Newsletters

04.13.22

Seventh Circuit Signs Off on Termination After FMLA Leave

An employer with documented evidence of performance issues before an employee took leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act did not run afoul of the statute when it terminated the employee upon her return, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently held.


04.13.22

Supreme Court Considers Intersection of PAGA and Arbitration

The U.S. Supreme Court considered California’s Private Attorneys General Act recently, debating whether a plaintiff who filed suit under the statute could avoid the mandatory arbitration clause she signed as an employee of a cruise company because she was standing in the shoes of the state ...


04.12.22

Article Design Limited to Item Recited in Design Patent Claim

In In re SurgiSil, LLP, the Federal Circuit held that a claimed design is limited to the particular article of manufacture identified in the claim.


03.31.22

Eighth Circuit Rules Marketing Software Txt Live Not an Autodialer

In an appeal consolidating two Telephone Consumer Protection Act cases against owners of two bar establishments, Outfield Brew House, LLC, and Truman Road Developments, LLC, the Eighth Circuit ruled that the marketing software Txt Live did not meet the statutory definition of an autodialer.


03.31.22

State Telemarketing Laws Popping Up Around the Country

Florida’s passage of a Telephone Consumer Protection Act state law analogue appears to have started a trend, with similar bills introduced in Georgia, Oklahoma and Washington.


03.31.22

Request to Stop Text Messages Trumps Emergency Exception

A plaintiff’s request to stop sending text messages trumps the “emergency purposes” exception to mandated consent under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, a Florida federal court recently ruled.


03.31.22

Federal Agencies Maintain Focus on Robocalls

Both the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission have continued their push to crack down on robocalls in recent weeks, with cease and desist letters, a proposed record-setting fine, and a warning to comply with investigations or face a lawsuit.


03.22.22

Copying of Unpatented Technology Permitted When Confidentiality Obligations Terminated

In BladeRoom Grp. Ltd. v. Emerson Elec. Co., the Ninth Circuit held under English law that a reasonable person would interpret a nondisclosure agreement to end two years after signing because the NDA unambiguously terminated the confidentiality obligations after two years.


03.16.22

Sexual Harassment, Assault Claims No Longer Subject to Arbitration Under FAA

President Joseph Biden has signed the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021, allowing individuals asserting a claim of sexual harassment or assault to file suit in court despite the existence of a predispute arbitration agreement or class or collective action ...


03.16.22

Relation Back Doctrine Can Apply to PAGA Claims

Considering the intersection of the Private Attorneys General Act and the doctrine of relation back, a California appellate panel found that the doctrine can apply to the statute, opening the door to a subsequent employee to move forward with a suit dating back to the date the initial complaint was ...