News
FTC Wins Challenge Against Idaho Hospital Deal
January 25, 2014
A federal judge ruled Friday that an Idaho hospital system must unwind its acquisition of the state's largest independent doctor group, a decision that could have significant implications as health-care providers nationwide increasingly seek to join forces. The ruling handed another victory to the Federal Trade Commission, which in recent years has renewed its efforts to police health-care mergers it sees as anticompetitive. The commission has won a string of rulings against mergers between competing...
January 25, 2014
A federal judge ruled Friday that an Idaho hospital system must unwind its acquisition of the state's largest independent doctor group, a decision that could have significant implications as health-care providers nationwide increasingly seek to join forces. The ruling handed another victory to the Federal Trade Commission, which in recent years has renewed its efforts to police health-care mergers it sees as anticompetitive. The commission has won a string of rulings against mergers between competing...
Can Neuro-Music Boost Your Productivity?
January 25, 2014
Work environments today are noisy and distracting. As Maria Konnikova writes in arecent New Yorker article, open office plans are a big culprit. One study describes the effects of open environments as “damaging to the workers’ attention spans, productivity, creative thinking, and satisfaction.” One effect of open environments is that now many office workers sport headphones and use music to reduce distraction levels. Music isn’t necessarily a panacea for increasing productivity; it can be a distraction...
January 25, 2014
Work environments today are noisy and distracting. As Maria Konnikova writes in arecent New Yorker article, open office plans are a big culprit. One study describes the effects of open environments as “damaging to the workers’ attention spans, productivity, creative thinking, and satisfaction.” One effect of open environments is that now many office workers sport headphones and use music to reduce distraction levels. Music isn’t necessarily a panacea for increasing productivity; it can be a distraction...
Mindfulness
January 24, 2014
Mindfulness is becoming a trending word. Nevertheless, it may have practical benefits. In “Wherever You Go, There You Are,” Jon-Kabat Zin describes the concept in these words: Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment and nonjudgmentally. This kind of attention nurtures greater awareness, clarity and acceptance of present moment reality. It wakes us up to the fact that our lives unfold only in moments. ... Mindfulness provides a simple but powerful...
January 24, 2014
Mindfulness is becoming a trending word. Nevertheless, it may have practical benefits. In “Wherever You Go, There You Are,” Jon-Kabat Zin describes the concept in these words: Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment and nonjudgmentally. This kind of attention nurtures greater awareness, clarity and acceptance of present moment reality. It wakes us up to the fact that our lives unfold only in moments. ... Mindfulness provides a simple but powerful...
High Emotional Intelligence Dramatically Improves Decision-Making
January 24, 2014
A new study finds that people with high emotional intelligence make smarter decisions because they aren’t swayed by their current emotional state. The emotions can provide very useful information, but sometimes they are not related to the decisions we are trying to make. Being able to tell one from the other is part of what constitutes emotional intelligence. Stéphane Côté, the co-author of a new article published in Psychological Science explained: “People are driving and it’s...
January 24, 2014
A new study finds that people with high emotional intelligence make smarter decisions because they aren’t swayed by their current emotional state. The emotions can provide very useful information, but sometimes they are not related to the decisions we are trying to make. Being able to tell one from the other is part of what constitutes emotional intelligence. Stéphane Côté, the co-author of a new article published in Psychological Science explained: “People are driving and it’s...
Lenovo Said to Beat Fujitsu to IBM Servers After Dell Passed
January 24, 2014
Lenovo Group Ltd. (992), which agreed to buy International Business Machines Corp. (IBM)’s low-end server unit yesterday, beat out prospective bidder Fujitsu Ltd. (6702) because that company would have needed several more weeks to conduct due diligence, a person with knowledge of the negotiations said. Fujitsu expressed a willingness to pay more than the $2.3 billion Lenovo offered, though it wasn’t yet ready to make a firm bid, said the person, who asked not to be named because the talks...
January 24, 2014
Lenovo Group Ltd. (992), which agreed to buy International Business Machines Corp. (IBM)’s low-end server unit yesterday, beat out prospective bidder Fujitsu Ltd. (6702) because that company would have needed several more weeks to conduct due diligence, a person with knowledge of the negotiations said. Fujitsu expressed a willingness to pay more than the $2.3 billion Lenovo offered, though it wasn’t yet ready to make a firm bid, said the person, who asked not to be named because the talks...
