Marcella C. Ducca
Individual corporate officers of pharmaceutical, medical device, food and related companies can be prosecuted for violations of the United States Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) under the Park Doctrine. Such prosecutions "tip off" plaintiffs' attorneys to possible areas of product liability litigation to bring against a company.
Features
Michael L. Cook
A "bank [making a secured rescue loan] had information that should have created the requisite suspicion ' to conduct a diligent search for possible dirt" ' <I>i.e.</I>, whether the debtor had the right to pledge $312 million of customer securities, held the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit on Jan. 8, 2016.
Features
Nathan C. Volpi
In light of corporate negligence's history with state courts, the question becomes: What types of duties have been found to flow directly from nursing homes, long-term and advanced-care facilities to a potential plaintiff, bypassing employees and agents entirely?
Features
David Tellekson, Phil Decker
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Stefan Szpajda
Despite over 150 years of Supreme Court precedent, even the most basic precepts of patent exhaustion doctrine remain unsettled. In <i>Lexmark,</i> the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit grappled with the very foundations of the so-called "first sale" defense.
Jay P. Farmer
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Seth A. Schmeeckle
Specific jurisdictional flourishes notwithstanding, the duty to defend analysis typically involves some form of the "eight corners rule," whereby the four corners of the insurance policy are measured against the four corners of the complaint (and sometimes extrinsic evidence) in order to determine whether or not the claims set out in the complaint trigger the insurer's duty to defend.
Features
Wendi S. Lazar
In 1992, the American Bar Association implemented a policy to take action on sexual harassment in the legal profession ' stating that it was a "serious problem" constituting a discriminatory and unprofessional practice. According to the report, "lawyers play a special role in educating society about sexual harassment and eliminating it from the workplace.
Features
Lawrence Goldhirsch
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Michael Pederson
A medical device case poses numerous pleading problems. However, before one even reaches the pleading stage, there are major hurdles to consider. The major issue facing the plaintiff's lawyer during client intake is to decide which cases to file immediately and which cases can wait. This depends, of course, on the statute of limitations the lawyer determines will be applicable ' and that is no small task.
Justin H. Werner
On Jan. 5, the Third Circuit issued a decision answering the question of whether language in an arbitration clause referencing "the rules of the American Arbitration Association" was sufficient to rebut the presumption that the court, not the arbitrator, decided whether a class action arbitration was agreed to by the parties.
Features
Robert D. Chesler
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Anna M. Piazza
On Sept. 9, 2015, Excellus BlueCross BlueShield announced a data breach that compromised about 10.5 million people's personal information, including Social Security numbers and medical and financial information. Excellus discovered the data breach during an investigation of its computer system. The breach had occurred on Dec. 23, 2013. A class action has already been filed, and Excellus is cooperating with the FBI.
Features
Brian M. Lutz
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Vivek Gopalan
Long accepted in Delaware (and in courts throughout the country), "disclosure-only" settlements were common in lawsuits brought by stockholders of a corporation sold in an M&A transaction. These lawsuits alleged that directors of the seller breached their fiduciary duties in connection with the sale price and process, and through allegedly deficient proxy materials provided to stockholders in connection with their vote on the deal. In disclosure-only settlements, the seller would agree to provide additional disclosures in advance of the stockholder vote on the transaction.
