Blog Archives
Supreme Court Takes Middle Road in Halliburton Decision
October 10, 2014
On June 23, 2014, the Supreme Court of the United States released its long-awaited decision in Halliburton v. Erica P. John Fund, Inc., __ U.S. __. 2014 WL 2807181 (Jun. 23, 2014), a Rule 10b-5 putative securities class action. Instead of abrogating or fully embracing the fraud-on-the market presumption established in the 1988 Basic v. Levinson decision, Chief Justice John Roberts, in an opinion joined by Justices Anthony Kennedy, Ruth Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan took...
October 10, 2014
On June 23, 2014, the Supreme Court of the United States released its long-awaited decision in Halliburton v. Erica P. John Fund, Inc., __ U.S. __. 2014 WL 2807181 (Jun. 23, 2014), a Rule 10b-5 putative securities class action. Instead of abrogating or fully embracing the fraud-on-the market presumption established in the 1988 Basic v. Levinson decision, Chief Justice John Roberts, in an opinion joined by Justices Anthony Kennedy, Ruth Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan took...
TX: New Remedy for Online Defamation
October 10, 2014
The Texas Supreme Court has ruled that a court can order an author to delete a defamatory post, but cannot prohibit the author from reposting the statements because that would be an unlawful prior restraint of free speech. The deletion remedy is novel. The Texas Lawyer has the story.
October 10, 2014
The Texas Supreme Court has ruled that a court can order an author to delete a defamatory post, but cannot prohibit the author from reposting the statements because that would be an unlawful prior restraint of free speech. The deletion remedy is novel. The Texas Lawyer has the story.
U of Michigan, Carmakers Fund Research Toward Communicating Cars
October 9, 2014
A group of companies, including several large automakers, have joined a public-private research initiative to lay the groundwork for a system that wirelessly connects vehicles and helps smooth the flow of traffic, the University on Michigan said. The university’s Mobility Transformation Center will help develop and implement technology that allows vehicles to talk to each other and surrounding infrastructure like stoplights to reduce traffic congestion and vehicle accidents. The program includes...
October 9, 2014
A group of companies, including several large automakers, have joined a public-private research initiative to lay the groundwork for a system that wirelessly connects vehicles and helps smooth the flow of traffic, the University on Michigan said. The university’s Mobility Transformation Center will help develop and implement technology that allows vehicles to talk to each other and surrounding infrastructure like stoplights to reduce traffic congestion and vehicle accidents. The program includes...
State Supreme Court Judicial Elections & Tort Decisions
October 9, 2014
A growing body of research, particularly in political science, assesses possible relations between how state court judges are elected and retained and case outcomes. Building off prior work finding relations in such hot-button areas as capital punishment an abortion, in Supreme Court Elections and Tort Law Decisions Herbert Kritzer (Minn.) extends this inquiry into the area of tort reform. Drawing on more than "38,000 votes by justices on state courts of last resort compiled by the State Supreme...
October 9, 2014
A growing body of research, particularly in political science, assesses possible relations between how state court judges are elected and retained and case outcomes. Building off prior work finding relations in such hot-button areas as capital punishment an abortion, in Supreme Court Elections and Tort Law Decisions Herbert Kritzer (Minn.) extends this inquiry into the area of tort reform. Drawing on more than "38,000 votes by justices on state courts of last resort compiled by the State Supreme...
In Business Negotiations, Restraint Can Be Key—Even in High Fashion
October 9, 2014
When employees leave an unsatisfying job, the feeling of relief they feel sometimes motivates them to explain their decision to whomever will listen. But that tendency can backfire and necessitate tense business negotiations, as a recent story from the world of high fashion illustrates. In November 2012, designer Nicolas Ghesquière startled the fashion world with his decision to leave his position as the creative director of design house Balenciaga, a job he had held for 15 years. The two sides...
October 9, 2014
When employees leave an unsatisfying job, the feeling of relief they feel sometimes motivates them to explain their decision to whomever will listen. But that tendency can backfire and necessitate tense business negotiations, as a recent story from the world of high fashion illustrates. In November 2012, designer Nicolas Ghesquière startled the fashion world with his decision to leave his position as the creative director of design house Balenciaga, a job he had held for 15 years. The two sides...
