ANDA Litigation Discovery
May 29, 2008
Patent infringement litigation based on an Abbreviated New Drug Application ('ANDA') presents certain unique challenges to the discovery process. Unlike ordinary patent litigation, little if any information helpful to the patent owner is publicly available. Instead, the patent owner must rely on a well thought out discovery plan to obtain certain information from the ANDA applicant. Suggestions for designing such a plan are presented below.
The Best April Fools' Day Non-Prank
May 29, 2008
On April 1, 2008, Judge James C. Cacheris of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia permanently enjoined rules promulgated by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ('USPTO'). News of the federal ruling spread like wildfire among the patent community, quickly leading to e-mails wondering whether the ruling was an elaborate April Fools' Day joke. It was not. Now there are concerns (or hopes) about the implications of the ruling on other USPTO proposed rules as well as the impact Patent Law Reform in Congress could have on the ruling.
Redefining Prior Art Under Proposed Patent Reform Measures
May 29, 2008
This is the first installment of a two-part series on the proposed move from a patent system granting priority of patent rights based upon invention dates to a system in which priority is based primarily upon filing dates. This installment discusses the history behind the current first-to-invent system, the current patent reform movement, and the basic proposed change to the current system.
Helping Associates Build Marketing Skills
May 29, 2008
The first priority of a young lawyer is to develop knowledge and skills as a lawyer, but there are actions you can take as a partner to help guide associates in the right direction for preliminary client development activities. New clients take time to ripen, but the seeds need to be planted early and watered often. The following are some things you can do to place associates on the right path.
Making It Run Isn't Running It
May 29, 2008
It's not uncommon for many partners in charge of marketing to insist on designing the marketing program, and directing the marketing manager to execute it. In too many firms, reasonably high-paid and experienced marketing professionals are directed by marketing partners with no marketing skills, no marketing experience, and no foundation for their projects. This is not only disastrous, but also expensive and wasteful.
Provisions of the 2008 Economic Stimulus Tax Act
May 29, 2008
The new law affects a wide variety of taxpayers including law firms, attorneys, their staff, and their clients. It contains temporary tax incentives for law firms to make investments in their companies as well as provides individuals with tax relief in the form of tax rebates. This article discusses some key provisions contained in the new tax act.
Ambiguity in Law Firm Partnership Agreements
May 29, 2008
You would expect that lawyers, many of whom draft and revise contracts on a daily basis, would be especially careful to draft their own law firm partnership agreements so as to make their intentions clear and remove areas of potential ambiguity. Yet this does not always happen. In several recent cases, partners have brought suit against their firms or former firms, and argue that provisions of their partnership agreements should be interpreted one way, while the firms have chosen to implement the provisions in other ways.
Net News
May 29, 2008
You Tube Suit Threatens Online Communication<br>Yahoo Files Suit Against Lottery Spammers
Downloading Cases Hearten the Defense
May 29, 2008
Defense lawyers in copyright infringement cases brought by members of the RIAA are trumpeting as victories three recent court decisions that rein in the association's campaign against individuals who make songs available for distribution on the Web.
