Features
<b><i>Online Extra</b></i><br>Twitter Faces Surge of Securities Suits
The company was hit with the latest in a string of lawsuits alleging that the social media company misled investors about the growth of its user base, and that senior executives raked in hundreds of millions of dollars by selling their stock before the market learned about it.
Features
<b><i>Online Extra</b></i><br>Suit Says Facebook Ad Tool Discriminates Against Minorities Seeking Jobs, Housing
Facebook has been hit with a lawsuit claiming that it violates federal anti-discrimination laws for housing and employment by allowing advertisers to exclude certain groups on the basis of race, gender or religion in social media ads.
Features
Expanded Means-Plus-Function Analysis Presents New Opportunities and Challenges
The Federal Circuit's <i>en banc</i> decision in <i>Williamson v. Citrix Online</i> expanded the potential application of 35 U.S.C. §112, ¶6, making it more likely that functional claim language will be construed as a means-plus-function limitation even in the absence of the word "means." This article discusses recent decisions applying <i>Williamson</i> and provides practical insights and strategies for patent owners and accused infringers to consider when addressing the expanded application of §112, ¶6.
Features
The Responsible Corporate Officer Doctrine
<b><i>Briseno v. ConAgra</b></i><p>The Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) has historically allowed prosecutors to charge corporate employees with misdemeanors without having to prove personal participation or wrongful intent. But, as the use of the statute has become more frequent and penalties have gotten more severe, the constitutionality of such an application of the FDCA has come under heightened scrutiny.
Features
Protecting Counsel Privilege in a Post-Yates Memo World
In last month's newsletter, the authors put forward the proposition that attorney-client privilege issues, which can arise during internal investigations, have become even more complicated following the issuance of the Department of Justice's (DOJ) "Yates Memorandum." They continue their discussion herein.
Features
Will Ascertainability Split Finally Be Resolved?
Despite requests for change, the Judicial Conference Advisory Committee on Civil Rules declined to include ascertainability in its proposed changes to Rule 23. In addition, the U.S. Supreme Court recently rejected two petitions for certiorari earlier this year that would have addressed ascertainability.
Features
The Bermuda Form
<b><i>Declaring an Integrated Occurrence (or Not)</b></i><p>Many Fortune 500 companies' product liability insurance programs use the Bermuda Form to insure alleged bodily injury and property damage. The Bermuda Form has many characteristics distinct from standard commercial general liability (CGL) policies. Knowing its intricacies is essential for any coverage lawyer involved in large-scale coverage analysis and disputes.
Features
Second Department Evaluates Alternative Undertakings Used at Atlantic Yards
n a 3-2 split decision, a Second Department panel has ruled that the strictures of New York Lien Law § 5 were satisfied when initial developer Forest City provided a "completion guaranty," rather than a bond or other typical form of undertaking, for the Atlantic Yards B2 Residential Project in Brooklyn next to the Barclays Center arena.
Columns & Departments
Real Property Law
Detailed discussion involving two rulings of importance.
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