Verizon Gets $847M Patent Verdict Set Aside, Wins New Trial

By Lauren Berg

Verizon Wireless and Ericsson will get another shot at convincing a Texas federal jury that they did not infringe intellectual property owned by a Dallas patent business, U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap ruled Monday, setting aside a previous jury's $847 million verdict against the telecom giants.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

USPTO Locks In Director Review Rule, 3 Years After Arthrex

By Dani Kass

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director Kathi Vidal issued a final rule Monday on the agency's process for having the director review certain Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions, solidifying a mandate laid out by the U.S. Supreme Court three years ago. 

Final Rule attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

USPTO Hears Praise, Worry About Experimental Use Defense

By Ryan Davis

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's request for comment on whether legal precedent that experimental uses of patented inventions do not constitute infringement should be enshrined in a statute has drawn a variety of reactions, with both proponents and critics weighing in.

13 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

BakerHostetler Says Ethics Suit Must Stay In Ga. Fed. Court

By Emily Johnson

BakerHostetler has asked a Georgia federal court not to remand a suit alleging the firm botched a patent application for a smart wardrobe system to state court, arguing that its former client's claims that the firm violated professional rules under U.S. patent law belong in federal court.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Fed. Circ. Keeps Patent Case Against Sony In EDTX

By Andrew Karpan

The Federal Circuit on Monday rejected Sony's bid to move a patent suit against it over a newer line of wireless PlayStation 5 controllers out of a Texas federal court, finding that it failed to show that the Northern District of California was a more convenient forum.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

9th Circ. Asked To Interpret DMCA In GitHub Code Suit

By Ivan Moreno

A California federal court has asked the Ninth Circuit to determine if the Digital Millennium Copyright Act requires an infringing copy be identical to the original to have an actionable claim for removing copyright management information, a key question in a case where developers sued Microsoft and GitHub for allegedly ripping off code to develop AI tools.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Siemens Will Pay $104M For Stealing GE, Mitsubishi Secrets

By Hailey Konnath

Siemens Energy on Monday pled guilty to wire fraud and agreed to pay $104 million to put to rest federal prosecutors' case accusing the company of misappropriating the confidential information of General Electric and Mitsubishi, a plea deal that comes after multiple former Siemens executives pled guilty in related cases.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Medical Device Co. Wins $25M Verdict In Poaching Trial

By Brian Dowling

Medical device company Cynosure has won a $25 million jury award following a weekslong trial in Massachusetts federal court on its claims that a rival business raided its sales and marketing talent and caused the employees to breach their noncompete and nonsolicitation agreements.

Verdict attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Calif. Court Finds Snapchat Can Seek 'Spectacles' TM

By Andrew Karpan

Following a three-day bench trial earlier this year, a California federal judge has told the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to reverse its refusal to grant Snapchat parent company Snap Inc. trademark protection covering its "Spectacles" brand of digital glasses.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Netflix Must Face Trimmed 'Baby Reindeer' Defamation Fight

By Dorothy Atkins

A California federal judge trimmed a Scottish lawyer's multimillion-dollar lawsuit alleging Netflix's popular stalker miniseries "Baby Reindeer" defamed her, tossing negligence and publicity claims but allowing the attorney's defamation and emotional distress allegations to proceed.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Wheeling & Appealing: The Latest Must-Know Appellate Action

By Jeff Overley

The year's spookiest month is looking scary-good for appellate aficionados, as famed oral advocates joust in October over net neutrality and Uber's extraordinary bid to unravel multidistrict litigation — just two of the high-profile arguments previewed in this edition of Wheeling & Appealing. October also begins with former President Jimmy Carter turning 100, and we'll test your knowledge of his profound impact on the judiciary.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Generic-Drug Co. Says To Think Again About 'Double Patenting'

By Andrew Karpan

An Indian generic-drug maker wants the whole Federal Circuit to take a closer look at the issue of "double patenting," telling it that a recent panel ruling mistakenly breathed new life into pharmaceutical patents covering an anti-diarrhea drug.

Petition attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Takeda End Payors, Direct Buyers Win Antitrust Class Cert.

By Lauren Berg

A New York federal judge Monday adopted a magistrate judge's recommendation to certify two classes of direct purchasers and end payors in consolidated antitrust actions accusing Takeda Pharmaceuticals Co. of unlawfully inflating the price of its diabetes treatment Actos by delaying entry of generic alternatives.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Biz Owner Gets 18 Months For Tax Fraud On $2.8M In Income

By Asha Glover

The owner of a metal fabrication company who admitted to neglecting to report nearly $3 million in business income to the Internal Revenue Service was sentenced to 18 months in prison, according to Connecticut federal prosecutors.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

AI Co.'s Antitrust Claims Against Thomson Reuters Tossed

By Matthew Perlman

A Delaware federal court dismissed antitrust counterclaims being brought by tech startup ROSS Intelligence in a case from Thomson Reuters alleging ROSS ripped off the Westlaw research platform for its artificial intelligence product.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Atari Can Pursue Copyright Claim Against State Farm Over Ad

By Ivan Moreno

Atari Interactive Inc. can pursue a copyright infringement claim against State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. because the insurer featured part of the 1980s arcade game Crystal Castles in a commercial, but a Texas federal judge tossed all the other claims in the suit from the pioneering game company.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

J&J Exec Accused Of File Heist Wants Pause Amid DOJ Case

By George Woolston

A former competitive strategy director for Johnson & Johnson accused of stealing confidential files as he left the company to work for Pfizer asked a New Jersey federal court to pause the suit after learning he is under criminal investigation.

