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While the Apple Watch is a technological feat, a recently filed patent infringement lawsuit claims the device’s heart monitoring technology was stolen. As commentators seem to indicate, the case may be nothing more than a patent troll seeking to extort a settlement. The fact that the plaintiff hails from Michigan and Apple from California begs the question of why the case was filed in the Eastern District of Texas. Although experienced patent litigators know that venue as the country’s most favorable venue for patent holders and a popular one for patent trolls, a recent SCOTUS decision means the Apple Watch case is likely not going to be sticking around the Texas federal court for very long....

What’s a CEO to do when investigators, insiders, and others are calling for his head on a platter? Smoke a joint, right? Wrong. Sometimes, general counsel just have to tell the boss no. Using marijuana on personal time is a person’s prerogative, but not if your name is Elon Musk. For everybody else, there’s good news and bad news. The Bad News Musk made the mistake of toking a spliff on “The Joe Rogan Experience....

It’s common for employees to sometimes feel like they have no power or control over their jobs. Marx’s alienation theory basically states that “you’re just another brick in the wall.” If you don’t feel like you are the director of your actions in your current job, perhaps you should consider a career in hospitality? The First Circuit Court of Appeals recently held in Hines v. State Room, Inc. that banquet sales managers have a fair amount of sufficient discretion and independent judgment to at least qualify for the administrative exemption to the Fair Labor Standards Act....

So that makes how many now? Notwithstanding what the Sixth Circuit thinks, Judge Richard Gergel of the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina has come to the now-unsurprising conclusion that the state’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. In a referendum approved by 78 percent of voters, South Carolina amended its constitution in 2006 to prevent the state from recognizing any marriage other than that between one man and one woman....

FindLaw columnist Eric Sinrod writes regularly in this section on legal developments surrounding technology and the Internet. Most of us hate unsolicited commercial email - aka spam. Notwithstanding spam filters and federal and state laws prohibiting spam under various circumstances, we nonetheless continue to receive these annoying emails in our in boxes. One might think that the spammers are making fortunes as part of their predatory practices. The study, titled The Economics of Spam and published by Justin Rao of Microsoft and David Reiley of Google in the Journal of Economic Perspectives, notes that American firms and consumers yearly suffer costs of about $20 billion as a result of spam....

Part of the reason you’re doing all the networking we keep harping about is so that you can get referrals from other lawyers. Like your friend the tax attorney who knows a guy who knows a guy who needs a personal injury attorney – like you. New lawyers especially might not know how to navigate referrals, so we’ve provided this handy guide so that you know how to take advantage of referrals – and do it without violating any laws....

You’d think, being a solo practitioner, that you wouldn’t have to do anything to prepare for the upcoming Obamacare deadlines. Think again. Though your mandated duties, per the Affordable Care Act, are minimal as a small business/sole practitioner, there are a few things you need to do in the near future in order to avoid penalties and taxes. You may be the only attorney in the office, but if you have support staff and revenue of $500,000 or more, you will have to comply with this minor requirement....

It is absolutely bound to happen during the holidays, a staff member, or even an associate, will just not show up. If there’s critical work to be done, or a Christmas Eve court date, there’s almost no time to be mad, you just have to keep calm and litigate on. Fortunately, in nearly every city across the country there are companies that can provide last minute appearance attorneys, and that old list-serv you’re still on might actually be able to get you someone last minute in a pinch too....

In case you haven’t learned, you are wrong. It’s as universally true as the Earth is the center of the universe. By the way, everybody except Copernicus used to believe that. Of course, they were wrong. So unless you are Copernicus, it’s a good idea to admit that you are wrong – at least sometimes. In life and in law practice, it is the beginning of understanding. Take Responsibility Writing for Harvard Business Review, Deborah Grayson Riegel says it’s about taking responsibility, addressing the mistake, and doing things differently next time....

