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March 14, 2024
Gamers Seek To Block Microsoft From 'Dismantling' Activision
Gamers who are still challenging Microsoft's now-completed union with gaming titan Activision Blizzard say a California federal court must hand down an order stopping further integration of the two businesses after Microsoft laid off 1,900 people from the gaming company.
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March 14, 2024
Ex-LA Official Lied To Feds Immediately In Interview, Jury Told
An FBI agent told a California federal jury on Thursday in former Los Angeles Deputy Mayor Raymond Chan's federal bribery trial that Chan lied to him during a 2018 interview immediately after he was warned that lying to the bureau is a crime.
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March 14, 2024
IP Forecast: Internet Archive Fights Vinyl Copyright Case
A California federal judge will hear arguments next week over whether the Internet Archive can toss accusations from record labels that describe its project for a free, digitized library of 78 rpm records as a "wholesale theft of generations of music." Here's a look at that case, plus all the other major intellectual property matters on deck in the coming week.
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March 14, 2024
UTA's Clash With MediaLink Founder Lands In Calif. Court
United Talent Agency's bitter dispute with the founder of management consulting firm MediaLink spilled into Los Angeles County Superior Court this week, with UTA lobbing fraud and other claims at the executive shortly after he brought his own fraud claims against the agency in arbitration.
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March 14, 2024
Fired SoCal Edison Workers Drop Blacklist Suit Without Deal
A group of former Southern California Edison utilities line designers summarily dropped their California federal court lawsuit against the utility, dismissing claims that their new company was hurt by policies declaring certain terminated employees persona non grata on distribution line extension projects in company territory.
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March 14, 2024
Whitestone Can't Rep Both Plaintiff, Funder In Netflix IP Case
Whitestone Law cannot represent both a Finnish inventor in his patent infringement case against Netflix and a nonparty that paid some of the inventor's legal bills, a California federal judge ruled Thursday, saying the two are now at odds following accusations by Netflix against both.
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March 14, 2024
Judge Applauds Attys' 'Very Awesome' Use Of Google AI Bot
A California federal judge told counsel Thursday it's "very awesome" that their recently amended putative class action complaint alleging privacy violations against Google used Google's own AI tool to argue that Google Analytics illegally scoops personal data from healthcare providers' websites, but he doubted the viability of other pleadings.
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March 14, 2024
Artist Can't Exhibit 'MetaBirkins' NFT After TM Trial Loss
The Los Angeles-based designer behind the "MetaBirkins" non-fungible token is barred from displaying his artwork at a Swedish museum after a federal judge ruled there is a high probability he will use the platform to promote products that a jury previously said infringed trademarks held by luxury French fashion house Hermes International.
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March 14, 2024
Potential Nine-Figure Deal Ends NXP, Impinj Chip Patent Row
Rival chipmakers Impinj and NXP have agreed to settle multiple patent infringement suits between them following trial victories for Impinj, in a deal where Impinj said NXP will pay it more than $195 million if the license runs for its entire term.
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March 14, 2024
Game Developer Seeks Class Cert. In Valve Antitrust Case
Developer Wolfire Games is asking a Seattle federal judge for class certification in its consolidated antitrust suit against online game seller Valve, saying discovery has brought abundant evidence that the platform uses its most-favored-nation clause to stifle competition and maintain monopoly power.
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March 14, 2024
Calif. County's Indigent Defense System Is Illegal, Atty Says
A criminal defense program for indigent people run by the bar association in San Mateo County, California, violates a state law prohibiting trade associations from engaging in legal practice and provides constitutionally deficient representation, a member of the association says in a suit in state court.
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March 14, 2024
9th Circ. Is Asked To Revive LegalForce's TM Dispute
Intellectual property firm LegalForce RAPC Worldwide PC has taken its trademark battle with a Japanese company over the brand "LegalForce" to the Ninth Circuit, arguing in its appeal that a federal statute dictates that infringement can occur through equity sales to investors.
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March 14, 2024
Most States Fall Short In Disclosing Justices' Finance Reports
The vast majority of state supreme courts make it exceedingly difficult for the public to get information about justices' financial entanglements, and the information they do give out is often scant at best, according to a report released Thursday.
