On Nov. 15, the U.S. Senate declined to approve S. 3414, the Cybersecurity Act of 2012. The proposed legislation would have set voluntary cybersecurity standards for owners of the nation's critical infrastructure, such as gas pipelines, utilities and banks. In the absence of cybersecurity legislation, the Obama administration now is considering taking action through an executive order.

On Dec. 4, 2012, President Obama signed into law H.R. 6131, a bill to reauthorize the U.S. Safe Web Act of 2006. The Safe Web Act authorizes the FTC authority to clamp down on Internet fraud and online scammers based abroad by expanding the FTC's powers so it can share information about cross-border online fraud with foreign law enforcement authorities.

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Internet memes ' those attention-getting images, videos, and catchy phrases that whip across the Internet via e-mail and social media ' have long been a part of online culture. But while a corporate strategy of exploiting memes can be highly entertaining and can capture consumers' attention, using these online assets can be risky if intellectual property rights are infringed in their dissemination.

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We offer below a set of frequently asked questions with answers distilling the key points that U.S. employers should understand about this new area of NLRA enforcement activity. These FAQs are accompanied by practical suggestions that technology counsel can use to help employers navigate these issues in drafting and updating their own social media policies.

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In a product liability design defect action, evidence establishing the defectiveness of a product is paramount to a plaintiff's case. Conducting a patent search and an investigation of the state of the patent art may yield fruitful evidence regarding the defect or relative safety of the product at issue in a product liability action. But first some background to set the environment for how patents become patents.

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This article provides a broad overview of the general approach taken by major countries in the field of nanotechnology. It also describes steps taken in international cooperation in this area and suggests possible areas of international regulatory convergence.

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An annual review of asbestos-related liabilities reported in companies' SEC filings, reveals that from 2010 to 2011, average payments per resolved claim increased 75%. Further review of the underlying data suggests that this increase in payments per claim is not due to a significant upward trend in asbestos liabilities. Instead, this increase can be explained by a change in the claim disease mix.

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In-depth analysis of several key cases.