SEC Is Giving Whistle-Blower Protection One Last Lick

Mar 1, 2011 10:20 AM CST

Patent Law Issue Puts $33M Law Firm Malpractice Case Squarely Into Federal Court

Vacating a dismissal by a U.S. District Court, an appellate panel has ruled that a patent law issue in a $33 million malpractice claim against a Detroit-based law firm puts the case squarely into federal jurisdiction. Because at least one of the plaintiff’s claims in Warrior Sports Inc. v. Dickinson…

Jan 13, 2011 9:16 PM CST

Appeals Court Reinstates Uniloc Win in Microsoft Case, But Calls for New Trial re $390M Jury Award

A federal appeals court has reinstated a jury verdict against Microsoft Corp. in favor of anti-piracy software maker Uniloc USA Inc. However, a $388 million jury award to Uniloc in the patent case was “fundamentally tainted,” requiring a new trial on damages, said the U.S. Court of Appeals for the…

Jan 4, 2011 7:00 PM CST

Google Sues Feds, Alleges Anti-Competitive Bid Specs for E-Mail Contract Proposal

Google Inc. has turned the tables on the feds, alleging that the U.S. Department of the Interior has illegally restricted competition among potential bidders for an e-mail contract by requiring that the system had to be included in the Microsoft Business Productivity Online Suite The specifications are “unduly restrictive of…

Nov 1, 2010 9:04 PM CDT

US Amicus Brief Reverses Course on Gene Patenting, Conflicts with PTO

In an amicus brief filed late Friday, the U.S. government takes the position that genes should not be eligible for patents. The assertion reverses policy and is contrary to the long-standing practice of the Patent and Trademark Office, the New York Times reports. “The new position could have a huge…

Nov 1, 2010 2:04 PM CDT

Federal Circuit Rules for Lawyer Who Sued Over Expired Bow Tie Patent

A lawyer who sued Brooks Brothers for selling Adjustolox bow ties with expired patent markings has standing to pursue his qui tam suit, a federal appeals court has ruled. In a decision (PDF) issued Tuesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled patent lawyer Raymond Stauffer did…

Sep 1, 2010 1:33 PM CDT

WilmerHale Partner Is First Openly Gay Man Nominated to US Appeals Court

President Obama made history last week when he nominated a WilmerHale appellate litigation partner to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The nominee, Edward DuMont, is the first openly gay person to be nominated to a federal appeals court, according to Metro Weekly and the Keen News…

Apr 27, 2010 12:52 PM CDT

McDermott Wins Appeal of $4.4M Trial Court Sanction in Medtronic Patent Case

A federal appeals court today reversed an award of nearly $4.4 million against McDermott Will & Emery and its clients for what a lower court had earlier termed “abuse of advocacy.” Contrary to the trial court’s finding that the law firm’s attorneys proceeded “cavalierly” and “with full awareness that their…

Apr 26, 2010 10:58 PM CDT

Man Bites Dog: Exxon Sues US in Superfund Case, Seeks $45M for Toxic Site Cleanup

Ordinarily, it’s the government that sues private corporations over alleged environmental contamination. But in an unusual role reversal, Exxon Mobil has filed suit against the United States under the so-called Superfund law, seeking $45 million to clean up a toxic refinery site in Texas, reports the Blog of Legal Times.…

Apr 6, 2010 9:04 PM CDT

A Patent on Problems

New PTO chief has strong backing—and a huge backlog of work

Mar 1, 2010 11:40 AM CST

Appeals Court: Microsoft Owes $290M, Must Alter Word or Stop Sales By Jan. 11

Upholding a small company’s stunning patent-infringement win against the world’s biggest software seller, a federal appeals court today not only upheld a $290 million verdict in favor of I4i LP but ruled that Microsoft Corp. must either alter its Word software by Jan. 11 or stop selling the popular product,…

Dec 22, 2009 7:04 PM CST

Microsoft Wins Emergency Stay of Judge’s Ban on Word Product Sales

A federal appeals court has granted Microsoft’s emergency appeal of a Texas federal judge’s order that would have banned the computer Goliath from continuing to sell some Word software products next month unless they could be reconfigured to avoid infringing on a Canadian company’s patent. In a ruling late yesterday,…

Sep 4, 2009 4:35 PM CDT

Microsoft Gets Expedited Appeal of Judge’s Ban on Some Word Product Sales

Attorneys for Microsoft are presumably busy this weekend, following a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to grant the computer goliath’s request for an expedited schedule of a federal trial court judge’s order that will potentially ban sales of some Word products in less than…

Aug 21, 2009 11:23 PM CDT

Wrangling Genes

As the law changes and new medical frontiers open, the dispute over genetic patents intensifies

Jul 2, 2009 4:10 AM CDT

High Court to Hear Bilski Case Restricting Business Method Patents

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review a decision that restricts patents on business methods by requiring that they be tied to a machine or involve a physical transformation. The outcome will likely affect software, biotechnology and financial services industries, Bloomberg reports. “This case raises the most fundamental question…

Jun 1, 2009 4:43 PM CDT