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Managing 'Perfect Storm' Litigation for a Franchise System

Jeffrey L. Fillerup & James A. Goniea

A franchise system may find itself in a no-win situation in which all potential solutions or avenues of escape lead to a result that is tantamount to death of the system: bankruptcy, closure of the system, or a dramatic change in the system's business and sources of revenue. This article provides 10 litigation management measures that outside counsel and the system should take to manage perfect storm litigation.

Individual Tax and Estate Planning for Lawyers

Jacob Weichholz & Ira S. Herman

President Obama's proposed budget for fiscal year 2013 includes a number of provisions that would impact individual taxpayers, especially partners in law firms and other high'net-worth lawyers.

IP News

Jeffrey S. Ginsberg & Joseph Mercadante

Highlights of the latest intellectual property news from around the country.

Intervening Rights Only Arise During Re-examination When a Claim Has Been Amended or Added

Angie M. Hankins

In <i>Marine Polymer Tech., Inc. v. HemCon, Inc.</i>, No. 2010-1549, 2012 WL 858700 (Fed. Cir. March 15, 2012), a majority found that intervening rights only arise as a result of re-examination when a claim has been amended or added during the re-examination, even though the issue was not considered below.

Damages Soar from False Advertising About Skydiving

Kyle-Beth Hilfer

In March 2012, the Ninth Circuit in <i>Skydive Arizona, Inc. v. Quattrocchi, et al.</i> upheld a $6.6 million judgment for trademark infringement, false advertising, and cybersquatting, while overturning the district court's doubling of actual damages. The opinion succinctly outlines appellate review standards while offering insights into how to prove a Lanham Act and cybersquatting case.

Federal Circuit Unravels Aventis' Tangled Web in Affirming Inequitable Conduct Finding

Frederick L. Whitmer

At the time of the <i>Therasense</i> decision there was some question as to just how stringently the Federal Circuit would adhere to the nominal standards for common law fraud. <i>Aventis Pharma S.A. v. Hospira, Inc.</i> appears to answer that question for both patent prosecutors and litigators.

Features

Case Briefs

ALM Staff & Law Journal Newsletters

Highlights of the latest insurance cases from around the country.

Features

From Baby-Sitting to Child Custody: When Is a Person 'In Your Care' for Purposes of Homeowner's Coverage?

Samantha Evans

In the absence of a definition, courts have divided over whether the phrase "in your care" is ambiguous and should be read in favor of the insured and coverage, or according to its plain meaning as applied to the specific facts at issue.

Features

Duty to Defend: Johnson Controls' Attempt to Turn Excess Insurance into Primary Insurance

Chet A. Kronenberg, Sarah E. Luppen & Colin H. Rolfs

On April 2, 2012, Johnson Controls and certain of its excess insurers filed simultaneous motions for summary judgment on the duty to defend issue in the Milwaukee County circuit court. The outcome of these motions will be of great interest to insurers since Johnson Controls is seeking to fundamentally change the role and function of excess insurance.

Law Firm Turnarounds

William F. Brennan

Can a firm be saved when it is facing multiple critical threats to its existence? The answer is yes ' <i>if the firm acts quickly and decisively.</i>

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MOST POPULAR STORIES

  • Surveys in Patent Infringement Litigation: The Next Frontier
    Most experienced intellectual property attorneys understand the significant role surveys play in trademark infringement and other Lanham Act cases, but relatively few are likely to have considered the use of such research in patent infringement matters. That could soon change in light of the recent admission of a survey into evidence in <i>Applera Corporation, et al. v. MJ Research, Inc., et al.</i>, No. 3:98cv1201 (D. Conn. Aug. 26, 2005). The survey evidence, which showed that 96% of the defendant's customers used its products to perform a patented process, was admitted as evidence in support of a claim of inducement to infringe. The court admitted the survey into evidence over various objections by the defendant, who had argued that the inducement claim could not be proven without the survey.
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  • In the Spotlight
    On May 9, 2003, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts announced that Bayer Corporation, the pharmaceutical manufacturer, had been sentenced and ordered to pay a criminal fine of $5,590,800 stemming from its earlier plea of guilty to violating the Federal Prescription Drug Marketing Act by failing to list with the FDA its drug product, Cipro, that was privately labeled for an HMO. Such listing is required under the federal Food, Drug &amp; Cosmetic Act. The Federal Prescription Drug Marketing Act, Pub. L. 100-293, enacted on April 22, 1988, as modified on August 26, 1992 by the Prescription Drug Amendments (PDA) Pub. L. 102-353, 106 Stat. 941, amended sections 301, 303, 503, and 801 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, codified at 21 U.S.C. '' 331, 333, 353, 381, to establish requirements for distributing prescription drug samples.
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