Dave Moore spoke to Manufacture Alabama on November 15, 2017 about new Federal environmental initiatives, from the regulatory reform started in the first week of the new administration to the recent sue and settle, Superfund and scientific advisory committee policies that are destined to change the shape of the federal environmental landscape. Dave spoke immediately following EPA Region 4 Regional Administrator Trey Glenn and Alabama Department of Environmental Management Director Lance LeFleur. Download his complete presentation.
Briefings
Legal Considerations for the Foreign Investor
Legal Considerations (English) Legal Considerations (German)
Lessons Learned – How to Avoid Common Mistakes
Over the past 20 years of representing Finnish companies in the U.S., we have noticed a dramatic improvement in the sophistication of these companies not only in U.S. dealings but globally as well. Although our Finnish clients, which include a broad spectrum of entities from manufacturers to service providers, have been for the most part successful, all too often these companies have made choices or taken actions that have been counterproductive for the desired timetable and objectives. Significant reworking and undoing of various steps in the process has led to disappointment particularly with respect to the performance of the U.S…. Read more
The Software Protection Paradigm
I. INTRODUCTION: In recent years much has been written about the protection of software. There are those who are pro-copyright, pro-patent, pro-sui generis and those favoring or opposing various combinations of the foregoing. This paper does not take a position on what law may afford the greatest protection for software, rather, this paper is intended to serve as an introduction to the existing protection afforded by the laws of copyright, patent, and trade secrets, the principle laws protecting software. Also addressed are trade dress protection for software and the enforceability of shrinkwrap licenses. At the outset, a few basic definitions… Read more
Plain Talk About Infringement (Part II)
PLAIN TALK ABOUT INFRINGEMENT AND THE DOCTRINE OF EQUIVALENTS FROM THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES The U.S. Supreme Court Decision in Festo Corp. v. Shoketsu Kogyo Kabushiki Co., Ltd. Part I of this paper provided the background of the Festo case, particularly focusing on the proceedings before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Court, the ruling of which shocked inventors and patent practitioners worldwide. Part II discusses the much-anticipated ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court. PART II: THE SUPREME COURT DECIDES Summary On May 28, 2002, the United States Supreme Court issued a ruling in the… Read more
Plain Talk About Infringement
The U.S. Supreme Court Decision in Festo Corp. v. Shoketsu Kogyo Kabushiki Co., Ltd. On May 28, 2002, the United States Supreme Court issued a ruling in the case of Festo Corp. v. Shoketsu Kogyo Kabushiki Co., Ltd. (“Festo”) (535 U.S. ___ (2002)). In a unanimous decision, the Court held that prosecution history estoppel may apply to any claim amendment made to satisfy the Patent Act’s requirements and not just to amendments made to avoid the prior art. The Supreme Court additionally held that estoppel need not bar suit against every equivalent to the amended claim element. The Court remanded… Read more
The Employee Stock Option – An Endangered Species?
Amid the fallout from the scandals at Enron, Worldcom and numerous other companies has been a renewed focus on corporate compensation practices. Stock options have become a particular subject of scrutiny due to their widespread use, the increasingly large size of grants to executives and the enormous gains realized by some executives on sales of stock option shares at artificially inflated prices resulting from deceptive (and, in some cases, fraudulent) accounting practices. In response to these and other concerns, corporations, shareholders, regulators and oversight groups have all taken or proposed various actions that are likely to change profoundly the stock… Read more
Alternative Dispute Resolution
In Georgia, the State Bar’s Ethical Consideration 7-5 says: “An attorney as adviser has a duty to advise the client as to various forms of dispute resolution. When a matter is likely to involve litigation, an attorney has a duty to inform the client of forms of dispute resolution which might constitute reasonable alternatives to litigation.” Over the last two decades, there has been great interest in finding ways to resolve disputes other than through the traditional court system. Some of the dispute resolution techniques that companies have turned to are fairly new, while others have been used for many… Read more
Resolution of Business Disputes
TRADITIONAL DISPUTE RESOLUTION THROUGH LITIGATION The American litigation process is significantly different from systems in other industrialized nations. A general understanding of these differences may impact whether one wishes to expose himself to this process by investing in the U.S. Generally, nearly any breach of a right or duty will be actionable if it results in damage to the party maintaining the action. What rights or duties exist and may therefore be breached is a question of substantive law and is addressed elsewhere in this pamphlet. U.S. Court Systems There are two different and separate principal court systems in the… Read more
Recent Developments in Employment Law; Personnel Law Seminar
ARBITRATION Recent Development: Supreme Court affirms employer’s right to require mandatory arbitration of employment disputes. Background In an attempt to decrease litigation expenses and reduce exposure to uncertain jury awards, an increasing number of employers are now including arbitration clauses in their job applications, employee handbooks and employee contracts. By agreeing to arbitrate instead of litigate, employees give up their rights to have their claims heard by a jury in a court of law. Arbitration provisions can be an effective, efficient and economical way of disposing of employment disputes. However, such agreements are not without their faults. Why arbitrate? Studies… Read more