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China has not recently enjoyed a sterling reputation with regards to the protection of intellectual property. Whether it’s pirated software, bootlegged movies, or “pleather” designer handbags, China’s got it all. There’s even a term for it: Shanzai – which roughly translates to “knock-off.” Unnervingly, some journalists have reported that the term even has a certain cache about it. In seeming response to this social and economic blight, the Chinese State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO – the Chinese equivalent of the US Patent Office) recently released a fourth amendment to the country’s patent laws – the Amendments....

What’s new and notable in the legal blawgosphere? Lately, it seems many websites are singing the praises of criminal defense lawyers. And a few more blawgs of note from the past week: Enlisting some legal help. The U.S. Air Force is again allowing members to omit the phrase “so help me God” when taking enlistment oaths, if the members so choose. The Wall Street Journal Law Blog explains how the issue came about....

Depositions can get very emotional, to say the least. The emotional range seems to span the gamut from boredom to intense rage. But the usual emotion is guarded anger – remember Justin Bieber’s depo? Sometimes that anger can rise to the level of uncontrollable rage. A careful lawyer has got to ask: what steps can you take to protect yourself from a potential attack? A lawyer I used to work with once described how he was attacked in a deposition....

In light of the challenging economy, corporations are seeking to cut costs. One place where you can expect to see cuts are within your own legal departments. According to the ABA Journal, general counsels are looking to cut legal spending by 25% this year. The article, entitled “25% Cut in In-House Legal Spending Translates to Even Deeper Cuts for Outside Legal Work,” discusses how and why legal spending will be down in 2011....

If your law firm has a Facebook page and you don’t use Facebook Live, you’ll want to pay close attention to this post. Facebook Live presents an excellent, free marketing opportunity for lawyers and law firms. In case you missed that, yes, your firm can use Facebook Live as a marketing tool for free. Basically, any neutral or positive engagement you can get on Facebook is good for your social media marketing....

Law firms have long been the training ground for new attorneys while in-house positions are generally for associates with several years of experience. The rationale is that new graduates don’t have the practical skills to dive into legal practice. In-house counsel don’t have time to provide training on both how to be corporate counsel AND how to practice corporate law. But that problem might be solved as more law schools focus on practical coursework....

Perhaps the oddest thing about the American legal system is the separate state, federal, and administrative courts. The law in federal court can be completely different than the law in the state courthouse next door. And on that same note, an antitrust lawsuit that would be a guaranteed failure in federal court might have a fighting chance in a Florida state court. Major League Baseball’s antitrust exemption is common knowledge by now....

Facing federal charges for reselling used medical equipment that may have belonged to Kerri Kaley’s employer, Kerri and her husband, Brian Kaley, took out a home equity loan worth $500,000 in order to cover their legal defense costs. The money was then seized under asset forfeiture laws, with the district court refusing to grant so much as a hearing. That was certainly a mistake, and the Eleventh Circuit agreed, reversing and remanding to the district court in Kaley I....

In a securities fraud action, dismissal of the complaint is affirmed where plaintiffs failed to adequately plead scienter under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. However, the “with prejudice” aspect of the dismissal is reversed where: 1) plaintiffs did not act in bad faith; 2) the filing of an amended complaint would not prejudice defendants; and 3) amendment would not be futile. Read Matrix Capital Mgmt. Fund, LP v. BearingPoint, Inc....

In a batch of cases that could become indescribably dangerous precedent for any business that operates on a franchise model, the National Labor Relations Board has filed 78 charges across 13 complaints against McDonald’s USA, LLP, as well as its franchisees, as joint employers of allegedly aggrieved fast-food workers. Why could the outcome of these cases be so monumental? Because the NLRB is trying to hold the big McCorporation liable for the alleged actions of arguably independent franchisees....

Happy Shark Week, in-house counsel! As Discovery celebrates sharks for the 28th year, we at FindLaw are highlighting the sharks in the legal profession. This topic raises the question: who’s the head shark of Discovery’s legal team? Meet Bruce Campbell, General Counsel and Chief Development Officer at Discovery Communications. Campbell has been Discovery’s GC since 2010 and has seen everything from the creation of the classic film “Sharknado” to the channel’s partnership with Oprah Winfrey....

The seat belt – the simple lap-belt design – was not required on cars in the United States until a decade after its invention. A fail-safe – a device to stop unintended acceleration in electric cars – is not required in America now. And Tesla, the electric, self-parking car manufacturer, says it has no duty to make one. That is the big issue in a proposed class action filed in a California federal court recently....

Give me one good reason not to go paperless. Having trouble? That’s because you are in a paperless world. You are reading this very article on a digital screen. It’s the future. Maybe 20 years ago, when only a handful of law firms and courts had gone paperless, it would have been excusable. But today, basically every court requires electronic filings and even the trash can is an icon on your computer....

Roman-Cancel v. US, 09-2311, concerned a challenge to the district court’s dismissal of the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) claim, in a Vietnam veteran’s suit against the government under the (FTCA), arising from the VA’s decision in 1975, lowering the plaintiff’s disability rating to 70%, which was returned to 100% by the Board of Veterans Affairs in 2001 along with an award of retroactive benefits totaling $33,905.11. The court affirmed the dismissal, but on alternative holdings as plaintiff’s suit is untimely because under section 2401, plaintiff had six months within which to sue after the denial of the relevant administrative claim....

You’ve built your own firm and want to see it grow even further. Or perhaps you’ve found your grove, but need to advise business clients as they expand. You can try to figure things out on your own, or you can turn to the experts, thought leaders from some of today’s most forward-looking businesses. Luckily, much of that leadership can be found in one place: “What’s Next: How to Take Your Business to the Next Level....

Not all solo firms advise clients about how to incorporate, but all solo attorneys have to figure out what kind of business entity is best for them. There’s a good chance that as an attorney you aren’t going to go ask others for advice on what kind of entity is best. But that could be a mistake, especially if something goes wrong down the line. You wouldn’t advise your clients to just randomly pick one, would you?...

In a personal injury action arising out of the death of an individual while on vacation in the Bahamas, dismissal of the action on forum non conveniens grounds is reversed where: 1) it was error for the district court to consider only the contacts that the case had with the Southern District of Florida; and 2) the district court erred in failing to consider, except in regard to whether the Bahamas was an adequate alternate forum, the undisputed financial difficulties the plaintiff would face if the case had to be tried in the Bahamas....

Be careful what you ask for. That should be the mantra for lawyers who advise businesses about arbitration clauses in employment agreements. It’s cheap advice, given the real cost of arbitration. In Hernandez v. Acosta, it turned out to be a $100,000 lesson. That’s how much the employer owed in arbitration fees, which far exceeded the company’s liability to one worker. Triple A, Triple Costs Julio Hernandez filed a federal wage case against Acosta Tractors, a Florida contractor....

Veterans Day is a good day to remember that in every community, there are veterans who need legal assistance. It doesn’t matter what your area of practice is, there are ways you can help. When it comes to getting new clients, often the focus is on expanding into a new area of practice. But another option is to target specific groups of people who need the legal services you already provide....

I was an IT Guy once. In college, I worked as a student technician, responsible for helping other students troubleshoot computer and network connectivity issues. Internet Explorer was the bane of my existence. The time was 2002-05, the height of Internet Explorer 6’s popularity. IE6 used a plugin technology called ActiveX that basically gave ActiveX controls unfettered access to the operating system. This was, as you might expect, a terrible idea that led to horrible security problems at worst, and headache-inducing annoyance at best....