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March 14, 2024
Sidley Product Liability Ace Jumps To Shook Hardy In LA
Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP has brought on a longtime Sidley Austin LLP partner and practice co-chair with expertise in large, high-stakes class action litigation and product liability around pharmaceuticals, medical devices and more to its product liability practice group in Los Angeles.
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March 14, 2024
Whirlpool Can't Toss Defect Suit Over Ice Buildup In Fridges
A California federal judge has declined to throw out a putative class action claiming Whirlpool hid a defect in its refrigerators that led to cooling failures due to frost buildup, finding the suit sufficiently alleged Whirlpool knew of the problem since it issued technical service pointers noting customers could possibly experience buildup.
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March 14, 2024
Dinsmore Adds Ex-Lewis Brisbois Employment Pro In LA
Dinsmore & Shohl LLP has expanded its West Coast team, bringing in a former Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP labor and employment expert as a partner in its Los Angeles office while also adding three associates, the firm announced Wednesday.
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March 14, 2024
Podcast Network Hits Ch. 11 With Millions In Creator Claims
Podcast network Kast Media has filed for Chapter 11 protection in California bankruptcy court with nearly $6.4 million in debt and more than $3 million in claims from its podcasters.
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March 13, 2024
Velodyne Investors Seek OK On $27.5M Deal Over CEO Ouster
Velodyne Lidar stockholders asked a California federal judge Wednesday to preliminarily approve a $27.5 million deal to resolve claims that the company failed to disclose adverse facts regarding the ouster of its founder and that it omitted from securities filings that it'd been investigating director misconduct that led stock prices to fall.
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March 13, 2024
Ex-Law Firm Office Manager Gets 3 Years For Embezzlement
A 42-year-old California man who pled guilty to bank fraud after embezzling close to $1.2 million from the San Francisco-based law firm where he worked as an office manager for more than 20 years was sentenced to three years in prison, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday.
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March 13, 2024
Jury Awards Photog $3.1M In Licensing Fight Against Otter
A Colorado federal jury has said a California photographer is entitled to about $3.1 million in a copyright suit after finding that cellphone case maker Otter Products LLC wrongly copied various images.
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March 13, 2024
Feds Want 6.5 Years For Ex-Utility Commission Boss' Bribery
The onetime head of San Francisco's Public Utilities Commission should spend six-and-a-half years in prison after his conviction on charges he accepted bribes from local businesses, federal prosecutors have argued.
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March 13, 2024
Google, Apple Beat Video Data Retention Fight At 9th Circ.
The Ninth Circuit refused Wednesday to revive allegations that Google and Apple violated state privacy laws in New York and Minnesota by retaining data about consumers' streaming video rentals, finding that the state statutes don't create a private right of action for the purported data-retention violations.
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March 13, 2024
9th Circ. Unsure If Abortion Pill Suit Harms Red States
Two Ninth Circuit judges on Wednesday challenged Idaho and other Republican-led states' bid to intervene in Washington's lawsuit seeking to expand access to the abortion pill mifepristone, asking if the states could back up their claims of economic harm.
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March 13, 2024
Pharma Co. CEO Partly Beats Investor Suit Over Kidney Drug
A California federal judge has tossed for good some claims against Tricida Inc. CEO Gerrit Klaerner in a suit alleging he and the company misled inventors about the ability of Tricida's new kidney disease drug to gain regulatory approval, saying that many of Klaerner's challenged statements are opinions and that he didn't act with knowledge of wrongdoing.
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March 13, 2024
Peloton Beats Wiretapping Suit Over Chat Feature, For Now
Peloton defeated, for now, a proposed privacy class action alleging it uses third-party software to eavesdrop on its website users' communications via its chat function after a California federal judge found the plaintiff doesn't assert that any chat contents were intercepted or that personal, sensitive information was shared.
Expert Analysis
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How Firms Can Ensure Associate Gender Parity Lasts
Among associates, women now outnumber men for the first time, but progress toward gender equality at the top of the legal profession remains glacially slow, and firms must implement time-tested solutions to ensure associates’ gender parity lasts throughout their careers, say Kelly Culhane and Nicole Joseph at Culhane Meadows.