DOJ Sues Firm That Vetted Snowden For NSA Work
January 24, 2014
It may not have been the best screening job. At least, the U.S. government doesn’t think so. The Department of Justice is accusing the largest private provider of security checks —in fact, the organization that vetted Edward Snowden—of not doing the job properly, according to Sakthi Prasad of Reuters. The United States Investigations Services has had a contract with the federal government since 1996 and checks the backgrounds of people applying to work with government agencies, says Prasad,...
January 24, 2014
It may not have been the best screening job. At least, the U.S. government doesn’t think so. The Department of Justice is accusing the largest private provider of security checks —in fact, the organization that vetted Edward Snowden—of not doing the job properly, according to Sakthi Prasad of Reuters. The United States Investigations Services has had a contract with the federal government since 1996 and checks the backgrounds of people applying to work with government agencies, says Prasad,...
Apple And Samsung In Settlement Talks
January 24, 2014
Apple insists on anti-cloning provision in Samsung settlement | Apple - CNET News. Okay, the settlement talks are court ordered. And, the parties can't even agree on the parameters of the previous talks. But, it is a given that the consumers have moved on, and that the patent litigation between Apple and Samsung is not top of anybody's mind anymore. I know that I am tired of writing about it. When will these companies get it? We are headed for another trial in March, and the parties are still fighting...
January 24, 2014
Apple insists on anti-cloning provision in Samsung settlement | Apple - CNET News. Okay, the settlement talks are court ordered. And, the parties can't even agree on the parameters of the previous talks. But, it is a given that the consumers have moved on, and that the patent litigation between Apple and Samsung is not top of anybody's mind anymore. I know that I am tired of writing about it. When will these companies get it? We are headed for another trial in March, and the parties are still fighting...
Motion to Compel Arbitration Granted in Antitrust Case v. Cable Providers and Sports Organizations
January 24, 2014
On November 25, 2013, Judge Scheindlin of the Southern District of New York issued an opinion in Laumann v. National Hockey League, granting in part and denying in part a motion to compel arbitration brought by defendant Comcast and denying in full a similar motion brought by defendant DIRECTV. Plaintiffs claim that defendants, including the National Hockey League and Major League Baseball, along with the major cable and satellite television service providers entered into "agreements to eliminate...
January 24, 2014
On November 25, 2013, Judge Scheindlin of the Southern District of New York issued an opinion in Laumann v. National Hockey League, granting in part and denying in part a motion to compel arbitration brought by defendant Comcast and denying in full a similar motion brought by defendant DIRECTV. Plaintiffs claim that defendants, including the National Hockey League and Major League Baseball, along with the major cable and satellite television service providers entered into "agreements to eliminate...
Judicial Decisionmaking: A Behavioral Perspective
January 24, 2014
This chapter, forthcoming in the Oxford Handbook of Behavioral Economics and the Law, critically reviews the behavioral literature on judicial decisionmaking. Among other things, it presents general theories of judicial decisionmaking, such as the story model and coherence-based reasoning. It also examines the susceptibility of judicial decisionmaking to various well-known cognitive biases, including the compromise and contrast effects, the hindsight bias, the omission bias, and anchoring. The chapter...
January 24, 2014
This chapter, forthcoming in the Oxford Handbook of Behavioral Economics and the Law, critically reviews the behavioral literature on judicial decisionmaking. Among other things, it presents general theories of judicial decisionmaking, such as the story model and coherence-based reasoning. It also examines the susceptibility of judicial decisionmaking to various well-known cognitive biases, including the compromise and contrast effects, the hindsight bias, the omission bias, and anchoring. The chapter...
Readings on Positive Psychology and Law
January 23, 2014
Here is a list of readings taken from Professor James Elkins’s course on Psychology for Lawyers. But first, a definition of “positive psychology”: "Positive Psychology is the scientific study of the strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive. The field is founded on the belief that people want to lead meaningful and fulfilling lives, to cultivate what is best within themselves, and to enhance their experiences of love, work, and play." --Positive Psychology...
January 23, 2014
Here is a list of readings taken from Professor James Elkins’s course on Psychology for Lawyers. But first, a definition of “positive psychology”: "Positive Psychology is the scientific study of the strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive. The field is founded on the belief that people want to lead meaningful and fulfilling lives, to cultivate what is best within themselves, and to enhance their experiences of love, work, and play." --Positive Psychology...
