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BakerHostetler was founded in 1916, when our three founding partners each deposited $500 into a firm account. Today, we have more than 900 partners and associates contributing to the success of our clients. The values they share are the same ideals on which our firm was founded: love and respect for the law, respect for each other, and the courage to make hard decisions on the basis of what they know to be right.

‘Something of an Experiment’: District of Delaware Prepares for Socially Distanced Patent Trial Tentatively Set for August 2020

By Andrew Samuels

July 6, 2020

In an earlier blog post, we commented on how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected and may continue to affect patent litigation. A recent order from one of the country’s busiest patent courts, the District of Delaware, reflects the ways in which the pandemic may affect patent trial practice. On July 2, in Sunoco Partners v. Powder Springs Logistics, Chief Judge Leonard P. Stark of the District of Delaware announced these procedures for a patent-infringement…

Employment Class Action Blog

Ninth Circuit Finds No Right of Contribution or Indemnity Under the FLSA

By Greg Mersol

July 6, 2020

Joint or single employer liability has gotten a lot of attention in recent years, where a company is held responsible for the employment obligations of a sufficiently interrelated contractor or corporate entity. Our sister blog, the Employment Law Spotlight, has reviewed many of these issues in detail. See, e.g., our January 13, 2020 blog. But what happens after an entity is found liable for the wage and hour violations of a different employer? Does…

Employment Class Action Blog

Sixth Circuit Addresses RICO and FLSA Claims

By Greg Mersol

July 2, 2020

Successful FLSA plaintiffs will likely receive not only the claimed unpaid overtime or minimum wage, but also liquidated (double) damages and payment of their attorney fees. But what if they want . . . more? Will a RICO claim get them additional funds? That was the question the Sixth Circuit has answered in a pair of cases arising out of a small local pizza chain in western Michigan. In Torres v. Vitale, Case No. 19-1515…

IP Intelligence

USPTO Grants Additional COVID-19-Related Relief to Patent Applicants

By Fabian Koenigbauer

July 1, 2020

On June 29, 2020, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued another notice under the authority granted by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to grant COVID-19-related relief to patent applicants. In issuing the notice, the USPTO recognized that some stakeholders, in particular small businesses and individuals, will require additional relief as the economy reopens. Therefore, the notice grants extensions for payments of certain fees by small and micro entities.…

IP Intelligence

SCOTUS Holds that ‘generic.com’ Trademarks Like Booking.com May Be Capable of Registration

By Deborah A. Wilcox & Christina Moser

June 30, 2020

Today, the Supreme Court issued its opinion in the trademark registration case United States Patent and Trademark Office v. Booking.com B.V., holding “A term styled ‘generic.com’ is a generic name for a class of goods or services only if the term has that meaning to consumers.” Justice Ginsburg delivered the majority opinion, in which justices Roberts, Thomas, Alito, Sotomayor, Kagan, Gorsuch and Kavanaugh joined. Sotomayor filed a concurring opinion. Breyer dissented, primarily over the role…

Antitrust Advocate

Fishy Price Fixing Leads to 40-month Jail Stint

By Darley Maw

June 30, 2020

On June 16, following a monthlong trial, Christopher Lischewski, former CEO and president of Bumble Bee Foods LLC, was sentenced by Judge Edward Chen of the Northern District of California to 40 months in prison plus a $100,000 fine for orchestrating a canned tuna price-fixing conspiracy. Lischewski’s sentence demonstrates the punishment individuals should be prepared to face if involved in price fixing and that such criminal behavior cannot be shielded by any corporate protections. Assistant…

The Blockchain Monitor

Canada’s Largest Cryptocurrency Exchange Found to Have Operated Like a Ponzi Scheme

By Teresa Goody Guillén & Michelle Tanney

June 30, 2020

On June 11, 2020 the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC), one of Canada’s provincial securities regulators, issued a report finding that QuadrigaCX (Quadriga), which went into bankruptcy a few months after founder and CEO Gerald Cotten was reported to have died in India, “was an old-fashioned fraud wrapped in modern technology.”[1] The report, dated April 2020, details that at the time Quadriga filed for bankruptcy protection, the cryptocurrency exchange owed 76,000 clients a combined $215…

Data Counsel

Ann O’Brien, Jeewon Serrato, Alyse Stach Author Article Examining Privacy and Antitrust Issues

By Ann O'Brien, Jeewon Serrato & Alyse Stach

June 29, 2020

Partners Ann O’Brien and Jeewon Serrato and Associate Alyse Stach authored an article published by the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) on June 23, 2020. The article, “The Thin Line Between Privacy and Antitrust,” discusses how the lines between antitrust and privacy objectives and enforcement are becoming increasingly blurred. The authors describe real-world scenarios in which companies need to find ways to compete, innovate and serve customers while navigating antitrust and privacy issues. Read …

Employment Class Action Blog

Illinois District Court Decertifies FLSA Collective With 1,600 Opt-Ins

By Greg Mersol

June 29, 2020

Just before the pandemic triggered closings across the country, we identified an Illinois case as a good candidate for discussion. As the pandemic has eased, we’re taking the time now to address issues relating to the decision as to whether an off-the-clock case that has been conditionally certified should be permitted to remain as a collective action. In Meadows v. NCR Corporation, Case No. 16 CV 6221 (N.D. Ill. March 4, 2020), the plaintiffs were…

The Blockchain Monitor

Blockchain Food Tracing Initiatives Add Members, Report Addresses Central Bank Digital Currencies, NY DFS Publishes Crypto Guidance, Enforcement Actions Continue

By Jordan R. Silversmith, Veronica Reynolds, Robert A. Musiala & Joanna F. Wasick

June 26, 2020

In this issue: • Seafood Association, Restaurant Chain Announce Blockchain Supply Chain Partnerships • Sweden Report Addresses Central Bank Digital Currencies, Fintech Firms Explore Crypto • NY DFS and UK FCA Publish Crypto Guidance, Firms Announce Compliance Initiatives • U.S. and Foreign Agencies Take Enforcement Actions, Crypto Threat Reports Published Seafood Association, Restaurant Chain Announce Blockchain Supply Chain Partnerships By: Jordan R. Silversmith This week, a major global technology firm and the Norwegian Seafood Association…

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‘Something of an Experiment’: District of Delaware Prepares for Socially Distanced Patent Trial Tentatively Set for August 2020

Ninth Circuit Finds No Right of Contribution or Indemnity Under the FLSA

Sixth Circuit Addresses RICO and FLSA Claims

USPTO Grants Additional COVID-19-Related Relief to Patent Applicants

SCOTUS Holds that ‘generic.com’ Trademarks Like Booking.com May Be Capable of Registration

Fishy Price Fixing Leads to 40-month Jail Stint

Canada’s Largest Cryptocurrency Exchange Found to Have Operated Like a Ponzi Scheme

Ann O’Brien, Jeewon Serrato, Alyse Stach Author Article Examining Privacy and Antitrust Issues

Illinois District Court Decertifies FLSA Collective With 1,600 Opt-Ins

Blockchain Food Tracing Initiatives Add Members, Report Addresses Central Bank Digital Currencies, NY DFS Publishes Crypto Guidance, Enforcement Actions Continue

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