Publications
Every franchisor or manufacturer is likely to have to decide whether to terminate a dealer or distributor. * Termination should be taken seriously, because it can be expensive, invite a counterclaim, and a wrongful termination carries the risk of a substantial damage award. Still, there are times where a franchisor believes it is necessary to […]
Businesses that contract with health care organizations are encountering a new wave of legal and practical issues associated with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act’s “business associate” requirements following the privacy rule’s April 14, 2003, compliance date. 1 The business associate requirements raise a variety of issues involving interpretation of the HIPAA privacy and […]
Summary Discussion of Advance Directives I am Jeanette Schreiber, a partner in the law firm of Wiggin & Dana. I have been practicing health law in Connecticut for eighteen years and I am Co-chair of the Law & Ethics Task Force of the Connecticut Coalition to Improve End-of-Life Care. Through the Law & Ethics Task […]
The European Commission’s prohibition of the merger of General Electric Co. and Honeywell Inc. portends a potentially troubling future for the review and approval of mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures throughout the world. The transaction passed antitrust muster in the United States, but it encountered insurmountable opposition at the E.U. From numerous published reports, it […]
Contemporary critics assail the civil jury as “biased, sympathy-prone” and “hostile to corporate defendants.” Many businesspeople (and their lawyers) believe, sometimes from painful personal experience, that whatever the facts and the law, juries reflexively favor the “little guy” and enjoy redistributing the wealth of corporate defendants. Media accounts of big verdicts, from the McDonald’s coffee […]
First established in 1968, the Judicial Panel for Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) has transferred thousands of cases for consolidated pretrial proceedings where transfer serves “the convenience of parties and witnesses” and promotes “the just and efficient conduct of such actions.” 28 U.S.C. 1407(a). Multidistrict litigation (MDL) under § 1407 presents complicated appellate issues; knowing how, when […]
In Cooper Industries, Inc. v. Aviall Services, Inc., (Cooper Industries), the United States Supreme Court ruled that a person who is liable or potentially liable under Section 107(a) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), (a potentially responsible party or PRP) may not sue other PRPs for contribution pursuant to CERCLA Section […]
This year’s spring meeting of the Section of Public Utility Communications and Transportation Law, held at Pepco Holdings’ Washington conference center on April 10, was well attended and aptly named. The meeting’s general theme, “21st Century Regulation, Paradigms under Pressure,” is clearly a topic that has been weighing on the minds of the speakers and […]
The spring 2003 issue of Infrastructure was organized and primarily edited by J. P. Shotwell, senior lawyer at Southern California Edison and vice chair of the Section’s Newsletter Committee. Many thanks to J.P. for a job well done!
Enron and the ensuing corporate scandals taught serious lessons about corporate governance, including ethics, independence and accountability. Reprinted with permission from the November 6, 2006 edition of the New York Law Journal © 2006 ALM Properties, Inc.
Times have changed. Ten years ago or so, when franchise companies wanted to make sure that terminated franchisees had stopped using the system’s trademarks and other intellectual property, known as “de-identification,” the standard process was fairly quick and simple. The increasing use of the Internet has complicated the process, and some franchise companies have been […]
Trusts can be an effective component of the wealth transfer strategy of closely held business owners. Transfers of corporate shares to a properly structured trust can enable the owner to reduce the number of shares includible in his or her estate (along with the future appreciation on those shares) while shifting income among family members. […]
Interlocutory Appeals are permitted in a wide variety of circumstances. But what happens to the rest of the case while the appeal is pending? Generally, the district court retains jurisdiction over other aspects of the case, but the extent of the court’s authority to act, and its discretion to stay further proceedings, depend on the […]
One of the biggest complaints about arbitration is the potential for trial by ambush because discovery is often more limited in arbitration that in ordinary civil litigation. Under the American Arbitration Association’s Commercial Arbitration Rules, for example, there is no express right to take discovery depositions before arbitration hearings commence. In a similar vein, because […]
As part of its sweeping 21st Century Strategic Plan, the PTO proposes “Periodic Certification for Registered Practitioners” through a periodic mandatory exam, a periodic optional exam, or a combination of mandatory and optional exams. This article will review the PTO’s plan, and several alternative options, before presenting the authors’ proposed option. The authors’ proposal features […]
Congress is now considering several amendments to the Patent Act, enacted in 1952. In my opinion, any patent reform must continue to encourage the full disclosure of each invention through the “best mode” requirement, not accommodate the veiling of parts of the invention in a cloak of secrecy.