Brief attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Allergan Ruling Reinforces Value Of Patent Term Adjustments

The Federal Circuit’s recent ruling in Allergan v. MSN, which held that patent term adjustment awards for first-filed, first-issued patents cannot be stripped away by later-issuing child patents that expire earlier, means practitioners must consider the potential impact of any action that might reduce the adjustment amount, say attorneys at Cooley.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Opinion

AI May Limit Key Learning Opportunities For Young Attorneys

The thing that’s so powerful about artificial intelligence is also what’s most scary about it — its ability to detect patterns may curtail young attorneys’ chance to practice the lower-level work of managing cases, preventing them from ever honing the pattern recognition skills that undergird creative lawyering, says Sarah Murray at Trialcraft.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

A Deep Dive Into Law Firm Pay

By Kevin Penton

The legal industry may be known for its relatively high pay, but don't tell that to lawyers: Barely half of all attorneys feel satisfied or very satisfied with what they make, according to a new Law360 Pulse report.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

The 2024 Compensation Report: Law Firms

Law360 Pulse asked lawyers about their compensation, pay structure transparency, billable hours and more. Find out how much they earn, how satisfied they are and where some of the problem areas lie with their pay.

1 document attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Spencer Fane Combines With Las Vegas Boutique Firm

By Adrian Cruz

Spencer Fane LLP announced Tuesday that it has merged with Las Vegas boutique Holley Driggs Law Firm, adding a further 14 attorneys to its operations in Nevada's most populous city.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ga. High Court Declares Judicial Emergency After Helene

By Madeline Lyskawa

The Supreme Court of Georgia declared a statewide judicial emergency Monday in the wake of Hurricane Helene, which slammed into the Southeastern U.S. last week, bringing heavy rain and high winds that shut down several state courts the following day.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Wigdor Sued For Dragging Cuomo Aide Into Harassment Case

By Ryan Boysen

Former NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo's spokesperson hit Wigdor LLP with a malicious prosecution suit Tuesday, claiming the well-known employment law firm filed a bogus retaliation claim against him for likening a sexual harassment suit against Cuomo to extortion.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

When The Client Is The Mayor, The Usual Rules Don't Apply

By Julie Manganis

Representing a public official, whether the mayor of New York City, a state legislator or a city council member, poses unique challenges for even the most experienced lawyers, who often find themselves torn between fighting battles in the press and protecting their client in court.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Adams Says Feds Sought To 'Tarnish' Him With Leaks

By Frank G. Runyeon

New York City Mayor Eric Adams asked a Manhattan federal judge Tuesday to sanction Southern District prosecutors for allegedly leaking the details of a criminal investigation for nearly a year leading up to his corruption indictment, saying negative press has hurt his standing with the public and undermined his right to a fair trial.

Memorandum attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

NYC Mayor Elevates Attorneys Amid Corruption Charges

By Anna Sanders

New York City Mayor Eric Adams nominated a longtime public servant as his next corporation counsel and promoted a former WilmerHale attorney to City Hall chief counsel as the embattled Democrat faces federal corruption charges.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

NYC Bar Urges Congress To Place Ethics Rules On High Court

By Andrea Keckley

The New York City Bar Association called on Congress to put U.S. Supreme Court justices under enforceable ethics rules in a report released Tuesday, throwing its support behind reforms, such as the creation of a Judicial Investigation Panel and an Office of the Inspector General.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

McElroy Deutsch Must Face 'Malicious' Claim From Fired Exec

By Jake Maher

A former business development director from McElroy Deutsch Mulvaney & Carpenter LLP has been given the go-ahead from a New Jersey state judge to bring a malicious-prosecution claim against the firm in litigation over her and her husband's alleged multimillion-dollar embezzlement from the firm.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

The Top In-House Hires Of September

By Michele Gorman

Legal department hires over the last month included high-profile appointments at Wynn Resorts, Amtrak and eBay. Here, Law360 Pulse looks at some of the top in-house announcements from September.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Apple, Amazon Hint Hagens Berman Lacked Client's OK

By Greg Lamm

Amazon and Apple blasted Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP for seeking to withdraw as counsel for the no-show original lead plaintiff in an antitrust suit targeting iPhone and iPad sales, hinting that the firm continued to pursue the case even after knowing its client wished to drop out.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »