouldn't have to expose their patents to validity review at the patent trial and appeal board.
Federal Circuit Finds District Court Erred in Analysis of Motivation to Combine Prior Art References, Yet Affirms Ultimate Conclusion of Non-obviousness Due to the Lack of a Reasonable Expectation of Success
Federal Circuit Rules that Issue Preclusion Bars a Party from Arguing in an Appeal of an Inter Partes Review Decision an Issue Previously Decided in Another Inter Partes Review Proceeding that Was Not Appealed
Approximately 30 states have enacted anti-SLAPP statutes, which are intended to deter lawsuits that impede the right to free speech and other related activities. New statutory language in Texas's anti-SLAPP statute specifically protects those in the entertainment and media industries, and such explicit reference should prove comfort to content creators and publishers.
From a risk management perspective, festivals now run the gamut on potential liabilities that include collapsed stages, cancelled performances, severe weather, terrorism, alcohol liability, patron bodily harm and death, product liability and breach of contract claims. In essence, music festivals have become a microcosm of live entertainment-related liability exposures.
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals recently issued a decision that explains some of the requirements for deducting litigation expenses. The facts of the case are bizarre, but the controlling legal principles are not.
Restricting a tenant's right to transfer the property it is leasing to a third party is a key component to any lease. Many lenders require landlords to obtain lender consent before the transfer is effective. Failure to obtain such consent could lead to a landlord's default under the terms and conditions of the loan documents, so it is imperative for a landlord to review its loan documents each time it receives a request from a tenant to transfer its interest under the lease.
Remember the nasty fight between Tom Petty's widow and daughters over control of his estate? Now the mud is splattering the lawyers, too.
A bankruptcy court decision recently detailed how courts applying Bankruptcy Code §303(i) can sanction creditors who "abuse … the power given to [them] … to file an involuntary bankruptcy petition." The decision shows why the filing of an involuntary bankruptcy requires careful pre-filing legal judgment.