Dan and Debbie Scoggins wanted the best for their son Jacob. After their requests to their Homeowner’s Association for permission to build a wheelchair ramp at the front door of their home and for permission for Jacob to ride an ATV within the housing subdivision went unanswered, they filed suit under the Fair Housing Amendments Act (FHAA) on his behalf. Wheelchair Claim Not Ripe The HOA’s covenants allowed them thirty days to respond to written requests to modify one’s home, plus the right to request more details on the plan....

You’ve heard noise in the press about the lack of indictments against corporations and individuals after the AIG bailout, and the subsequent government intervention in equity markets in late 2008. In view of a civil case just unsealed in San Diego, in-house counsel should consider their client entities’ exposure to suits from individuals under the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. sec. 3729. This is especially true of counsel to any entity that received money or loan guarantees as part of the TARP program....

The cookie business is serious business. And when Whole Foods used the name “Eat Right America” to brand food items that were not made by the cookie maker EatRight Foods (who actually sold their cookies at Whole Foods), Eat Right Foods had to put up a fight to protect their trademark. Unfortunately for EatRight, the cookie trademark fight hit a serious setback in 2015 when the district court dismissed their claims due to a laches defense....

It’s fair to say you’ve been unfriended if your spouse tries to serve you divorce papers on Facebook, but it’s not fair to say you’ve been served on Facebook. Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Jeffrey Sunshine this week refused to accept service through the social platform in a divorce case. The wife said she couldn’t find another way to communicate with her estranged husband, who hadn’t updated his Facebook profile in two years....

Facing a stalemate, a federal appeals court let stand a ruling that continues Medicaid funds to Planned Parenthood in Louisiana. The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals split 7-7 on whether to reconsider a decision in favor of Planned Parenthood. The organization, which provides abortion services, had sued after the former governor tried to block the funding. In Planned Parenthood of Gulf Coast v. Gee, the en banc panel of judges divided sharply....

For many civil rights or personal injury practitioners, police misconduct cases can be a little bit mystifying. These are more than typical, rudimentary government tort claims involving negligence. The silver lining to these cases being so vehemently defended is that there is quite a bit of case law on the subject, which means that practitioners can be more assured of the cases they file. Below, you can read three tips on how to evaluate a police misconduct case....

Conducting exit interviews might be a quick formality at your company, but it’s actually a great opportunity to get candid constructive criticism from employees and reinforce post-employment expectations that could prevent a legal snafu further down the road. How can the company make this (an even) better place to work? Since this is the last chance for the company to pick an employee’s brain, it’s a golden opportunity to find out what he or she observed to be the good, bad and the ugly at the company....

In US v. One 1990 Beechcraft, No. 09-15119, an appeal from a district court decision ordering the forfeiture, under the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act, of a Beechcraft airplane to which appellant held legal title, the order is affirmed where the district court did not err in drawing credibility determinations and inferences against appellant and in favor of the government and, on that basis, determining that appellant did not meet its burden of proving, by a preponderance of the evidence, that it, rather than a third party, exercised any dominion or control at all....

Remember when Black Friday was fun? You’d wake up at 4 a.m., head to the Walmart in Rockbridge County, and because it was Lexington, Virginia, your only competition for big ticket items were a few dozen housewives. Yep, there weren’t enough people in Rockbridge County to cause a tramplin’, let alone to sell out of fancy bed sheets or video games. Of course, most of the country doesn’t live in an idyllic countryside paradise (nor do I, anymore)....

Gary Washington participated in a credit card scheme. Along with his cohorts, the group purchased stolen credit card numbers off of the internet and imprinted new cards with those numbers. They then used them or sold them to third parties. There’s not really a dispute as to his guilt - he did plead guilty, after all. What is currently in dispute is the appropriate sentence. USSG §2B1.1(b)(2) provides for the following sentencing enhancements:...

Internet memes – those cute images, phrases, and videos that spread online – seem like a great way to grab new customers’ attention. Maybe your client’s marketing department is already considering using a meme in its next advertising cycle. But unless you’re itching for an intellectual property fight, you may want to think twice before pursing that strategy. Too often, marketing teams and in-house attorneys underestimate the value of intellectual property on the Internet....