Features

California Federal Court Sorts Out Ownership Issues In Dispute Over Record Albums
Approval of all the co-owners of a copyrighted work is needed to grant exclusive rights to third parties. Despite that, any co-owner can sell that co-owner's exclusive ownership share to third parties without the permission of the others The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California recently released an opinion that considered the interplay of these copyright issues.
Features

How NY Courts Find Copyright Preemption of State Law Right of Publicity Claims
To survive preemption under §301 of the Copyright Act, courts consider whether a state law claim in a lawsuit has an "extra element" that qualitatively distinguishes it from a federal copyright claim. Courts typically find that state law claims, such as breach of contract, have an extra element. Other state law claims, such as conversion, get varying court determinations as to whether they are preempted.
Features

Federal Class Action Available for Delay In Recording Mortgage Satisfaction
Because the Second Circuit held that a bare violation of New York's Mortgage-Satisfaction-Recording Statutes without a demonstration of actual injury conferred federal jurisdiction, a mortgagor now has the ability to bring a class action in federal court.
Features

Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks now target the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet.
Features

Federal Circuit Provides Guidance on IP Case Transfer Motions
In the past year, the Federal Circuit has repeatedly required the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas to transfer patent infringement suits from that district to more convenient venues, and in doing so it has provided increasingly specific — and often pointed — guidance to courts and litigants on the appropriate analysis for transfer motions.
Columns & Departments
Landlord & Tenant Law
Tenant Did Not Establish Fraud to Warrant Application of DHCR's Default Formula Four-Year Lookback Rule Applied to Rent Determinations But Not to Determination of Rent-Stabilized Status Tenant's Impossibility and Frustration of Purpose Defenses Rejected Tenant's Frustration of Purpose Claim Survives Neutral Appraiser Entitled to Examine Previous Appraisals
Features

Biometric Law Litigation Expands Beyond Social Media
Social media has played an oversized role in lawsuits under state and local biometric privacy laws. Now, a New York City law that took effect in July is likely to significantly expand the range of biometric-related litigation beyond social media companies to a new group of defendants: retail stores, places of entertainment, and food and drink establishments.
Columns & Departments
Bit Parts
N.Y. Federal Court Rules State's Anti-SLAPP Statute Doesn't Apply in Federal Court Lawsuits
Features

Emojis and E-Discovery
Emojis are an important aspect of everyday communication in 2021. Given their ubiquity, there should be little surprise that emojis have become a key source of evidence in civil and criminal cases.
Features

How Will Courts Determine Business Expense Legitimacy Under SEC's New Disgorgement Authority?
Answering that question will force defendants facing SEC enforcement actions to focus on demonstrating the legitimacy of expenses in developing their litigation strategies.
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