Publications
Supreme Court Rules That a Licensed Patent May Be Challenged Without Breaching the License On January 9, 2007, the United States Supreme Court ruled that a patent licensee is not required to breach its license in order to have standing to challenge the validity of the licensed patent. In MedImmune, Inc. v. Genentech, Inc., (U.S. […]
On June 9, 2008, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Quanta Computer, Inc. v. LG Electronics, Inc. that the doctrine of patent exhaustion applies to method patents as well as product and composition of matter patents. Patent exhaustion provides that an authorized sale of an article that substantially embodies a patent exhausts the patent […]
A new Connecticut data privacy law, Public Act No. 08-167 titled An Act Concerning the Confidentiality of Social Security Numbers, became effective on October 1, 2008. The new law requires people and businesses to protect personal data and imposes both requirements and restrictions with respect to the handling of Social Security numbers. Intentional violations of […]
On March 24, 2009, the Connecticut Supreme Court issued a landmark property tax decision in St. Joseph's Living Center, Inc. v. Town of Windham — a case litigated on behalf of St. Joseph's by Wiggin and Dana. The decision provides a detailed analysis of the requirements for property tax exemption as a charitable organization under […]
This advisory provides information about a federal regulation that the Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC”) will begin enforcing on May 1, 2009, and about a recent Connecticut data privacy statute, both of which will likely affect colleges and universities. Both laws require individuals and institutions that handle personal information to adopt certain policies and procedures […]
On June 21, 2004, in Aetna v. Davila, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that ERISA completely preempts state law tort claims against HMOs for injuries allegedly suffered as the result of the HMO’s failure to authorize physician-recommended care. The decision struck down a Texas law, the Texas Health Care Liability Act, which made insurers […]
Authors, artists, inventors and others involved in creative activities often own unique assets that can present challenging tax and estate planning issues. Published and unpublished literary or musical works, visual art, computer programs, mechanical inventions, and clothing, jewelry and architectural designs can all be valuable (but difficult-to-value) assets. Such assets, usually known as “intellectual property,” […]
On a chilly, windy day in the northeastern United States, I thought I’d try to warm things up by telling you about two interesting court decisions which reached my desk recently. (1) In a decision which should gladden the hearts of mass tort defendants, the Mississippi Supreme Court threw out a $100,000,000 jury verdict against […]
Federal Estate Tax Changes. Each U.S. citizen and permanent U.S. resident is entitled to an “applicable exclusion amount” that exempts up to a certain amount of an estate from the federal estate tax. For 2008, the applicable exclusion amount is $2 million. Up to $1 million of an individual’s applicable exclusion amount may be used […]
On December 14, 1998, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in NYNEX Corporation v. Discon, Incorporated, 119 S.Ct. 493 (1998) that the per se boycott rule cannot be applied to a vertical non-price restraint between a single supplier and a single customer, even when there is no procompetitive justification for the restraint. Justice Stephen Breyer’s decision […]
Joseph G. Krauss, the head of the Premerger Notification Office and an Assistant Director of the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Competition, recently spoke to the Antitrust and Trade Regulation and Corporate Counsel Sections of the Connecticut Bar Association. Mr. Krauss was invited to speak by Bill Millman of Wiggin & Dana, current Chair of […]
American Family Enterprises (commonly known as American Family Publishers “AFP”), Ed McMahon, and Dick Clark have retained Wiggin & Dana to represent them in connection with far-reaching legal challenges to the legality of the popular sweepstakes AFP operates to promote sales of magazine subscriptions. Numerous state attorneys general, including Connecticut’s, have challenged the sweepstakes. AFP’s […]
Congratulations to Jim Farrington, who has been in Sweden since late 1997, and his team, for successfully shepherding the sale of Pharmacia & Upjohn, Inc.’s intravenous drug business to Germany’s Fresenius AG through 14 separate pre-merger filings in Europe and North America. Wiggin & Dana was lead counsel in this $500 million divestment which involved […]
Patent lawyer Dale Carlson will be a featured speaker on February 9, 1999 at the Winter Meeting of the Association of Corporate Patent Counsel in Palm Beach, Florida. He will present a paper on the subject of inventorship issues in U.S. Patent practice. If you would like a copy of this paper, please contact Dale […]
On June 24, 1997, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia entered a final judgment on a proposed consent decree in the matter of U.S. v. Mahle GmbH, Civ. Act. No. 97-1404, 1997-2 Trade Cases ¶ 71,868. The consent decree required that Mahle GmbH and Metal Leve S.A. pay a total of $5.6 […]
