Courthouse Steps
Recently filed cases in entertainment law, straight from the steps of the Los Angeles Superior Court.
Whistleblowing: SOX's Unintended Victims
It seems fitting to recall Samuel Morse's first telegraph message now that his telecommunications progeny Bernie Ebbers, former chief executive of WorldCom, has been convicted on all nine counts claiming that he helped mastermind an $11 billion accounting fraud at his former firm, now known as MCI. Ebbers had been charged with one count of conspiracy, one count of securities fraud, and seven counts of filing false statements with securities regulators. He could serve up to 85 years in prison. Meanwhile, another senior executive of a major corporation has been undone -- not by business fraud, but by a personal affair.
Rights of Disability Insurance Claimants Boosted with Decision
There are significant differences in the rights afforded to an insured under a disability insurance policy depending upon whether the insurance is provided pursuant to an individual policy or under an employer-sponsored plan covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), 29 USC ' 1001 <i>et seq</i>. While individual policies are traditionally governed by applicable state common law contract principles, ERISA preempts any and all state laws "insofar as they may now or hereafter relate to" a covered disability plan, and such state laws encompass "all laws, decisions, rules, regulations, or other state actions having the affect of law, of any State" as well as statutory provisions and common law claims.
Class Action Fairness Act Raises Issues for Employment Litigation
In February, President Bush signed his first piece of "tort reform" legislation, the Class Action Fairness Act (the Act), into law. The Act expands federal diversity jurisdiction to encompass most large class actions, including employment law related class actions. One area of employment litigation that the Act may likely impact is in the wage and hour class action context where, as discussed below, litigants file wage and hour class actions in state court while also pursuing Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) collective actions in federal court.
How to Choose An EDD Trainer
Even the most seasoned litigator may be puzzled by such arcane terminology as deduplication, metatags, blowbacks and concept querying. To make sense of the electronic-data discovery (EDD) process in general, and to further ensure that the litigator is adept in using the selected litigation review and production tools, selecting a trainer with the appropriate skills and pedagogical technique, combined with "real world" experience in setting up review workflows and meeting production deadlines, is nothing short of critical.
Building An Effective e-Discovery Team
When faced with the unpredictable scope of e-discovery, today's corporate counsel require the adaptability of e-discovery teams to effectively manage electronic information involved in litigation. It seems a given maxim with sure results: Adaptability is a key component of being prepared.
