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The issue of obesity in the American population has become a hot national topic. While there has been some dispute among interested groups as to the extent of the problem, it seems clear that obesity causes health conditions that include diabetes, heart disease and sleep apnea. Indeed, authorities as established as former Surgeon General Dr. David Satcher have stated that the problem of obesity may eventually cause as much preventable disease and death as cigarette smoking. The sparkplug event on the issue in the legal community was the filing of the Pelman v. McDonald's Corp. action in a New York state court in August 2002, which was removed to federal court a month later. In that action, two girls, as members of a putative class action of minors, alleged that their obesity and other health problems were caused by their heavy diet of McDonald's products. The noise on the issue was amplified by the Second Circuit's decision in Pelman v. McDonald's Corp., 396 F.3d 508 (2d Cir. 2004), reversing the district court's dismissal of the action.

If you are not yet using RSS, you are missing out on the single best way to get news and updated information via the Internet.

Due process in the Information Age means leveling a dynamic playing field. As courtrooms are being wired for computer access, jurors and litigants are opening the courthouse doors just enough to allow the Internet inside. These online excursions are challenging current notions of fair trial and equal justice.

In commerce, as we Americans are more or less reminded on our paper currency, transactions are divided into two domains: Those that are government-controlled, and those that are privately controlled. Depending on the type of transaction that is involved between parties, different constitutional rights are applicable.
That said and established, let's consider that growing alchemy of the ether realm that mixes expression and the maintenance and control of the Internet. In particular, if the Internet is nongovernmental, then it may generate terms-of-use agreements to prohibit political speech. But if the Internet is governmentally controlled, then Internet users have a First Amendment right to use it for public speech.

In the last year ' particularly in the last 6 months ' a growing number of defendants have refused to settle music industry suits, challenging what they allege are groundless lawsuits filed by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Recent cases in entertainment law.

The Court of Appeals of Georgia, Fourth Division, found that a local rap artist wasn't a public figure for purposes of a defamation suit over comments made about him on a local radio station.

Recently filed cases in entertainment law, straight from the steps of the Los Angeles Superior Court.