Key Decisions from Delaware Courts
December 01, 2017
<b><i>Mergers and Acquisitions</i></b><p>A few recent decisions from the Delaware Court of Chancery provide useful information to corporate executives who are involved in the sale or purchase of businesses, or who are involved in joint ventures in which the sales price or the post-closing profit distribution is based on certain milestones being reached.
Written Opinions Of Counsel: Valuable Tools for Avoiding Willful Patent Infringement
December 01, 2017
Written opinions of counsel are gaining renewed interest as a valuable tool to limit liability for willful patent infringement. A patent opinion that is competently written by a registered patent attorney sets forth the factual and legal basis for finding a patent not infringed, invalid, and/or unenforceable. However, to be effective, the timing of the rendered patent opinion may be critical.
When Terms of Use Put 'Reasonably Prudent User' on Notice
December 01, 2017
On Aug. 17, 2017, the Second Circuit issued its decision in <i>Meyer v. Uber Technologies, Inc.</i>. The appeals court vacated and remanded the trial court ruling by holding that the registration process for Uber Technologies, Inc.'s mobile application formed a legal contract, Less than a month later, the Southern District relied on the <i>Meyer</i> decision in granting the defendant's motion to compel arbitration based on the fact that the design and functionality of defendant's amended terms of use placed plaintiffs' on "reasonably conspicuous notice" of the mandatory arbitration and jury trial waiver provisions.
The False Claims Act Seal: Does It Bind and Gag the Defendant?
December 01, 2017
<b><i>Part One of a Two-Part Article</i></b><p>A company that finds itself the target of a federal fraud investigation often faces the fraught question of whether it may, or even must, disclose the existence of that investigation to third parties, such as its investors, shareholders, major creditors, or insurers. The question can be even more complicated if that investigation is being pursued under the False Claims Act and arises as the result of a sealed <i>qui tam</i> complaint.
9th Cir. Appellate Arguments; FL Sup. Ct. Ruling on Pre-'72 Recordings
December 01, 2017
Just a few days after the Florida Supreme Court ruled the state's common law doesn't provide pre-1972 sound recordings with rights to public performance royalties, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit heard oral arguments on whether remasterings inject pre-1972 sound recordings with federal copyright protection.