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FindLaw columnist Eric Sinrod writes regularly in this section on legal developments surrounding technology and the Internet. In early 2012, the United States sought a World Trade Organization (WTO) consultation regarding China’s restrictions on the export of tungsten and molybdenum – forms of “rare earths.” These rare earths are raw materials that are used in the production of some electronics products. Subsequently, the European Union, Japan and Canada requested to join the consultation....

It’s the middle of the week. The sky is grey, the weather is chilly, and the night is coming sooner and sooner. And you’ve still got those briefs to write, papers to file, and hours to bill. Before you put your head down and slog through it, might we suggest a quick break? Take a few moments to check out these TED talks for a little bit of invigoration, inspiration, and entertainment....

In these modern times of smartphones and the internet of things, it doesn’t surprise many people at all that governments are involved in hacking. And it’s not just foreign governments. U.S. law enforcement has been hacking criminals, particularly cyber-criminals, for years now. Unfortunately for the criminals and the public, not much is known about the methods being used and what protocols are in place to prevent abuse. To remedy this lack of information, the ACLU has filed a lawsuit seeking to uncover what policies govern the FBI, ICE, and the DEA’s use of hacking technologies and techniques....

Is deity-specific government prayer more offensive than generic government prayer? Last month, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against Forsyth County and the Alliance Defense Fund, finding that the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners may not open its meetings with an invocation naming a specific deity. This week, the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners voted to appeal to Fourth Circuit’s decision to the Supreme Court. A federal district court agreed with Joyner and Blackmon in 2010, and ordered the board to either change or end its current prayer policy....

Recently, thanks to the wonder that is legal Twitter, a whopper of an opening to a federal district court’s opinion was brought to our attention. Over and over again. The epically amazing opening rather clearly alludes to the 90s Bill Murray classic, Groundhog Day, analogizing the current voting rights matter before the court to the basic premise of the slapstick romantic comedy. These are the actual first four sentences of the opinion:...

If you’re an Anglophile or just in-house at a company that does frequent work with the Brits – either way, you might benefit from becoming a solicitor in England and Wales. Becoming a solicitor (that’s English for “attorney”) can help you understand the laws and regulations of England and Wales and can even allow you to practice in the United Kingdom, should the need ever arise. Becoming a solicitor is actually quite feasible....

The First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a monumental products liability verdict in New Hampshire recently. The verdict is the largest jury verdict in state history, reports the New Hampshire Union Leader. The lawsuit was filed against Philadelphia-based Mutual Pharmaceutical. Plaintiff Karen Bartlett was awarded $21.6 million after a medication she used for shoulder pain caused toxic epidermal necrolysis, or Stevens Johnson Syndrome, a life-threatening condition that involves the detachment of the top layer of skin from the lower layers....

Following Citizens United, FEC v. SpeechNow, and McCutcheon, what remains of federal election law is that political action committees can’t coordinate with candidates and parties if they want their expenditures to remain “independent.” There are, however, no limits to the ways in which PACs will exploit loopholes (and that’s a fact!). This week, CNN reported on a creative way to skirt election laws that sounds like a rejected idea from a John le Carre novel....

In 2009, the Supreme Court decided Herring v. United States, a 5-4 decision that held the exclusionary rule does not apply to evidence that is obtained by police mistake and negligence, “rather than systemic error or reckless disregard of constitutional requirements.” We are now seeing the Herring-effect make its way through the circuit courts. In 2005, a school in Maine received anonymous letters containing white powder. An investigation by the local postal authorities led to the home of Michael Thomas....

If your client wants to use an estate plan to wipe out a spouse in a divorce, this article is not about that. This is about what you can do to help your client through divorce with an estate plan – not a murder plan. Seriously, there are barely survivors in a divorce as it is. Basically, we are talking about protecting their rights to control assets before it’s too late....

