Information Sharing for the Information Age
April 01, 2016
As 2015 drew to a close, Congress agreed on a federal budget. That simple act, coming on the heels of a series of contentious continuing resolutions, was big news. But tucked away on page 694 of that 887-page bill was perhaps a more significant achievement. There Congress inserted, passed, and the President signed, the Cybersecurity Act of 2015.
<b><i>Online Extra:</b></i> Home Depot to Pay $13 Million to Settle Consumers' Data Breach Case
March 31, 2016
The Home Depot will pay $13 million to resolve claims by customers whose personal information was exposed to hackers during a massive data security breach in 2014. The settlement agreement, filed in March in U.S. District Court in Atlanta, would certify a class of Home Depot customers to include all U.S. residents whose personal information was compromised after they used payment cards at self-checkout lanes at U.S. Home Depot stores between April 10, 2014, and Sept.'
Mobile Medical Apps and Product Liability
February 29, 2016
This article examines the FDA's current approach to mobile medical applications (MMAs) and explores the potential implications for product liability litigation if they malfunction.
Park Doctrine Prosecutions of Corporate Officers Continues: Stay Alert!
February 29, 2016
Individual corporate officers of pharmaceutical, medical device, food and related companies can be prosecuted for violations of the United States Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) under the Park Doctrine. Such prosecutions "tip off" plaintiffs' attorneys to possible areas of product liability litigation to bring against a company.
Data Breach Claims
February 29, 2016
"There are only two types of companies: those that have been hacked and those that will be." ' Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Robert Mueller
Drone Financing Opportunities Emerge As FAA Creates New Drone Regulations
February 29, 2016
Is financing or leasing drones a flight of fancy or a real business opportunity for lenders and lessors? In this article, we show that, properly structured, opportunities for financing and leasing commercial drones exist today, but will grow rapidly in the foreseeable future for lenders and lessors ("financiers") as the drone industry produces ever more sophisticated equipment and services.
Extracting the 'Consent to Settle': A Game Plan for Insurers and Defense Counsel
February 29, 2016
Consent-to-settle provisions in medical malpractice insurance policies present challenging issues to insurers, defense attorneys and policyholders in the context of defending professional liability claims. Most liability insurance policies cede the ultimate discretion over settlement decisions to the insurer. Medical malpractice policies are outliers from the norm in the insurance industry.
Tech Advances Have Led to More Traces of Deadly Microbes
February 29, 2016
A number of recent discoveries are challenging the idea that infectious diseases are sporadic and relatively rare causes of illness and death, and those discoveries are revolutionizing our understanding of the microbial world around us and presage significant changes in the legal landscape.
Enterprise Legal Management
February 29, 2016
The function of legal departments has shifted from primarily managing legal matters and costs to acting as revenue generators that provide information and analytics valuable to the entire company. This article offers a primer about enterprise legal management (ELM).