The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last month that a Wisconsin town did not violate a local union’s First Amendment rights when it required the union to remove a giant inflatable rat staked to a public highway median. The appellate court held the cities’ zoning ordinance, which banned all private signs on public rights-of-way, allowed the city to deflate the rat without running afoul of the First Amendment.
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Scabby the Rat Finally Gets Popped Posted on: March 22, 2019 In: Labor & Employment
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The Ongoing Evolution Of Patent Venue Posted on: March 21, 2019 In: Intellectual Property & TechnologyA refresher and update on the ongoing evolution of what constitutes proper venue in a patent case. For over 20 years, venue in a patent case was proper in essentially any court in the United States. That all changed in May 2017 when the Supreme Court held in TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Food Grp. Brands, LLC that 28 U.S.C. §1400(b) is the sole and exclusive venue provision for patent infringement actions, and cannot be supplemented by the general venue statute at 28 U.S.C. §1391.
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In Like a Lion: An Employer’s Guide to Handling Inclement Weather Posted on: March 20, 2019 In: Labor & EmploymentEven though it’s March, we’re not out of the woods yet in terms of having to deal with inclement weather. As the Midwest experiences historic flooding, it is reminder that bad weather is always an issue, no matter where you live or what time of year, and now is as a good a time as any for employers to review their handbooks and determine whether they have effective (and compliant) inclement weather policies in place. Here are six things to consider when drafting or updating your inclement weather policy.
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Double Whammy! Handling Overlapping Employment & Criminal Investigations Posted on: March 18, 2019 In: Labor & EmploymentIt is a situation all employers hope to avoid—alleged criminal misconduct in the workplace. However, if this happens, employers must be prepared to juggle both the civil and criminal actions. Here are five tips for dealing with concurrent investigations.
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After-Acquired Evidence: The Importance of Documenting Employee Misconduct Posted on: March 15, 2019 In: Labor & EmploymentOften, employers do not learn the extent of a former employee’s misconduct until after the employer ends the employment relationship or the employee resigns. This information may be useful if the former employee pursues litigation against the employer because it can be used as the basis for asserting the after-acquired evidence defense.
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‘Full Moon’ Costs Denied by Supreme Court in Oracle Copyright Case Posted on: March 14, 2019 In: Intellectual Property & TechnologyOn March 4, 2019, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision overturning the Ninth Circuit Court's award of $12.8 million in costs in the copyright infringement matter Rimini Street, Inc. et al v. Oracle USA, Inc. et al. Newly confirmed Justice Kavanaugh penned the opinion for the Court, holding that the Ninth Circuit's expanded view of "full costs" set forth in 28 U.S.C. §§ 1920 and 1821 was improper, going beyond the "costs" typically available to copyright litigants
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FLSA Double Time Posted on: March 12, 2019 In: Labor & EmploymentLast week, the Wage and Hour Division of the US Department Of Labor issued a 219-page Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) and accompanying FAQs regarding the regulations defining who is a “white collar” overtime exempt employee.
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Settling Sexual Harassment Cases Post-‘Me Too’: Three New California Laws You Need to Know Posted on: March 11, 2019 In: Labor & EmploymentThe “Time’s Up” and “Me Too” movements have sparked societal change in many ways, including in our legal system. In response, the California Legislature quickly enacted several new laws aiming to deter the quieting of sexual harassment claims. Here are the three news laws employers should consider when resolving sexual harassment claims.
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USPTO Supports “Counterintuitive” Interpretation of AIA in Amicus Brief to Fed Circuit Court of Appeals Posted on: March 07, 2019 In: Intellectual Property & Technology
Oral Arguments Scheduled for Next Week - In a curious legal scenario, the USPTO recently filed an amicus brief at the request of the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, supporting a “counterintuitive” reading of the American Invents Act (AIA). This stems from an interesting argument made by Johnson & Johnson subsidiary company Janssen Oncology, Inc. regarding estoppel under the AIA.
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Collect Call-in? Posted on: March 07, 2019 In: Labor & EmploymentMany employers ask that their employees be “on-call.” This usually means the employee is required to make a quick call to check-in to see if they have to come in to work. Most employers assume they don’t have to pay wages for that call, but in California, that widely held belief may be changing.
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Writ-sy Business: The First Steps to Take Before Challenging a Trial Court Order & Filing That Writ Posted on: March 05, 2019 In: Labor & EmploymentYou’ve obtained an unfavorable trial court order, but you have no right to appeal. If you are in California, you are likely not without some relief. While each jurisdiction has its own unique process and law, in California, you can use a procedural device called a writ.In this post, we address a few key considerations in pursuing a writ, with a focus on the usual process for writs in the Appellate Division of the California Superior Court.
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Supreme Court Concludes That Copyright Registration Is A Prerequisite To Filing Copyright Lawsuit Posted on: March 04, 2019 In: Intellectual Property & TechnologyIn a decision that did not surprise many, the United State Supreme Court held unanimously that indeed, the Copyright Act means what is says, namely, “no civil action for infringement of the copyright in any United State work shall be instituted until… registration of the copyright claim has been made in accordance with this title.”
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