Building an attractive patent and technology portfolio for potential licensees requires involvement and diligence by the technology transfer office and the inventors. Steps outlined in this article, such as proper treatment of IP to assure rights are not lost, preventing premature disclosures, assuring proper ownership and inventorship of inventions, and filing priority patent applications that […]
Hanging high above the workstations of software developers at Bleum Inc.’s headquarters in Shanghai is a blue and black lettered-sign that reads “Protect Our Customer.”1 This slogan serves to remind Bleum’s foreign-based team of software engineers of the urgent need to protect the customer’s software code. Along with other preventative measures such as an access-controlled […]
Health policy decisions are often controversial, and the recent determination by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)not to grant over-the-counter status to the emergency contraceptive Plan B was no exception. Some physicians decried the decision as a troubling clash of science, politics, and morality. Other practitioners, citing safety, heralded the agency ‘s prudence. Public sentiment […]
In a year of obesity lawsuits, mass terminations, allegations of systemwide fraud and criminal conduct, and considerations of legal standing, the theme of 2003’s franchise litigation appeared to be system change-fundamental issues and decisions that affect entire franchise chains.
Several of the nation’s leading investment banks, including Credit Suisse First Boston Corp., Goldman Sachs & Co., Lehman Brothers Inc., Merrill Lynch Inc., Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc., Salomon Smith Barney Inc., and J.P. Morgan Securities Inc., hope to duplicate the recent success of other defendants and avoid antitrust liability for their activities relating to […]
Picture this: you file a patent application relating to “bet the company” technology on behalf of your client. Lo and behold, a first action allowance ensues. You promptly inform the client of the rapid allowance; needless to say, the client is thrilled. A happy scenario!
Introduction Recent federal privacy regulations promulgated under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) will have a significant impact on how research institutions and hospitals (collectively “research institutions”) use and distribute certain information acquired in the course of conducting a clinical trial. While the HIPAA privacy regulations will not be […]
An employee on an unauthorized leave that started before, but extended beyond, her one- year service anniversary was covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and her discharge for unapproved absences was unlawful, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled.
The rituals of contemporary civil litigation usually do not culminate in a judge crafting a carefully reasoned opinion after a bench trial or a foreperson announcing the result of a jury’s thoughtful deliberations. The typical last rite is the exchange of releases and a settlement check. Sometimes this happens soon after suit is filed, more […]
Health care providers often face three related, yet distinct, claims in court: medical malpractice, informed consent, and battery. Lawyers and their clients, whether plaintiffs or defendants, must consider the differences among these causes of action at every stage of a case, from complaint to trial.
The reaction of businesses to the vast, cross-cutting challenge of global climate change has spurred the insurance industry to offer an array of new products and services aimed at reducing climate-related losses, facilitating emerging mitigating technologies, and encouraging carbon trading markets. This article focuses on some of these new products, particularly those supporting the nascent […]
Broadly defined, an independent medical examination (IME) is any health assessment conducted by a physician, not otherwise involved in the care or treatment of the patient, at the request of a third party that is not the physician’s general employer. Most commonly, physicians conduct IMEs at the request of employers seeking to determine the health […]
Many arbitration agreements, such as the Commercial Rules of the American Arbitration Association (AAA) or the JAMS Comprehensive Arbitration Rules, explicitly designate the particular rules that will govern any arbitration that arises. The specified rules generally address what information, if any, a potential arbitrator must disclose during the arbitrator selection process.
In U.S. Bancorp Mortgage Co. v. Bonner Mall Partnership, 513 U.S. 18 (1994), the Supreme Court clarified the standards for determining whether a lower court decision should be vacated when a case becomes moot on appeal. Vacatur is generally appropriate when a case becomes moot because “happenstance” or developments unrelated to the litigation, or when […]