<b>Professional Development University:</b> Translating Professional Development Into Business Development
How do you get the highest and best use out of your firm's professional development investment, over and above the clear benefit to your own lawyers and staff? Odds are there is a huge amount of intellectual property already in existence as a result of your firm's internal programs. Consider turning what is a valuable cost center into an invaluable business development resource.
Cherry-Picking Talent
A new, more proactive ' if tedious ' hiring strategy has emerged that mid-market firms are adopting. Rather than target highly sought-after rainmakers or hope for a ready-made practice group to shake loose from a large firm, these practices are building their offices piecemeal by cherry-picking young guns from the biggest and best firms, enticing them with flexible billing rates, shorter partnership tracks, oodles of support and a free rein.
Why Private Equity May Be the Preferred Vehicle for Franchise Expansion
Why is private equity funding the hottest thing in franchising today? In the past 12 months, private equity buyouts have included well-known brands such as Cinnabon, Church's Chicken, Taco Bueno (a regional taco maker), and regional frozen dessert operator Rita's Italian Ice.
Features
Court Watch
Highlights of the latest franchising cases from around the country.
News Briefs
Highlights of the latest franchising news from around the country.
Mexico Amends Its Franchise Law
On Jan. 26, 2006, an amendment to the Mexican Industrial Property Law (<i>Ley de la Propiedad Industrial</i>) ("IPL") became effective. The new amendment mandates new requirements for presale franchise disclosure and for franchise agreements. To comply with the law, most franchisors will need to change their existing forms of franchise agreements used in Mexico.
Franchise Brokers: Buyer Beware
Franchisors face major challenges in finding the right sales personnel and being able to afford them, and in developing and funding the right marketing strategy. One tempting way to handle these challenges is to hire a sales broker to do it all.
Features
Public Productivity for Patent People
Does anyone remember this scene? "Call on 2 for Joe Jones!!" "Hold 2!!" Before cell phones, that was how you reached someone in the USPTO Public Search Room in Crystal Plaza 3 of Crystal City. Joe disappeared into a phone booth to conduct his business.
Features
A Word from the Editor: Are the Patent Laws About to Change?
The Supreme Court has recently taken an increased interest in patent cases. In recent months the Supreme Court has granted certiorari on a trilogy of patent cases: <i>Medimmune, Inc. v. Genentech, Inc.</i>, case number 05-608, on Feb. 21, 2006 (<i>www.supreme courtus.gov/docket/05-608.htm</i>); <i>Ebay, Inc. v. MercExchange, L.L.C.</i>, case number 05-130, on Nov. 28, 2005 (<i>www.supremecourtus.gov/docket/05-130.htm</i>) and <i>Lab Corp. of Am. Holdings v. Metabolite Labs, Inc.</i>, case number 04-607, on Oct. 31, 2005 (<i>www.supremecourtus.gov/docket/04-607.htm</i>). Collectively, the decisions in these cases could reshape the patent landscape: addressing the right of licensees to challenge patents, the ability of patent holders to secure injunctions and the breadth of business method patents. More specifically, the questions before the Court in the three cases are set forth below.
Web-based Patent Marking: A Better Mousetrap
Correcting an inefficient paradigm can sometimes result in significant innovation. There is an opportunity to create such innovation within the world of Intellectual Property ("IP") by changing the method by which patented products are "marked." Traditionally considered to be an issue associated primarily with the quantification of damages in patent enforcement litigations, modifying the patent statute to allow for patent marking via the Web could potentially result in a significant, long-lasting, positive change within the world of IP that extends far beyond the quantification of patent damages.
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- Surveys in Patent Infringement Litigation: The Next FrontierMost 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.Read More ›
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