Alston & Bird

1. Georgia-Pacific Antitrust Suit Over Plywood Survives

Friday, Mar 19, 2010

A federal judge has allowed direct purchasers to proceed with claims that Georgia-Pacific Corp. and other manufacturers engaged in a conspiracy to fix the prices of plywood, but limited the claims to purchases made after November 2004.

2. 5 Issues To Watch In Finance Bill Markup

Friday, Mar 19, 2010

Beginning Monday, the Senate Banking Committee will begin work on the long-delayed, much-anticipated financial regulatory reform bill written by Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn. Five emerging battlegrounds may ultimately decide the fate of Dodd's legacy bill, experts say.

3. Dun & Bradstreet Exits API Data Network Patent Suit

Thursday, Mar 18, 2010

Business research firm the Dun & Bradstreet Corp. and subsidiary Hoover's Inc. have become the latest defendants to settle in API Technologies LLC's suit accusing two dozen companies of infringing a data network patent.

4. Delta Says Worker's $100M ERISA Claim Not Priority

Wednesday, Mar 17, 2010

A former Delta Air Lines Inc. employee's $100 million class claim over alleged mismanagement of the airline's retirement plan arose from a securities purchase and should therefore be subordinated, Delta has argued, firing back at its ex-worker's bankruptcy appeal.

5. Mylan, Takeda Bury Hatchet In Diabetes Drug Feud

Wednesday, Mar 17, 2010

Mylan Inc. has resolved two patent infringement suits brought by Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. over plans to market generic versions of diabetes drugs Actos and Actoplus Met.

6. ConocoPhillips Loses Fight Over Refinery Emissions

Monday, Mar 15, 2010

The Supreme Court of California on Monday upheld a lower court finding that air quality regulators failed to properly scrutinize emissions before approving a new diesel refinery at a ConocoPhillips Co. facility in Los Angeles.

7. Dell Targets Hitachi, Toshiba In TFT-LCD Antitrust Case

Monday, Mar 15, 2010

Dell Inc. has accused Hitachi Ltd., Toshiba Corp. and three other technology companies of conspiring to artificially inflate prices of thin film transistor liquid crystal display panels, the latest addition to multidistrict litigation alleging a massive price-fixing scheme.

8. CORRECTED: DLA Piper Hires Kaye Scholer Energy, Finance Expert

Monday, Mar 15, 2010

DLA Piper has snagged a former partner of Kaye Scholer LLP’s energy practice in an effort to elevate the firm’s corporate and finance teams. (Corrects an article published on March 12.)

9. Law Firms Eye K Street As Lobby Work Booms

Friday, Mar 12, 2010

The Obama administration's ambitious first year in office has created a boom in lobby revenue for law firms, as more corporate clients are seeking out top firms to fight their high-stakes political battles, according to leaders from Washington's fastest-growing lobby practices.

10. Nokia Rips Apple's Nonpatent Claims In Dismissal Bid

Friday, Mar 12, 2010

An epic patent dispute between Apple Inc. and Nokia Corp. has grown even more bitter, with Nokia harshly stating why Apple's antitrust, breach of contract and other nonpatent counterclaims should be tossed.

11. US Saw Blade Makers Move To Litigate Duties

Thursday, Mar 11, 2010

A group of domestic saw-blade manufacturers that wants more stringent trade penalties against Chinese producers and exporters has asked the U.S. Court of International Trade to lift a stay of its appeal of the current dumping duty rates so it can argue that those rates should be much higher.

12. Climate Change Considerations Under NEPA

Monday, Mar 08, 2010

If finalized, a recent draft guidance from the Council on Environmental Quality would help resolve debate over National Environmental Policy Act analyses by recommending — and in some cases requiring — consideration of climate change issues by federal agencies poised to take “major actions” under the statute, say Nicki Carlsen, Kristin Holloway Jones and C. Max Zygmont of Alston & Bird LLP.

13. AndroGel Buyer Seeks 2nd Shot At Pay-For-Delay Suit

Monday, Mar 08, 2010

An indirect purchaser of Solvay Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s testosterone supplement AndroGel has asked for leave to amend a recently dismissed putative class action accusing the drugmaker of keeping generics rivals out of the market by paying them through patent settlements.

14. Nokia Reaches Settlement In GPS Patent Suit

Wednesday, Mar 03, 2010

Engineering and manufacturing company ITT Corp. has announced a settlement with Nokia Corp. in an infringement suit an ITT subsidiary brought against several companies — including LG Electronics Inc., Motorola Inc., Verizon Wireless and Qualcomm Inc. — over a patent related to GPS technology.

15. Toyota Owners Seek Class Status In Suit Over Recalls

Monday, Mar 01, 2010

A group of automobile owners has sought class status in a nationwide suit against Toyota Motor Corp. over damages associated with the company’s spate of recent recalls, saying loss of resale value alone could total as much as $2 billion.

16. AndroGel Reverse Payment Suits Thrown Out

Tuesday, Feb 23, 2010

A federal judge has thrown out suits by the Federal Trade Commission and private plaintiffs challenging patent settlements in which Solvay Pharmaceuticals Inc. paid generic-drug makers not to compete with its testosterone supplement AndroGel, joining other federal courts in upholding drug companies' right to make so-called reverse payment deals.

17. Apple Hits Nokia With Slew Of Counterclaims

Monday, Feb 22, 2010

Apple Inc. has thrown another jab in its epic patent fight with Nokia Corp., launching breach of contract, antitrust, invalidity and other counterclaims that accuse the Finnish cell phone maker of copying and using its iPhone-related technologies.

18. ITC Starts New Probe Into Apple, Nokia Patent Feud

Friday, Feb 19, 2010

The U.S. International Trade Commission has voted to launch an investigation into Apple Inc.'s allegations that Nokia Corp. is importing and selling computers and cell phones that infringe nine of Apple's patents, including those used in its iPhone and iPod Touch products.

19. Acceleron, SuperMicro Settle Blade Server Patent Suit

Wednesday, Feb 17, 2010

Acceleron LLC has reached a settlement with SuperMicro Computer Inc. in a suit accusing a number of technology companies of infringing an Acceleron blade server patent.

20. Intervenor Attys Avert Penalty In Saw Blade Duty Row

Tuesday, Feb 16, 2010

Counsel for foreign saw blade manufacturers intervening in a duty dispute received a tongue lashing from a judge for relying on “phantoms in the record,” but have escaped sanction after arguing in vain for a stay in the case pending appeal.