In May 1997, the Delaware Supreme Court issued a decision in Brazen v. Bell Atlantic that will require more careful consideration of the purpose and scope of termination fee (or so-called “break-up fee”) provisions in merger agreements to ensure that such provisions will be enforced. A termination fee provision is designed to protect a party […]
The basic purpose of estate planning is to create an effective and sensible disposition of your property during life and at death. Each client is unique, so while there are certain standard techniques and tools available to the estate planner, there are no standard solutions or universal remedies suitable for all clients. Just as every […]
Dear Clients and Other Friends of the Firm (Intro. Letter) This is an introductory advisory on the final HIPAA privacy rule. Theadvisory summarizes the key features of the rule, highlights severalareas of significant change from the proposed rule, and provides some“action steps” for moving forward towards compliance with the rule’srequirements. For a general […]
Since 1976 the federal government has had a unified estate and gift tax. Generally, under this system each individual gets a tax credit which can be used to shelter a certain amount of gifts made either during life (in which case the credit is applied against the gift tax) or at death (in which case […]
We hope you will enjoy this inaugural issue of the Family Business Advisory, which is intended to inform family businesses about issues and developments in the law affecting family and closely held businesses. Wiggin & Dana represents a wide range of family businesses. Some are large companies considering public securities offerings, and others are small, […]
Bankruptcy court is the great emergency room of the legal system. By the time a debtor gets there, he is bleeding to death and, most likely, has been for quite some time. A siege mentality often exists among the creditors, many of who have been scrambling to recover some payment or security before the bankruptcy […]
The first an employer becomes aware of a wage and hour complaint is often when the Connecticut Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Workplace Standards Division investigator appears on the doorstep. The DOL has jurisdiction over virtually all employers, even the smallest ones, and their investigators are frequent visitors to the workplace. While the vast […]
Employers may not know it, but the Government’s electronic employment eligibility verification system, dubbed E-Verify, has been up and running since 1997, and any employer may sign up to use the system. Now, pursuant to Executive Order 12989 signed by President Bush, as of September 8, 2009, certain federal contractors are required to use E-Verify. […]
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) recently announced a new pilot program to accelerate the examination of patent applications directed to certain “green” technologies, e.g., technologies for enhancing environmental quality, conserving energy, developing renewable energy sources, or reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Patent applications are typically examined in the order they are filed. The […]
When does a physical agility test measuring an employee’s ability to perform actual or simulated job tasks qualify as a medical examination under the ADA? The question is important for employers because, if the test is deemed a medical examination, the ADA mandates that it be job-related and consistent with business necessity. Recently, the U.S. […]
On or before December 31, 2009, tax exempt employers who sponsor Code §403(b) retirement plans (sometimes known as tax-sheltered annuity plans or “TSAs”) need to adopt a written plan document for their 403(b) plans. Background. Recently issued final IRS regulations governing Code §403(b) retirement plans require that employers adopt written plan documents for their plans, […]
The fate of the federal estate, generation-skipping transfer (GST) and gift taxes has been the subject of much discussion in recent months. While most estate planners expected that Congress would act in 2009 to avert the dramatic changes to the tax system which became effective on January 1, 2010, it failed to do so. This […]
Deadline to Adopt Updated Plan DocumentsPrototype and volume submitter document providers were recently required to update their plan documents to comply with certain tax legislation. Employer adopters of prototype and volume submitter defined contribution plans have until April 30, 2010 to adopt the provider’s updated plan document. If your company has not yet adopted an […]
A rash of lawsuits have recently been filed for alleged damages due to drywall originating from China. As with every new type of class or mass action suit brought by the plaintiffs’ bar, the question always posed is whether this is the next asbestos, a tidal wave of litigation with potentially devastating exposure. Unless some […]
The increase in the federal estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer tax exemptions, coupled with the uncertain future (and possible complete repeal) of the transfer tax system, have led many people to believe that estate planning is no longer necessary. Even if the federal transfer tax system is eliminated, state transfer taxes may remain (or even […]