Word that the historic French franchise Girondins de Bordeaux filed for bankruptcy recently rocked European football. Various factors led to the team's downfall. But one force in particular poses an even broader threat to the sustainability of the elite level of French soccer: media rights.
On Dec. 9, 2024, the Supreme Court will hear argument in Kousisis v. United States, a case that will again review the reach of the federal mail and wire fraud statutes. At issue this time is the so-called “fraudulent inducement” theory of property fraud — namely, whether deception to induce a commercial exchange can constitute mail or wire fraud, even if the infliction of economic harm on the alleged victim was not the object of the scheme.
Automatic renewals have become a preferred method of goods and service delivery for many businesses, particularly in the context of e-commerce. The patchwork of state and federal laws and regulations makes absolute compliance a difficult proposition for many companies. In a purported effort to provide clarity to companies regarding their compliance obligations in this space, the FTC recently finalized its Rule Concerning Recurring Subscriptions and Other Negative Option Programs. While the Final Rule has reached the last stage of the FTC’s rulemaking process, questions remain.
Bankruptcy courts are not infallible, and their rulings should be reviewable. But too many district courts and bankruptcy appellate panels (BAPs) regularly refuse to review nonfinal bankruptcy court orders for questionable reasons.
On November 1, significant revisions to the regulations enforced by the New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) — the state’s financial services regulator — went into effect. The DFS revisions create a long-arm provision in that the changes affect not only New York State companies, but also their affiliates, and therefore the revisions could have an impact far beyond New York State borders.
The rise in demand for in-person events post-pandemic has meant a corresponding increase in personal injury actions against venues. Consequently, venue-owner and operator clients would be wise to regularly evaluate their insurance policies (particularly general liability insurance policies) to ensure adequate coverage.
In a recent decision, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Massachusetts held that a mortgagee holds a claim that could be modified by a Chapter 11 plan even if the debtor was not indebted under the mortgage.
Law firms can’t expect immediate results from their marketing programs. Just like you can’t go out and run a marathon in a day without the careful work of preparing for it, you can’t launch a single marketing program and expect immediate sales. Marketing requires strategy, endurance, and consistent effort over time. A sprint mindset may bring temporary gains, but a marathon approach builds long-lasting relationships, brand equity, and sustainable growth.
On the one hand, Big Law is locked in this endless struggle to compete on metrics: revenue per lawyer; billable hours; realization rates, and of course profit per equity partner. The fact that these are all the wrong metrics to define success is a separate discussion. On the other hand, many of these firms don’t have profitability models. And even those who do, struggle to implement them. This is super-important, so let’s break this down.
President-elect Donald Trump did not make intellectual property (IP) policy a major focus of his 2024 election campaign, but his policy priorities are nearly certain to have a profound effect on the IP landscape when he takes office in January.
