Trials

Expert Analysis

• Series

  Judging A Book: Kopf Reviews Posner's 'Federal Judiciary'

  

  There is a wonderful sketch of Seventh Circuit Judge Richard Posner dressed in a black robe with arms outstretched as if they were the billowing wings of a lean vulture. He is kicking a human brain down a hallway and wearing a half-smile that looks for all the world like a sneer. That sketch is the perfect metaphor for both Judge Posner and his new book, "The Federal Judiciary: Strengths and Weaknesses," says U.S. District Judge Ri... (continued)

• How To Get A Survey In A Patent Case Kicked Before Trial

  

  The Northern District of California, in Unwired Planet v. Apple, recently excluded a survey for failing to accurately target the patented invention. The case underscores an effective, though perhaps overlooked, way to attack the use of surveys in patent damages opinions, says Brooke Myers Wallace of Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP.

• The Use Of Special Masters In Complex Cases

  

  Special master appointments can be very beneficial in resolving disputes quickly, streamlining discovery, handling delicate settlement negotiations, and — somewhat surprisingly — reducing cost and delay, says retired U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin, now with JAMS.

• Roundup

  Notes From A Law Firm Chief Privacy Officer

  

  As more law firms become the targets of major cyberattacks, more firms may consider appointing a chief privacy officer. In this series, CPOs at four firms discuss various aspects of this new role.

• Zero Emissions Credit Litigation: The Road Ahead

  

  Last month, federal courts dismissed challenges to zero emissions credit programs in Illinois and New York. But as the plaintiffs appeal, an issue with broad consequences for the energy industry looms: whether anyone other than the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission can ask a federal court to declare that state programs affecting wholesale energy markets are preempted, say Gordon Coffee and Tyson Smith of Winston & Strawn LLP.

• A Plaintiff’s Guide To Discovery Proportionality: Part 1

  

  In December 2015, the parts of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure concerning proportionality in discovery were amended. The amendments changed the language defining the scope of relevance, but substantively, this remains the same as it has been for nearly 40 years, says Max Kennerly of Kennerly Loutey LLC.

• Pepperdine Gay Bias Case — A Loss And A Win For Plaintiffs

  

  On Friday, two lesbian basketball players lost their discrimination case against Pepperdine University. However, the fact that the case was permitted to go to trial represented a major blow against sexual stereotyping in sport, says Ronald Katz of GCA Law Partners LLP.

• Series

  Notes From A Law Firm Chief Privacy Officer: New Demands

  

  For outside counsel, oftentimes efficiency and responsiveness collide with security measures as clients are increasingly requiring their law firms to comply with third-party risk management programs. To meet these challenges, law firms are focusing more on the roles of chief privacy officer and chief information security officer, says Phyllis Sumner, chief privacy officer for King & Spalding LLP.

• The Great Class Action Ascertainability Debate

  

  In recent years, courts have divided sharply over whether or not Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure creates an implicit requirement that a class must be ascertainable in order to be certified. Amanda Lawrence and Michael Rome of Buckley Sandler LLP discuss the circuit split over whether and to what extent ascertainability is required, and implications of the circuit split for class action litigants.

• Opinion

  It's Time To Improve Voir Dire In Federal Court

  

  During the jury selection process, many times parties submit proposed voir dire questions, but the court ultimately chooses the questions to be asked and does all of the questioning of the jury panel. While this approach is judicially efficient, rarely do we learn anything meaningful from the panel members, say Lisa Blue of Baron and Blue and Robert Hirschhorn of Cathy E. Bennett & Associates.