The Alien Tort Claims Act
March 30, 2009
In recent years, companies doing business in countries where human rights or environmental violations have occurred have found themselves dragged into U.S. courts as defendants in lawsuits brought by foreign plaintiffs to account for violations ' often committed by others, including foreign governments. Here's an update.
The Myth of Certainty
March 30, 2009
In the constantly evolving world of e-commerce, legal contracts may be no more credible than tidbits found in the muck of online fact, fiction and plain nonsense that make sites such as Snopes.com so vital to separating Internet reality from Internet fraud. The truth is that no matter how well an attorney writes a contract, or Web site terms and conditions, another attorney can usually find a way to attack what the first one wrote.
Music Fans May Help Settle the Score in <i>Satriani v. Coldplay</i> Infringement Suit
March 30, 2009
A recently filed music copyright suit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California ' <i>Satriani v. Martin</i>, ' has revealed a new and unexpected application for the Web, namely, its potential as a forum for infringement analysis by amateur musicologists. Long before any party to this litigation will be required to submit expert reports or summary judgment briefs, YouTube postings have offered remarkably insightful analyses of the strengths and weaknesses of the parties' respective cases.
e-Commerce Companies v. Hackers
March 30, 2009
The 21st century is clearly the age of cybercrime, and e-commerce companies of all stripes should be especially concerned because there are only two types of computer systems: those that have been hacked, and those that will be hacked.
Lawful Data-Mining of Social Networks
March 30, 2009
Blogs simultaneously provide Internet users with social-network prospects and employers with a previously unavailable source of information suitable for employment-assessment decisions. And it's in this intersection on the Information Superhighway where often occurs a collision of worlds, perspectives and direction that frequently cripples or kills prospects, and individuals' aspirations. Employees of e-commerce companies aren't immune to such collisions, nor are agents of the companies who gather data on prospective or current employees, if they go about their work unlawfully, or in other improper ways that could lead to legal or other types of regulatory action.
Who Needs Patents?
February 26, 2009
The Patent Reform Act of 2007 may soon be recycled as The Patent Reform Act of 2009 and reintroduced in the new Congress. Should this reform become the law, it is likely that inventors will still invent. The author's fear, however, is that without strong patent law, investors will no longer want to invest in unprotected ideas.
Putting Riverbed Steelhead Appliances To the Test
February 26, 2009
At any professional services firm, but particularly for an AmLaw 200 law firm with offices in several locations, data protection is a key concern for management. At my current firm as well as a previous one, Riverbed Steelhead' appliances played a crucial part in and facilitated our data protection approaches by enabling the consolidation and centralization of our critical servers and data. Riverbed has listened to its customers and has continued to improve its products with the result that they not only optimize WAN connectivity, but also offer additional features and functionality to help firms more effectively execute their technology plans.
Court Weighs Consumer Fraud Suits Against eBay Posters
February 26, 2009
The New Jersey Supreme Court is poised to decide whether ordinary people who lie about the wares they sell on Internet auction sites like eBay can be held liable under the state's Consumer Fraud Act, with its awesome treble-damages remedy.
What's Old Is New in Web Site Protection
February 26, 2009
In the early "wild west" days of the Internet, legal remedies always seemed a step behind the intellectual property dilemmas presented by the new technological medium. Congress has gradually responded by enacting new laws to tackle high-tech loopholes, and the courts have creatively applied traditional concepts in an effort to prevent unscrupulous people from exploiting others' Internet-based intellectual property.
The Tweet 16
February 26, 2009
When it comes to social media, I tend to be an evangelist. But even I could not grasp why so many lawyers were all atwitter over Twitter. What value could there be in a microblogging tool that limits each post to 140 characters? So I strapped on some wings and gave it a try. In no time at all, Twitter turned me into a songbird ready to sing its praises.
