Wining and Dining Foreign Officials: What's OK and What's a Crime
March 27, 2008
In December 2007, Lucent Technologies Inc. secured a non-prosecution agreement from the Department of Justice and settled an enforcement action with the SEC for conduct related to travel and entertainment expenses incurred on behalf of Chinese government officials and for the manner in which these expenses were booked. The Lucent settlement adds to a number of existing guideposts regarding permissible interactions with foreign officials under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. This article examines the Lucent settlement, prior FCPA enforcement activity related to travel and lodging, and offers some practical advice for compliance counsel.
Cameo Clips
March 27, 2008
FILM PRODUCTION/DEFAMATION<br>FILM PRODUCTION/TRADEMARKS, DEFAMATION<br>KARAOKE LICENSES/LANHAM ACT, COPYRIGHT CLAIMS
Bit Parts
March 27, 2008
Celebrity Indicia/Licensee's Web Site<br>Film Exhibition/Use Tax<br>Film Production/Copyright, Unfair-Competition Claims<br>Right of Publicity/Counting Statutory Claims
GA Court to Rule on Suit over TV Show Interactive Element
March 27, 2008
Text messages, cell phones, TV game shows, Howie Mandel ' none of these could have been contemplated by Georgia's colonial lawmakers when they first passed a law allowing gamblers to recover their losses through lawsuits. The current version of the law is at the center of a case against NBC Universal and the producer of Mandel's hit show, 'Deal or No Deal,' now being considered by the Georgia Supreme Court.
Download Ruling May Raise Burden for Record Labels
March 27, 2008
Those who download music to their computers now have two unlikely heroes. One is Janet Bond Arterton, a federal judge who sits in New Haven, CT. The other is Christopher David Brennan, a young Waterford, CT, resident who, among other artists, has reportedly downloaded songs by Billy Joel and Hootie and the Blowfish.
Practice Notes
March 27, 2008
Sonnenschein Team Leaves to Found MSK NY Office<br>TV-Company Deal Highlights U.S. Risk Allocation
Fed Court Believes It Can't Consider Copyright Issue
March 27, 2008
The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California ordered defendant Artisan Pictures to show cause why a suit against it for payment of film-acquisition rights shouldn't be remanded to state court. The federal court noted it 'likely lacks' subject matter jurisdiction over the declaratory suit, even though the case involves whether copyright claims over licenses for film music were time barred.
Exploring the Substantial-Similarity Test in Suits Alleging Breach of Implied Contract
March 27, 2008
Copyright-infringement cases alleging that a defendant improperly used a plaintiff's work for a movie or TV show often hinge on whether there's substantial similarity between the litigating parties' works. But substantial similarity plays a role in breach-of-implied-contract cases alleging defendants based their film or show on a plaintiff's work. A recent ruling by the California Court of Appeal serves as an informative review of California case law in this legal area and its current application.
When 'Web Presence' Creates Jurisdiction
February 28, 2008
The Web may not be truly worldwide, but it is getting fairly close, and while this has created enormous opportunities, it is not without its challenges. Among the thorniest of these have been issues of jurisdiction, which have been a staple of Web jurisprudence since the earliest days of e-commerce (and even before that). This has only gotten more complex as Web business models have diversified: A modern Web site for a company based in Chicago might be designed in New York, coded in California, supported in India, connected via a Virginia Internet service provider and hosted on servers in the Bahamas (offshore hosting being more and more common for both cost and privacy reasons). More importantly, the company might reasonably expect that site to be viewed by users from Brooklyn to Beijing, and perhaps to be subject to the laws of every jurisdiction in the world.
Bit Parts
February 28, 2008
Copyright Infringement/Rule 12(b)(6) Motion<br>Record Labels and Their Lawyers/Malicious Prosecution<br>Songwriter Royalties/State Levy Statute<br>Video Games/ Celebrity Trademarks<br>UPCOMING EVENT: SXSW Music Conference 2008 CLE Program
