Regulation

  • e-Matchmaker.biz for e-Commerce

    e-Commerce entrepreneurs need many skills to succeed. First, they must have the technical chops to build and run a superior site. Next, they must market that site to stand out among the many competitors in a crowded market. They must also know enough about business to do all the above profitably. And since no one person can do all of these things well, nearly all of these entrepreneurs must be able to evaluate and hire people with all these skills. That is, until the day comes to sell the business ' the Holy Grail of the dot-com boom. Then, a whole new set of skills is required.

    February 25, 2010Stanley P. Jaskiewicz

  • Practice Tip: FDA Issues Draft Guidance for REMS

    On Sept. 30, 2009, the FDA issued a draft guidance for industry on better understanding and implementing Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS), which the FDA requires for certain drugs or biologics.

    February 25, 2010Alan G. Minsk and Lanchi Nguyen

  • Ticketmaster Lead Counsel on Live Nation Merger Issues

    The proposed merger between Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. and Live Nation Inc. won Justice Department approval in January 2010, following a year of negotiations. Steven Sletten of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher counseled Ticketmaster. In an interview, Sletten stated that he prepared his client to face a tough audience, both at the Justice Department and in the court of public opinion.

    February 24, 2010Amanda Bronstad

  • Five Steps to Managing Social Media Risks

    On the one hand, companies want to capture the attention of potential customers roaming the social media space. On the other hand, conversations in the blogosphere are largely uncontrollable, and raise a myriad of risks. Social media can cause serious losses if not handled correctly.

    January 29, 2010Douglas J. Wood

  • Third Circuit Tackles Teen 'Sexting' As Child Pornography

    As the nation's first case involving criminal prosecutions of teenagers for "sexting" made its way to a federal appeals court in Philadelphia, all three judges seemed skeptical of the prosecutor's claim that child pornography laws are violated when a teen transmits a nude image of herself.

    January 29, 2010Shannon P. Duffy

  • Registering Marks As Top-Level Domain Names

    The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers ("ICANN") plans to issue generic top-level domain names ("gTLDs") beyond the current 21 top-level domain names ("TLDs") such as .com and .net. For the first time, trademark owners may use their marks as gTLDs; for example, .nike. The application process is complex, and trademark owners have no guarantee that they will secure gTLDs for their marks. e-Commerce providers, however, can use trademark-law strategy to gain advantages during the application process.

    January 28, 2010Robert B.G. (Red) Horowitz

  • Worker Misclassification to Receive Heightened Scrutiny

    Over the past year, federal and state governmental agencies have signaled their intent to more seriously investigate the misclassification of employees as independent contractors. Penalties for misclassification are severe and can put a company out of business.

    January 28, 2010Joel W. Rice and Brian K. LaFratta

  • COBRA Subsidy Extended; Further Extensions Likely

    In the midst of the ongoing health care reform debate, Congress was able to unanimously agree on retroactively extending the Federal 65% COBRA health care premium subsidy for workers involuntarily separated.

    January 27, 2010Stuart Sirkin

  • Money Laundering: A Changing Paradigm

    Over the past several months there has been a slew of public pronouncements that should put financial institutions on edge. Enhanced enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) is now migrating into the financial sector and linking up with anti-money laundering (AML) and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) compliance requirements.

    January 26, 2010Michael Zeldin and Miriam Ratkovicova