Features
Internet Task Force Examines Copyright In the Digital Age
On Jan. 28, the Commerce Department issued a much-anticipated policy statement entitled "White Paper on Remixes, First Sale and Statutory Damages: Copyright Policy, Creativity, and Innovation in the Digital Economy." This article briefly describes the white paper's scope and recommendations, with a focus on the issue of statutory damages, as to which the white paper proposes several amendments to the current Copyright Act.
Features
e-Discovery In 2016 and Beyond
Electronic discovery is an ever-changing part of the legal profession. Just when lawyers and their clients feel as though they've mastered the discovery of digital evidence, the rules change or technological advances make e-discovery an even greater challenge.
Features
Privacy v. Data Security
The year 2005 really marked the beginning of the "era of data breaches," and with it, the "era of data breach lawsuits." In its place, what is now commonplace in the wake of major data breaches ' class action "privacy" litigation on behalf of data subjects, seeking millions of dollars in damages, under a dizzying array of legal theories.
Features
Can an Applicant With a Criminal History Buy a Franchise?
The character of a franchise prospect seems relevant. Franchisors want trustworthy participants in the franchise system. A credit report and a criminal history search seem reasonable to screen out undesirables. Roughly one in four adults has some criminal history that would show up on a search, and some of these crimes have since been decriminalized. Using searches of criminal histories and credit reports can also be racially discriminatory.
Features
Sup. Ct. To Clarify <i>Fogerty</i> Copyright Attorney Fees Factors
For the second time in three years, the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to consider important questions under the Copyright Act at the behest of Supap Kirtsaeng, a tenacious Thai math professor. In 2013, the Supreme Court handed Kirtsaeng an important victory in a litigation brought against him by a major publisher, holding that a copyrighted work published and purchased abroad may be resold in the United States without the permission of the copyright holder.
Features
The Advice-of-Counsel Defense and the Corporate Employee: A Loss of Balance
Ordinarily, a defendant who wishes to assert the defense of advice of counsel must unlock the door that shields his privileged communications with counsel and divulge those communications to his adversary. But when the defendant is a corporate employee who claims to have relied on advice from the corporation's attorney, the employee may not be able to unlock that door.
Features
The NJ Franchise Practices Act and the Legacy of 'Instructional Systems'
The New Jersey Franchise Practices Act is a powerful tool for those businesses that qualify for its protections. Under the NJFPA, a franchisor cannot terminate a franchisee without good cause, even where doing so would be perfectly acceptable under the parties' contract. The NJFPA also prohibits a franchisor from imposing "unreasonable standards of performance" on a franchisee.
Features
Top Security Intrusion Trends the Legal Community Should Watch
Lawyers are increasingly expected to understand the implications of cybersecurity when providing advice relating to a long list of matters. Legal counsel, as trusted neutral advisors, are uniquely qualified to help navigate risk considerations and bridge customer deliverables and workforce expectations with adequate security and shifting legal requirements. As a result, it is important that lawyers understand the latest trends in cyber intrusions.
Features
<b><i>Online Extra:</b></i> FDIC Chimes In on Cybersecurity
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is the latest entity to release a framework for cybersecurity.
Features
Milestone Reached in UK Bribery and Corruption Enforcement
An application brought by the UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) for a so-called Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) was approved in court in London on Nov. 30, 2015, marking a historic milestone for UK bribery and corruption enforcement as this was the first time that a DPA has been adopted.
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- Protecting Innovation in the Cyber World from Patent TrollsWith trillions of dollars to keep watch over, the last thing we need is the distraction of costly litigation brought on by patent assertion entities (PAEs or "patent trolls"), companies that don't make any products but instead seek royalties by asserting their patents against those who do make products.Read More ›
- Private Equity Valuation: A Significant DecisionInsiders (and others) in the private equity business are accustomed to seeing a good deal of discussion ' academic and trade ' on the question of the appropriate methods of valuing private equity positions and securities which are otherwise illiquid. An interesting recent decision in the Southern District has been brought to our attention. The case is <i>In Re Allied Capital Corp.</i>, CCH Fed. SEC L. Rep. 92411 (US DC, S.D.N.Y., Apr. 25, 2003). Judge Lynch's decision is well written, the Judge reviewing a motion to dismiss by a business development company, Allied Capital, against a strike suit claiming that Allied's method of valuing its portfolio failed adequately to account for i) conditions at the companies themselves and ii) market conditions. The complaint appears to be, as is often the case, slap dash, content to point out that Allied revalued some of its positions, marking them down for a variety of reasons, and the stock price went down - all this, in the view of plaintiff's counsel, amounting to violations of Rule 10b-5.Read More ›
- Meet the Lawyer Working on Inclusion Rider LanguageAt the Oscars in March, Best Actress winner Frances McDormand made “inclusion rider” go viral. But Kalpana Kotagal, a partner at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll had already worked for months to write the language for such provisions. Kotagal was developing legal language for contract provisions that Hollywood's elite could use to require studios and other partners to employ diverse workers on set.Read More ›
- Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar InvestigationsThis article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.Read More ›
- The DOJ Goes Phishing: The Rise of False Claims Act Cybersecurity LitigationWhile the DOJ Civil Cyber-Fraud Initiative is still in its early stages and cybersecurity regulations are evolving, whistleblower plaintiffs have already begun leveraging the FCA to pursue alleged noncompliance with government cybersecurity requirements.Read More ›