Jonathan Bick
The U.S. Supreme Court created a bit of a problem when it ruled that commercial speech is entitled to limited First Amendment protection, but failed to clearly identify what commercial speech is. So, it often comes down to this: If a business elects to engage in a debate on important social issues, its principals ' and counsel ' have no way of knowing the level of constitutional protection that speech will receive. This issue is becoming especially important to owners of blogs.
Phillip Articola
Based on recent court decisions and pending PTO rule changes, one may question the viability and value of U.S. patents. While some court decisions have altered the playing field somewhat, the strength of the U.S. patent and legal systems remains quite strong.
Marcelo S. Copat
Organizations should evaluate their innovation processes in light of the evolving meaning of obviousness.
Features
Dion Messer
In <i>Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly</i>, an antitrust case, the U.S. Supreme Court put to rest the five-decade-old pleading standard from <i>Conley v. Gibson</i> that 'a complaint should not be dismissed for failure to state a claim unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of his claim that would entitle him to relief.'
Features
Benjamin Hershkowitz
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Charles Wizenfeld
Several recent rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court have arguably tipped the scales toward alleged infringers involved in a patent battle.
ALM Staff
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Law Journal Newsletters
Who's doing what; who's going where.
Features
Joel A. Rose
To evaluate its policies and procedures for associate recruiting, career development, and profitability, a firm must take stock of its current recruiting and associate career development program, assess its future needs, and set in motion a unified plan that involves all components of the organization.
Features
Graeme Payne
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Lisa Sen
Despite the positive economic conditions and the demand for international brands, the Indian legal framework still raises some barriers to international business. The Indian government has the delicate task of balancing what is perceived to be in the interest of local businesses and those of foreign investors.
Samuel Fineman
Comcast Corporation and Pando Networks, Inc. announced late last month that they will lead an industry-wide effort to create a peer-to-peer Bill of Rights and Responsibilities ('BRR') for P2P users and Internet Service Providers. The two companies plan to collaborate and engage with industry experts, other ISPs and P2P companies, content providers and others to set a framework for the BRR that can serve as best practices. The purpose would be to clarify what choices and controls consumers should have when using P2P applications as well as what processes and practices ISPs should use to manage P2P applications running on their networks.
Features
Bruce Jackson
Part One of this article discussed the importance of personal ownership of the lateral integration process and the importance of a formal business plan for lateral moves. This second installment addresses the more specific elements of the business plan and other 'how's' and 'how not's' in the lateral integration process.
