Publications
A brief discussion of proposed New York Rules of Professional Conduct vis-à-vis the USPTO’s proposed ethics rules in terms of impact on patent attorneys in New York.
Cases involving antitrust claims are being brought with increasing regularity in the franchise and distribution arena. In the first of many antitrust cases decided during the past several months, a federal district court in Pennsylvania held that the claims of two GNC franchisees, brought pursuant to Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act and […]
“Would yee both eat your cake and have your cake?” John Heywood [1497-1580] “The fool that eats till he is sick must fast till he is well.” George Walter Thornburg [1828-1876] “My cake is dough.” William Shakespeare [1564-1616] I. INTRODUCTION Although reexamination can provide an excellent vehicle for tightening a patent’s claim scope as a […]
Is this alternative dispute resolution – or a new way to turn up the heat when a big battle starts to look bad? That’s what American companies doing business abroad should be asking themselves about a little-known arbitration mechanism available under NAFTA. Can arbitration be used to generate an extra layer of appellate review? To […]
New technology has transformed the way society manages information, but has also raised significant privacy con-cerns,particularly when it relates to confidential personal matters such as health information. You undoubtedly have heard about the new HIPAA privacy requirements, but you should be aware of the impact of HIPAA on employers, which may affect their employment policies […]
Although the federal Department of Labor (DOL) has a history of rigorously auditing 401(k) and pension plan compliance, health and welfare plans have not been as high on the agency’s agenda. In 2000, the DOL began auditing health and welfare plan audits, focusing on a sample of employers to measure compliance with, among other laws, […]
E-mail has become the preferred method of communication in most business settings and has developed a vocabulary and syntax all its own. E-mail is a remarkably easy and efficient mode of communication. However, because e-mail is less formal, thoughts are often conveyed absent the care, discernment, and social governors that regularly accompany face-to-face communication and […]
The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals grappled with the difficulty of relying on the “major life activity” of working to support a finding that an employee’s alcoholism is a “disability” under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and ruled that it was not.
The Supreme Court’s opinion in Circuit City Stores v. Adams, — U.S. –, 121 S. Ct. 1302, 149 L.Ed.2d 234 (2001) illustrates how judicial attitudes towards arbitration have evolved from rejection to encouragement since the passage of the Federal Arbitration Act (the “FAA”), 9 U.S.C. §§ 1, et seq.
Sometimes it’s really fun to be editor of Infrastructure. That’s how I felt in early spring doing the final reading of the text for this issue. The articles are, across-the-board, informative and thought provoking.
Tackling the issue for the first time, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that an employer may be held liable for discrimination when unbiased decision-makers rely on information manipulated by another employee harboring a discriminatory motive.
A quarter-century after one of our co-authors explored the need for, and value to society of, the best mode disclosure requirement in patent practice, the authors are now revisiting the subject. During the intervening years, there have been significant changes in how business is conducted, notably in favor of an increased volume of global business […]
Until Arthur Andersen’s January 2002 disclosure that its employees had destroyed documents relating to Enron, little was written or discussed publicly about document retention issues. All that has changed. Recent corporate scandals have publicized the issue of corporate obstruction of justice-and obfuscation-as never before. Congress responded by passing the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which (among other things) […]
In this extraordinary business environment, more and more companies are encountering situations in which they should, or must, conduct internal investigations into allegations or suspicions of wrongdoing by their employees or executives. As reported in a recent Wall Street Journal article, it seems that “[p]lenty of companies have gotten into plenty of trouble lately.” Indeed, […]
In 1999, the law of trade secrets continued to evolve through a variety of state and federal court decisions. In New York, a state court decision demonstrated a continued reluctance to protect customer names as trade secrets. In contrast, in Washington State’s Supreme Court held customer lists to be protectable as trade secrets, whether written […]
Despite recent declines in the biotech stock index, the biotechnology industry as a whole is reasonably well capitalized and in good health. More biotechnology companies are profitable than ever before, and many have the financial reserves to make it through the next couple of years, even if the IPO market does not become more receptive […]
On June 7, 2005, Connecticut Governor Jody Rell signed into law Public Act 05-90 (formerly Senate Bill 795). This legislation creates a statutory bar to lawsuits against innocent landowners for costs or damages to third parties for pollution existing prior to taking title to a property on and after October 1, 2005.
