Featured Federal Law Update

Copyright Law  |  Expert Legal Commentary

Dream Games: Illegal Use of Copyrighted Work Does Not Preclude Damages for Infringement

By Olivier A. Taillieu and Jeffrey J. Zuber of Zuber & Taillieu LLP

In a case of first impression, the 9th Circuit held that illegal use or operation of a copyrighted work by the copyright owner does not preclude an award of statutory or actual damages for infringement. In Dream Games of Arizona, Inc. v. PC Onsite, 561 F.3d 983 (9th Cir. 2009),… More...

Expert Legal Commentaries

Trademark Law

In re Spirits Int’l: A Mark Is Geographically Deceptively Misdescriptive Only if Materially Deceptive to a Substantial Portion of the Intended Audience

June 26, 2009

Clarifying the application of the doctrine of foreign equivalents, the Federal Circuit held that a mark is geographically deceptively misdescriptive if a substantial portion of the relevant consumer market is… More...

Employment Law

Webb v. City of Philadelphia: No Religious Discrimination If Accommodation Causes an Undue Burden

June 22, 2009

The Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has upheld the Philadelphia Police Department’s dress code policy that forbids police officers from wearing any religious garb. When the city prohibited a… More...

Patent Law

In re Kubin: Extending “Obvious to Try” to cDNA Sequence Patents

June 17, 2009

The Federal Circuit court applied the “obvious to try” test from KSR International v. Teleflex Inc. to biotechnology patent applications, and essentially eviscerated the obviousness standard once applied to biotech… More...

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Copyright Law

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New Statutes, Regulations, and Rules

Tax Law

Hike in District Sales and Use Tax Rates in California to Take Effect on July 1, 2009

June 29, 2009

The California State Board of Equalization (“BOE”) has issued a release stating that a number of voter-approved sales and use tax increases – designed to provide… More...

Securities Law

House Passes, Pres. Obama Signs into Law Anti-Financial Fraud Act

June 22, 2009

On May 18th, 2009, the House of Representatives passed the final Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 (S. 386) by a vote of 338-52, which… More...

Securities Law

SEC Amends Rules Granting Additional Authority to the OGC in the Conduct of Investigations

June 22, 2009

The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has amended its rules to delegate to the General Counsel its authority to designate officers in authorized investigations conducted by… More...

Other Federal Law Updates

Tax Law
New Proposed Legislation

Hawaii State Tax Bill on Internet-Based Merchants Passes Senate, Is Transmitted to the Governor for Approval

June 29, 2009

Hawaii is the latest state to try securing tax revenues from online sales. More...

Employment Law
New Proposed Legislation

ALERT Act Provides Protections to Workers in Case of Mass Lay-Offs

June 29, 2009

U.S. Representative Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) has announced new legislation to strengthen protections for laid-off workers. More...

Employment Law
New Proposed Legislation

House Labor Committee Approves Bill to Expose Hidden 401(k) Fees

June 26, 2009

The House Committee on Education and Labor has approved by a vote of 29 to 17 the 401(k) Fair Disclosure and Pension Security Act (H.R. 2989),… More...

Patent Law
New Proposed Legislation

Sen. Nelson’s Bill Benefits Generic-Drug Makers By Expanding ANDA First-Filer 180-Day Exclusivity

June 25, 2009

Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fl., has filed a proposed legislation to amend Hatch-Waxman Act's definition of “first applicant” for abbreviated new drug application (“ANDA”) filers to give… More...

Patent Law
New Proposed Legislation

Rep. Rush Re-Files Bill Prohibiting Reverse Payments in Patent Suits

June 25, 2009

Rep. Bobby L. Rush, D-Il., has re-introduced on the congressional floor a bill intended to eliminate perceived anticompetitive settlements of patent infringement litigation between generic and… More...

Tax Law
New Proposed Legislation

California State Assembly to Tax Sales of Out-of-State Internet Companies, But Amazon.com Threatens to Leave California

June 24, 2009

California Assembly Bill 178 (“AB 178”) seeks to provide a level playing field to ensure that California businesses, both brick and mortar and e-commerce, do not… More...

Feed From Law Shucks™

A self-deprecating look at life in and after BigLaw

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July 2, 2009

Dear Diary: After being laid off, I’ve been spending a lot of time doing things… More…

Gossip Columnist, Pirates, Superheroes and Scientologists

July 2, 2009

We couldn’t pass up reporting on a suit involving that mess of characters, so forgive… More…

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