Hotline
July 28, 2005
This month: <p>Second Circuit defines standard for loss causation pleadings<br>SEC liberalizes the Quiet-Period rule<br>Employer recovers legal fees for frivolous portion of discrimination claim<br>D.C. Circuit directs SEC to reconsider mutual fund governance rule<br>
Assignee's Preference Avoidance Power
July 27, 2005
In <i>Sherwood Partners, Inc., Assignee for the Benefit of Creditors of International Thinklink Corporation v. Lycos, Inc.</i>, 394 F.3d 1198 (9th Cir. 2005), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, by a divided court, recently held that a state statute authorizing an assignee for the benefit of creditors to void a preferential transfer is preempted by the federal Bankruptcy Code.
Cross-Border Disputes and the Potential for Resolution via Mediation
June 29, 2005
The world is rapidly becoming a smaller place in which to do business. And as international borders and boundaries become less of a barrier to business, participants in equipment leasing and finance find their world getting smaller, as well. "Globalization" is now an accepted and well-understood concept in most industries and markets, and it is no longer limited to large multinational corporations or institutions. With suppliers, vendors, and customers in many countries on several continents, all linked through the omnipresent Web and Internet, even small, independent businesses may successfully operate across borders.
Trademark Law Shapes Internet Pop-up Ads
June 28, 2005
Despite their negative public images, Internet pop-up ads and unsolicited commercial e-mail (spam) have transfigured marketing. Like spam, Internet pop-ups can be lawful if they are not deceptive.
News Not All Good For Google ' Or Its Advertisers
June 28, 2005
Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you always should." Never has that saying had more meaning than when it comes to Internet advertising. True, this new avenue for advertising has helped some companies exponentially increase their business, but the methods for "re-directing" prospective customers have come under great scrutiny by the courts in the last 6 months. Recent decisions warn that keyword advertising through paid placements such as "Sponsored" or "Featured" ads could lead you directly to the defendant's table in federal court.
Confronting and Understanding 'Gripe Sites'
June 28, 2005
The Internet has provided an unprecedented opportunity for individuals to disseminate information widely at a very low cost. This means that virtually anybody who wants to distribute a message can do so. <br>It is this sense of empowerment that may drive individuals to spend the time and energy to create sites devoted to complaints about a particular product, service, company, organization, or individual. Frequently these sites employ trademarks owned by their targets, sometimes in the site's domain name itself, and always in the text of the site. Internet search engines pick these references up, so that the gripe sites often turn up side-by-side with official corporate sites in response to Internet searches.
New News
June 28, 2005
Recent developments of note in the Internet industry. This month:<br>FCC Requires VoIP to Clean up Its 911 Act <br>House Votes to Eliminate Spyware<br>Intermix Settles Adware Suit with Spitzer
e-Commerce Continues To Rise
June 28, 2005
Preliminary estimates of first-quarter e-commerce activity from the U.S. Census Bureau show a continued rise in the value of services and goods procured and exchanged online or by other electronic conduits.
Life Insurance and Divorce
June 28, 2005
Life Insurance is an important matter in most divorces. There are a host of issues that are not addressed in the typical negotiation. Consider the following sample insurance clause from a Property Settlement Agreement [PSA]: "The husband shall maintain life insurance for the wife having an aggregate death benefit of $250,000. Said obligation shall be terminated if the husband's obligation to pay alimony is modified/terminated. The husband shall maintain life insurance having an aggregate death benefit of $250,000 for the benefit of the unemancipated children. Said benefit shall be reduced by $75,000 upon the emancipation of the first child and again upon the emancipation of the second child. The obligation to maintain any life insurance for the children shall terminate upon the emancipation of all Three [3] children." There are many important decisions and considerations not addressed in a simplistic -- and typical -- clause like this, and practitioners need practical recommendations and advice on how better to address life insurance issues. This article provides both.