Note it in your Outlook, folks. November 26, 2012: The date that the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals officially acknowledged that the Supreme Court has overruled Tickles. Don’t freak out. The italicized Tickles means that we’re talking about a case; not the start of a downward spiral into a world without snuggles, giggles, or happiness. The beginning of the end of Tickles started with the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 (FSA)....

When Dr. Frankenstein made his monster, he took no thought for his creature’s impact on the townspeople. That was his big mistake, turning the creation story into a tragic tale. Unless, of course, we’re talking about the next generation; that was a different story. Not to compare monsters to legal departments, but there is a modern story in the making. Technology is nothing if it’s not people-friendly. Transforming People Writing for Corporate Counsel, Dan Carmel says new technologies are changing legal departments....

On Monday, President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama hosted the White House Summit on Working Families, to engage the country in a “conversation on working families for a 21st Century workplace.” In his remarks leading up to the event, and at the summit, the President outlined four issues that are a priority for working families: workplace flexibility, access to affordable child care, minimum and equal wages, and paid maternity leave....

Vidiksis v. EPA, No. 09-12544, involved an action by the EPA against defendant-property owner and lessor alleging violations of the Toxic Substances Control Act. The court of appeals affirmed judgment for the EPA, on the grounds that 1) the Lead Hazard Act contained specific language to be provided in sales transactions, and the EPA had the authority to issue regulations under that language; 2) there was no specific statutory requirement that the EPA adjust downward for lack of prior history, and it simply must be considered as a factor; and 3) any responsibility on behalf of an agent did not obviate the lessor’s responsibility....

Office party lawsuits are just as much a part of holiday traditions as the party itself. But if it’s your client that gets slapped with a lawsuit, you’re going to be the one dealing with the fallout. Not only will you have extra work on your plate, your boss probably won’t be happy that you weren’t able to prevent it from happening. Telling him “I didn’t even see this coming” probably won’t help your case....

Though Congress is still trying to defund the Affordable Care Act, a/k/a Obamacare, for the bazillionth time, it’s slated to go into effect on October 1st. As a small business, you may or may not have obligations to fulfill in a few weeks. After reviewing the official informational site HealthCare.gov, we decided to clear away the clutter to let you know how you might prepare for the upcoming changes. Depending how you answer the following two questions, you will have different responsibilities....

Bennie Richardson doesn’t deny that he had child pornography on his computer. He just argues that he shouldn’t have been convicted for distributing child pornography by storing those images in a shared folder that was accessible on a peer-to-peer computer network. Is anyone surprised that the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed with him? The Fifth Circuit explains, “Peer-to-peer file sharing is a means of Internet communication utilizing software that lets users exchange digital files through a network of linked computers....

Campbell v. Ga. Power Co., No. 09-13472, concerned a product liability action in which the district court granted summary judgment to defendant based on Georgia’s statute of repose. The Eleventh Circuit certified the following question to the Georgia Supreme Court: “In a strict liability or negligence action, does the statute of repose in O.C.G.A. section 51-1-11 begin running when 1) a component part causing an injury is assembled or tested; 2) a finished product, which includes an injuring component part, is assembled; or 3) a finished product, which includes an injuring component part, is delivered to its initial purchaser?...

Houston magistrate Judge Stephen Smith rejected a rather vague Rule 41 search and seizure warrant application this week, and you should probably care about it. As Judge Smith explained it, “the Government seeks a warrant to hack a computer suspected of criminal use.” As Slate describes it, the FBI wanted “to install a spy Trojan on a computer in an unknown location … to covertly infiltrate the computer and take photographs of its user through his or her webcam....

If standing in line at the DMV weren’t bad enough, new facial recognition software is turning that trip into an arrest in New York and other states. New York has used facial recognition technology to arrest more than 4,000 people for identity theft and fraud crimes. According to reports, that number will likely skyrocket because the DMV technology is getting better. “The use of this facial recognition technology has allowed law enforcement to crack down on fraud, identity theft, and other offenses – taking criminals and dangerous drivers off our streets and increasing the safety of New York’s roadways,” announced Gov....