Attorneys Gear Up for Virtual Medicine
August 01, 2006
The number of doctors and hospitals making virtual house calls has exploded in recent years, which has lawyers cautioning the medical community about the legal dangers of treating and monitoring patients via the Internet. Attorneys warn that virtual medicine ' which has popped up in hospitals and clinics in more than a dozen states in the last 2 years ' could open the floodgates to malpractice claims, privacy disputes and licensure problems.
What Every U.S. Employer Should Know About Workplace Privacy
August 01, 2006
Through the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), Congress called on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to promulgate regulations that would help ensure the privacy and security of health information. The Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information (the Privacy Rule) and the Security Standards (the Security Rule) promulgated pursuant to HIPAA apply to 'covered entities' and limit the ability of such entities to use or disclose protected health information (PHI). The Privacy Rule defines a 'covered entity' as a health plan, health care clearinghouse, or health care provider who transmits health information in electronic form in connection with certain specified transactions. While the Privacy Rule and the Security Rule do not directly apply to employers, the requirements of these rules do apply to ERISA-covered 'group health plans' that are sponsored by many employers.
Anticipated New Federal Rules on Electronic Discovery
July 31, 2006
The following is a summary of key issues addressed by Paul Reeve and Jonathan Solish in a session about electronic discovery that they led at the 2006 International Franchise Association Legal Symposium in Washington, DC. The summary was prepared by the authors of the presentation.
Increased Piracy Puts More Heat on China
July 31, 2006
The entertainment industry hoped the counterfeiting of movies, music, software and books would plummet after China agreed in 2002 to abide by the World Trade Organization's (WTO) standards for global intellectual property rights. Instead, the industry says piracy has increased dramatically, leading some American companies to view the Chinese government as unable ' or unwilling ' to curb it. And industry lobbyists are now helping the U.S. government prepare a case that could be brought…
Doing Business in China via the Cayman Islands (2006 Update)
July 31, 2006
Many companies doing business in China are using a structure that includes a company formed under the laws of the Cayman Islands (CI). Chinese technology and Internet companies listed on NASDAQ ' such as Actions Semiconductor, Baidu, CTrip, China Medical Technologies, Focus Media, Shanda, Suntech Power and Tom Online ' are actually CI companies. The primary business reasons for an offshore structure are flexibility in an exit strategy, whether in connection with an initial public offering (IPO) or an acquisition; the possibility of reducing U.S. taxes; and reducing the impact of China's currency exchange restrictions.
Security Breaches
July 31, 2006
There are as yet no direct equivalents of the mandatory security breach reporting legislation we have seen in the U.S., either at an EU level or within Europe itself. That is not to say there is no law on the reporting of breaches in Europe. While a number of countries have been looking at the increasing number of security breaches, in the main the response has been to use existing privacy legislation to take action.
Using Technology To Be Better, Faster And More Cost- Effective Than the Competition
July 31, 2006
Superior representation during litigation involves more than persuasion, skill and mastery of the law. It means getting a favorable outcome while being better, faster and more cost-effective than the competition. One of the ways we have been able to achieve litigation success is by partnering with tech-savvy service providers. We have been able to strengthen our position and efficiency by working with a reporting firm that has access to the latest technology for exhibit bundling, on-demand Web access and transcript management. Other paralegals and attorneys in our firm have taken notice ' as have the client and opposing counsel.
<b>Product Review:</b> A Solution For Today's Data-Intensive Litigation Workflows
July 31, 2006
Bowman and Brooke LLP has 160 trial lawyers coast-to-coast in Minneapolis, Phoenix, Detroit, San Jose, CA, Los Angeles and Richmond, VA. Together, the firm defends corporations in products liability, toxic torts and other high-stakes litigation throughout all 50 states. <br>The nature of the firm's work ' and litigation in general ' is collaborative, and often dependent upon massive amounts of data. The explosion of documentary evidence brought on by compliance and electronic discovery obligations has made finding, organizing, analyzing and understanding case evidence more challenging than ever before.
The World Wide Witness: The Internet As a Trial Witness
July 31, 2006
When Toysrus.com, Toys 'R' Us, Inc.'s Internet retail business, sued Amazon.com to end their Internet partnership for breach of contract, it faced a key strategic decision: Could it gamble on using its opponent's own Web site as a key trial witness? Toys 'R' Us had to prove to the court that Amazon was violating its exclusivity rights under their contract. The only way to effectively do this was to show the court, live, what was happening in real time on www.amazon.com.
