Litigation

This installment of our appellate series reviews recent cases addressing the district courts' review of interlocutory bankruptcy court orders and the enforceability of appellate deadlines. As we have shown with other case law governing appeals, real obstacles confront practitioners appealing from bankruptcy court rulings.

A look at moves among attorneys, law firms, companies and other players in entertainment law.

now is a critical time for companies to reassess their business and finances if they have not already, so that they can be prepared for the future. Proper planning is key to ensuring a company's financial health when facing an economic downturn.

Federal Circuit: Applicant Admitted Prior Art Cannot Provide a "Basis" for a Ground of Unpatentability in an IPR, But Can be Cited for Other Purposes Federal Circuit: After SAS, IPR Estoppel Extends to Prior-Art Grounds That Reasonably Could Have Been Raised in the Petition

Los Angeles Federal Court Dismisses United Talent Agency's Breach-of-Contract Claim Brought Over Denial of Insurance Coverage "Single Claim" Provision Defeats DirecTV Law Firm's Bid for Reimbursement of Legal Fees Under Insurance Policy

As the commercial real estate market undergoes seismic shifts, companies may find themselves in situations where their tenant or their landlord has filed for bankruptcy protection. Questions then quickly arise, such as if and how a landlord may evict a bankrupt tenant, whether a bankrupt tenant may remain as a lessee and continue to occupy the premises, and how to measure damages for a landlord in this situation, both before bankruptcy and going forward post-petition.

In today's increasingly complex, competitive and litigious business environment where nondisclosure agreements have crept in scope to also be noncompete agreements or anti-poaching agreements in addition to confidentiality agreements, the need for legal professionals with generalized knowledge who have managed business enterprises on a whole has become a mainstay of the corporate world.

Basic ESI preservation steps, including litigation holds, relevant source checklists, and follow up steps with custodians may not be enough in some instances. Given the frequency of data loss from custodial and non-custodial sources, companies should also consider incorporating remediation strategies into their approach to preservation to better ensure defensibility.