Articles

07.31.17

Spotlight on the False Claims Act

By John F. Libby, Partner, Corporate Investigations and White Collar Defense | Jacqueline C. Wolff, Partner, Corporate Investigations and White Collar Defense | Kenneth B. Julian, Partner, LitigationWhy it matters: Since our last newsletter, the DOJ has announced numerous resolutions under the ...


07.27.17

Photographer's Copyright Suit Gets Mixed Results

A New York federal court judge handed a photographer a mixed result when it dismissed her copyright infringement claim but allowed her Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) allegations to move forward in a dispute that began on Instagram.Photojournalist Matilde Gattoni, based in Italy, ...


07.21.17

Does Dodd-Frank Protect Internal Whistleblowers?

Why it mattersThe Supreme Court has agreed to answer the question of whether the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act provides protections to whistleblowers who file their reports internally and not with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), a question that has split ...


07.20.17

Native Americans End Trademark Dispute With Redskins

In light of the Supreme Court’s opinion in Matal v. Tam, a group of Native Americans agreed to drop their litigation against the Washington Redskins football team, ending a dispute that has lasted more than two decades.The case began in 1992 when a group of Native Americans brought a ...


07.19.17

Breaking Into the D.C. LIHTC Affordable Housing Market

As demand for affordable housing in Washington, D.C. continues to rise, investors may show increased interest in breaking into the city’s Low Income Housing Tax Credit market. However, investors must comply with D.C.’s Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act in order to do so, which can ...


07.13.17

Supreme Court: Trademark Disparagement Clause Violates First Amendment

By Michelle A. Cooke, Co-Chair, Intellectual PropertyWhy it matters: On June 19, 2017, the Supreme Court held in Matal v. Tam that Section 2(a) of the Lanham (Trademark) Act—commonly known as the “disparagement clause”—violates the First Amendment.Detailed ...


07.13.17

Ninth Circuit: Federal Copyright Pre-empts California Publicity Right

By Michelle A. Cooke, Co-Chair, Intellectual PropertyWhy it matters: On April 5, 2017, the Ninth Circuit ruled in Maloney v. T3 Media Inc. that federal copyright law pre-empted the state law right of publicity claims of two former NCAA student athletes who had argued that ...


07.10.17

Bank Holding Company Execs Not Entitled to Insurance Coverage

By Ivan L. Kallick, Partner, BankruptcyIs a bank holding company that owns and operates banks the same entity both pre- and postbankruptcy filing for the purposes of pursuing directors and officers (D&O) insurance coverage? Yes, the U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, has ruled, finding that ...


07.07.17

FTC Updates COPPA Compliance Guidance

By Richard P. Lawson, Partner, Advertising, Marketing and MediaIn an effort to reflect developments in the marketplace, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced revised compliance guidelines for the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and the agency’s COPPA ...


07.06.17

Now Is Not the Time for Democrats to Bail on Nancy Pelosi

U.S. Rep. Kathleen Rice (D-Garden City) has boldly called for Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) to step down as House minority leader, tweeting, "It's time for Nancy Pelosi to go."   Rice was quoted in The New York Times on the GOP playbook of attacking Pelosi, "Is it ...