- EU imposes unisex insurance rates [BBC, Wright]
- Law blog on the offense? TechnoLawyer asserts trademark claim against Lawyerist over “Small Law” [Lawyerist]
- “Pro-business Supreme Court” meme strikes out yet again as SCOTUS backs “cat’s-paw” bias suit theory by 8-0-2 margin [Josh Blackman, Schwartz, Fox; Lithwick locus classicus]
- Subprime CDO manager sues financial writer Michael Lewis over statements in his book The Big Short [AW, Salmon, Kennerly]
- Police in Surrey, England, deny advising garden shed owners not to use wire mesh against burglars [Volokh, earlier]
- Patterns of intimidation: protesters swarm Speaker Boehner’s private residence [Hollingsworth, Examiner] Unions fighting Wal-Mart in NYC plan actions at board members’ homes [Stoll] Report: GOP lawmakers in Wisconsin fear for personal safety [Nordlinger, NRO] White House pushing street protests [Welch, Nordlinger] Age of Civility short lived [Badger Blogger, Althouse, Sullivan]
- In clash with trial lawyers, Cuomo proposes pain and suffering limits in med-mal suits [NYDN, more: NYT] “Bloomberg looks to Texas for ideas on changing medical malpractice laws” [City Hall News]
- Hey, should we seize his drum set? Infuriating video on cop raids and forfeiture laws [Institute for Justice, Michigan]
Tagged as:
Dahlia Lithwick,
Europe,
forfeiture,
insurance,
labor unions,
legal blogs,
libel slander and defamation,
medical malpractice,
mortgages,
New York,
sex discrimination,
Supreme Court,
trademarks
- Defendant “was sentenced to two consecutive sentences of death.” Come again? [Volokh]
- Supreme Court agrees to hear global-warming-as-nuisance case [Ilya Shapiro/Cato at Liberty, Jonathan Adler and more]
- Supreme Court agrees to review Wal-Mart employment case, could be Court’s biggest statement on class action issues in years [Beck, Schwartz, Ted at PoL]
- Investigator recommends disbarment of controversial former Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas [Arizona Republic, earlier]
- Vessel-hull section of copyright law could give Sen. Schumer vehicle for controversial bill to accord IP protection to fashion design [WSJ Law Blog, Coleman, earlier here, here, etc.]
- Federal regulators propose requiring backup cameras in new cars [Bloomberg via Alkon]
- “Why Rosetta Stone’s Attack on Google’s Keyword Advertising Program Should Be Rejected” [Paul Alan Levy, CL&P]
- “Lawyer Got Secretary to Take His CLE Courses, Disciplinary Complaint Contends” [ABA Journal, Illinois]
Tagged as:
climate change,
copyright,
global warming,
Google,
Phoenix,
Supreme Court,
trademarks,
Wal-Mart v. Dukes
“A state lawmaker tells WMWV-FM that the Mount Washington Hotel and Resort has told other businesses with ‘Mount Washington’ in their name to stop using it or face a legal challenge.” The hotel says it has challenged only three lodging businesses and does not intend to go after other local businesses named after the mountain. [AP, WMUR, Boston Globe]
P.S. Commenter Mannie: “It gets better. The IOC routinely harasses businesses on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula for using the name ‘Olympic.’”
Tagged as:
hotels,
New Hampshire,
trademarks
Apparently a Baton Rouge, La. lawyer was awarded a trademark for that phrase last year and is now suing being sued by a Cleveland lawyer who’s been using it in his ads for years. [Cleveland.com]
Tagged as:
chasing clients,
trademarks
In a 23-page opinion (PDF), federal judge William Alsup in California has scathingly rebuked a frequent litigant who is in the habit of asserting broad trademark claims over the use of the word “edge” in videogames and related items. [BoingBoing; earlier here and here]
Tagged as:
trademarks,
videogames
- Facing four harassment claims, embattled Philadelphia housing chief files his own suit for $600K+ [Inquirer]
- “Ohio State Abuses Trademark Law to Suppress a Fan Magazine and Website” [Paul Alan Levy, CL&P]
- “Judge Dismisses Baltimore Blight Suit Against Wells Fargo, Will Allow Refiling” [ABA Journal]
- Trial lawyer taking behind-the-scenes hand in Louisiana politics [OpenSecrets via Tapscott]
- “Are hedge funds abusing bankruptcy?” [Felix Salmon and WSJ]
- North Carolina alienation-of-affection law strikes again: “’Mistress Ordered to Pay $5.8 Million’ to Wronged Wife” [Volokh, Althouse]
- “Lawyers take a haircut on a contingency fee in Colorado” [Legal Ethics Forum]
- ADA lawsuits close another beloved eatery [Stockton, Calif.; six years ago on Overlawyered]
Tagged as:
alienation of affection,
Baltimore,
bankruptcy,
fans as infringers,
Louisiana,
North Carolina,
Philadelphia,
trademarks
- International House of Pancakes (restaurant chain) vs. International House of Prayer (church) [CNN]
- “Law Schools Now Require Applicants To Honestly State Whether They Want To Go To Law School” [The Onion, satire]
- “As ENDA Lingers in Congress, a [million-dollar verdict] in Maine” [Michael Fox]
- Fear: On advice of FBI, cartoonist who organized “Everybody Draw Mohammed Day” drops out and changes name [Seattle Weekly, Welch, Moynihan]
- University of Windsor lawprof asks Ontario Human Rights Tribunal to overturn school’s decision not to make her dean [National Post]
- Prominent Seattle lawyer arrested, and do-you-know-who-I-am-ery allegedly ensues [Above the Law]
- “Man rushed to hospital after finding tampon in his cereal” [Obscure Store, Macon Telegraph] Update: suit dropped.
- Manufacture iPhones in the U.S.? “I worry America has too many lawyers. I don’t want to spend time having people sue me every day.” [Foxconn's Terry Gau, quoted in Business Week]
Tagged as:
Canada,
discrimination law,
do you know who I am?,
law schools,
Seattle,
trademarks
According to Felix Salmon, the company that owns the trademark in most countries on “Ugg” for sheep-fleece footwear has used it in “extremely aggressive” fashion against competitors, most particularly against exports from Australia where the term is generic and small firms have produced boots and shoes under similar names for many years.
Tagged as:
apparel,
Australia,
trademarks
Tagged as:
banks,
bullying,
California,
international law,
medical malpractice,
New Jersey,
Philadelphia,
schools,
third party liability for crime,
trademarks,
transit
A little food stand in scenic Damariscotta, Maine calls itself Grill Zilla BBQ, and recently received a letter from trademark lawyers. Even if its owners hadn’t made the mistake of using a green reptile mascot, they would probably have heard from the Japanese conglomerate Toho, which is quite vigorous about policing verbal and visual echoes of its “Godzilla” mark. [Kennebec Journal]
Tagged as:
Maine,
restaurants,
trademarks
Big Collegiate Licensing has appealed a federal court’s ruling in favor of an artist who depicted Alabama’s Crimson Tide football team without consulting, and paying a fee to, the university’s rights department. [Ron Coleman]
Tagged as:
Alabama,
colleges and universities,
trademarks
“The color PURPLE is a trademark of 3M” [