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Regulatory Trends Offer 4 Lessons For Debt Relief Providers
A string of enforcement actions, including a New York lawsuit filed last month by seven states and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, underscore the regulatory scrutiny that debt relief and credit repair companies face and offer important lessons on telemarketing and deceptive practices compliance, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.
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Bracing Cos. For Calif. Privacy Agency's Restored Authority
A recent California state appeals court decision greenlights the California Privacy Protection Agency's enforcement of certain consumer privacy regulations, which may speed up compliance requirements, so businesses considering use of artificial intelligence, for instance, may want to reassess their handling of privacy notices and opt-out requests, say Kevin Angle and Matthew Cin at Ropes & Gray.
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7 Common Myths About Lateral Partner Moves
As lateral recruiting remains a key factor for law firm growth, partners considering a lateral move should be aware of a few commonly held myths — some of which contain a kernel of truth, and some of which are flat out wrong, says Dave Maurer at Major Lindsey.
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2 Emerging Defenses For Website Tracking Class Actions
Putative class actions premised on state wiretapping statutes that bar website activity tracking continue to be on the rise, but they are increasingly being dismissed on two procedural grounds, says Sheri Pan at ZwillGen.
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No AI FRAUD Act Is A Significant Step For Right Of Publicity
The No Artificial Intelligence Fake Replicas and Unauthorized Duplications Act's proposed federal right of publicity protection, including post-mortem rights, represents a significant step toward harmonizing the landscape of right of publicity law, Rachel Hofstatter and Aaron Rosenthal at Honigman.
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Series
Cheering In The NFL Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Balancing my time between a BigLaw career and my role as an NFL cheerleader has taught me that pursuing your passions outside of work is not a distraction, but rather an opportunity to harness important skills that can positively affect how you approach work and view success in your career, says Rachel Schuster at Sheppard Mullin.
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After TikTok, Tiptoeing Toward Patent Transfer Alignment
Following the Fifth Circuit's TikTok decision, which aimed to standardize transfer analysis in patent cases, the Federal Circuit and Texas federal courts facing transfer requests have taken small steps to consider the practical realities of patent litigation, reinforcing the intensely factual focus of the analysis, says Charles Fowler at McKool Smith.
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Bank Secrecy Act Lessons For Casinos After DOJ Settlements
The U.S. Department of Justice's recent settlements with the MGM Grand and Cosmopolitan casinos, resolving an investigation into alleged violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, signal a shift in the DOJ's enforcement focus and provide insight into potential pitfalls in anti-money laundering compliance programs, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.
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Setting The Stage For High Court BofA Escrow Interest Case
Dori Bailey and Curtis Johnson at Bond Schoeneck examine relevant legislation and case law dating back 200 years ahead of oral arguments at the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday in Cantero v. Bank of America, the outcome of which will determine whether state laws governing mortgage escrow accounts can be enforced against national banks.
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Using Arbitration And Class Waivers As Privacy Suit Tools
Amid a surge in data breach class actions over the last few years, several federal court decisions indicate that arbitration clauses and class action waiver provisions can be possible alternatives to public court battles and potentially reduce the costs of privacy litigation, say Mark Olthoff and Courtney Klaus at Polsinelli.
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Future Not Looking Bright For Calif. Employee Nonsolicits
California's new legislation imposing potentially harsh consequences on employers for attempting to enforce noncompetes raises questions about the fate of employee nonsolicitation agreements — and both federal and state court decisions suggest the days of the latter may be numbered, say Anthony Oncidi and Philippe Lebel at Proskauer.
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6 Pointers For Attys To Build Trust, Credibility On Social Media
In an era of information overload, attorneys can use social media strategically — from making infographics to leveraging targeted advertising — to cut through the noise and establish a reputation among current and potential clients, says Marly Broudie at SocialEyes Communications.
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5 Lessons For SaaS Companies After Blackbaud Data Breach
Looking at the enforcement actions that software-as-a-service provider Blackbaud resolved with state attorneys general, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Trade Commission in the past year can help SaaS companies manage these increasingly common forms of data breaches, say attorneys at Orrick.
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Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: February Lessons
In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses five notable circuit court decisions on topics from property taxes to veteran's rights — and provides key takeaways for counsel on issues including class representative intervention, wage-and-hour dispute evidence and ascertainability requirements.