Features

Highlights of the latest franchising cases from around the country.

Anti-Bootlegging Law/Constitutionality<br>Television Broadcasting/FDD Indecency Policy<br>Synchronization Licenses/Karaoke Machines

Although Belarus does not have its own franchise law code, the Civil Code of Belarus, which was adopted on Dec. 7, 1998 and entered into force on July 1, 1999, contains Article 53 dealing with a franchise, or as it says in the Code 'Complex business licence.' On Aug. 18, 2004, amendments to this regulation were adopted and entered into force on Feb. 27, 2005. Not surprisingly, the terminology used in Article 53 is the same as in the Russian Civil Code.

Features

The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California decided that the brief inclusion ' in a segment of the animated TV-series 'Family Guy' ' of a 'Charwoman'-like character from and a theme similar to the 'Carol Burnett Show' constituted a copyright fair use. <i>Burnett v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp.</i>, CV 07-01723 DDP.

Franchisors and franchisees alike are awaiting a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court that could change the marketing and promotional practices of franchisors and distributors. In <i>PSKS, Inc. d/b/a Kay's Kloset v. Leegin Creative Leather Products, Inc.</i>, the Supreme Court heard challenges to the application of the per se rule to vertical minimum price fixing agreements under antitrust law, and some commentators believe that the Court will overturn this requirement, which was adopted almost a century ago in <i>Dr. Miles Medical Co. v. John D. Park &amp; Sons Co.</i>, 220 U.S. 373 (1911).

Features

It's possible to win the war but lose the final battle. Although former Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Tyler Green prevailed in his lawsuit against a man who used his name for a sports-handicapping Web site, he has now lost his appeal demanding that the man be ordered to reimburse Green's legal fees. And for Green's lawyer, John P. Elliott, the decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit came with a one-two punch. Not only was Elliott denied a fee award, but he also got a stern finger-wagging from an appellate judge who complained that a letter he wrote to the defendant was 'particularly combative' and employed a 'most unwise tactic.' <i>Green v. Fornario</i>, 06-2649.

Private equity investors eager to purchase franchise operations have brought a new dimension to franchising in the past few years and have the potential to keep franchising invigorated in the future. A panel discussion at the International Franchise Association's Legal Symposium in May explored the motivations of sellers and buyers in private equity deals and the role that legal counsel plays in getting deals done.

Unfortunately, the typical employer's focus on total workers' compensation claims costs from one year to the next is incomplete and shortsighted. It fails to recognize or measure what is driving the claim costs. If the average medical cost per claim increased, was it simply a matter of medical inflation or did it have anything to do with something the employer could control? If it went down was it luck or a result of the employer's actions? What is needed are tangible and measurable metrics of factors driving claims costs. This focus has several advantages. First, it inherently takes a long-term view enabling employers to understand the underlying circumstances and conditions that are driving up work-related injury costs. Second, it isolates measures of the value of the employer's actions. This approach is much more than a difference in semantics; it not only will drive decisions in a different direction but it may also entail significant changes in an organization's management of Workers' Compensation.