An employer’s statements to an at-will employee that her husband’s possible employment by a competitor would not adversely affect her employment were sufficiently clear and definite to be binding, ruled the Connecticut Supreme Court in affirming an $850,000 jury verdict.
Plaintiff competed against other authorized Mack Truck dealers and aggressively pursued a low-price sales strategy throughout the country. Mack terminated the dealer agreement, and plaintiff, now a former dealer, alleged that Mack had done so in furtherance of an unlawful conspiracy with its authorized dealers to keep prices on Mack products artificially high. Plaintiff argued […]
I.INTRODUCTIONA. Sources of Law 1. Statute2. Regulation3. Courts B. Other Requirements 1. JCAHO2. Ethical Standards C. Areas of Potential Liability For Documentation Problems 1. Department of Public Health Licensure Actions Against Facilitya. Violationsb. Citations2. Department of Public Health – Boards for Licensed Professionals3. Medicare/Medicaid Requirements for Participation a. OBRA Deficiencies and Enforcement Rules4. Civil Litigation […]
When the financial news covers in-house counsel lately, the stories are increasingly about government enforcement actions against those lawyers. Following Enron, other corporate scandals, and the enactment of Sarbanes-Oxley earlier this decade, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) heightened their scrutiny of lawyers as “gatekeepers” for the public companies […]
FROM THE EDITOR… We welcome you to the inaugural issue of the Criminal Litigation Committee’s Newsletter. Federal criminal law continues to evolve quickly, and it is increasingly important in these often complex and high-stakes matters to be aware of the latest developments. While many criminal law practitioners manage to stay current on the law in […]
In episode three of the original “Star Trek” series, a gigantic alien vessel has trapped the Enterprise. The alien captain, who looks like something out of Edvard Munch’s “The Scream,” has promised to destroy the Enterprise. The crew has tried in vain to escape. Spock turns to Kirk and says, “Checkmate, Captain.” In his Vulcan […]
Whether an employee qualifies for overtime pay is one of the most hotly litigated and confusing issues covered by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Fair Labor and Standards Act. The federal labor department, however, is taking steps to clarify the Depression-era law, particularly its section on whether someone is a salaried or nonsalaried worker — […]
The downturn in the economy, coupled with unfavorable changes in Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements, have resulted in an increasing number of financially troubled nursing homes in Connecticut. Some of these nursing homes have filed for bankruptcy in federal court; others have been forced into statutory receiverships in state court. Concerned about the enormous financial burden […]
The good news: You’ve prevailed in district court. The bad: The court rejected an important claim or based its decision on questionable grounds. In this situation, you must determine whether a cross-appeal is required, or even permissible, to preserve your arguments on appeal, and you must decide quickly, as Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(3) normally […]
Introduction The explosive expansion of the Internet and e-commerce has transformed business and the global economy, creating unparalleled opportunities for increased productivity and economic growth. Nearly every company has adopted an “e-strategy,” exploiting the connectivity of the Internet to manage more successfully their relationships with employees, customers and business partners. The proliferation and […]
When Joseph Connor was offered a job as a cook at a McDonald’s here, he finally seemed to have found a way to help support his five children. But along came a snag. The McDonald’s manager told Mr. Connor, who is 6-foot-1 and weighs nearly 420 pounds, that he could start work as soon as […]
Franchise termination cases are familiar territory for experienced franchisor counsel. The complaint typically seeks termination of the franchise agreement, enforcement of a covenant not to compete, damages and injunctive relief for trademark infringement, damages for amounts past due under the franchise agreement, and an accounting for sales not reported to the franchisor. If the franchisee […]
If there is one thing that my trial practice instructor in law school drilled into my oversized (but largely vacuous) head, it was this: “Don’t forget to move for a directed verdict at the close of the plaintiff’s case, renew that motion at the close of all of the evidence, and move for judgment n.o.v. […]