Classwide Arbitration Is Gateway Issue for the Courts
October 9, 2014
On July 30, 2014, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit decided that whether an arbitration agreement authorizes arbitration of a class action is a “gateway” issue for the court to decide rather than a procedural question for the arbitrator. In Opalinski v. Robert Half International, Inc., No. 12-4444 (3d Cir. July 30, 2014), the court of appeals became the second federal appeals court to decide that the issue of bilateral vs. classwide arbitration is so important that it should...
October 9, 2014
On July 30, 2014, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit decided that whether an arbitration agreement authorizes arbitration of a class action is a “gateway” issue for the court to decide rather than a procedural question for the arbitrator. In Opalinski v. Robert Half International, Inc., No. 12-4444 (3d Cir. July 30, 2014), the court of appeals became the second federal appeals court to decide that the issue of bilateral vs. classwide arbitration is so important that it should...
Ken Feinberg on High Profile Dispute Resolution
October 9, 2014
Courtesy of the American Bar Association. September 2014 Well-known dispute resolution professional Ken Feinberg speaks on high profile dispute resolution and its relation to mediation.
October 9, 2014
Courtesy of the American Bar Association. September 2014 Well-known dispute resolution professional Ken Feinberg speaks on high profile dispute resolution and its relation to mediation.
“Why Nudge? The Politics of Libertarian Paternalism” by Sunstein
October 8, 2014
The Legal Theory Bookworm recommends Why Nudge?: The Politics of Libertarian Paternalism (The Storrs Lectures Series) by Cass Sunstein. Here is a description: Based on a series of pathbreaking lectures given at Yale University in 2012, this powerful, thought-provoking work by national best-selling author Cass R. Sunstein combines legal theory with behavioral economics to make a fresh argument about the legitimate scope of government, bearing on obesity, smoking, distracted driving, health care,...
October 8, 2014
The Legal Theory Bookworm recommends Why Nudge?: The Politics of Libertarian Paternalism (The Storrs Lectures Series) by Cass Sunstein. Here is a description: Based on a series of pathbreaking lectures given at Yale University in 2012, this powerful, thought-provoking work by national best-selling author Cass R. Sunstein combines legal theory with behavioral economics to make a fresh argument about the legitimate scope of government, bearing on obesity, smoking, distracted driving, health care,...
IBM’s Watson: A Natural Assistant for Patent Attorneys?
October 8, 2014
From a patent attorney’s perspective, we could use Watson’s expertise in quickly and successfully completing many of the tasks we’re required to do, such as evaluating inventions, searching for prior art or discovering infringers. The area that we’re exploring right now at IBM is improving patent quality—an area that our company has long endeavored to help enhance through projects such as Peer to Patent, International Collaborative Examination and Patent Quality Index. In order to improve...
October 8, 2014
From a patent attorney’s perspective, we could use Watson’s expertise in quickly and successfully completing many of the tasks we’re required to do, such as evaluating inventions, searching for prior art or discovering infringers. The area that we’re exploring right now at IBM is improving patent quality—an area that our company has long endeavored to help enhance through projects such as Peer to Patent, International Collaborative Examination and Patent Quality Index. In order to improve...
Suit For Legal Fees Subject To Mandatory Arbitration In D.C.
October 8, 2014
The District of Columbia Court of Appeals has held that a suit initiated by a law firm for unpaid fees must be sent to the Bar's arbitration program on the former client's demand. Judge Fisher noted that BTP, a biotechnology firm, retained [Ludwig & Robinson] as counsel in March 2011 to help resolve a trade secret dispute. The dispute was settled in May 2012, L&R having billed BTP on a monthly basis during the course of its representation. By June 2012 L&R claimed that BTP owed approximately...
October 8, 2014
The District of Columbia Court of Appeals has held that a suit initiated by a law firm for unpaid fees must be sent to the Bar's arbitration program on the former client's demand. Judge Fisher noted that BTP, a biotechnology firm, retained [Ludwig & Robinson] as counsel in March 2011 to help resolve a trade secret dispute. The dispute was settled in May 2012, L&R having billed BTP on a monthly basis during the course of its representation. By June 2012 L&R claimed that BTP owed approximately...
