The US Supreme Court ruled 7-2 Tuesday in Oil States Energy Services, LLC v. Greene’s Energy Group, LLC that inter partes review, which authorizes the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to reconsider and cancel an already-issued patent claim, under 35 USC §§ 311-319, does not violate Article III or the Seventh Amendment of the [...]
The US Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Tuesday in Jesner v. Arab Bank, PLC that foreign corporations cannot be used in the US under the Alien Tort Statute (ATS) . The plaintiffs in the case are victims of terrorist attacks in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. They allege that the bank and its offices in [...]
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments in three cases Monday. In Lucia v. Securities and Exchange Commission the court heard arguments on whether administrative law judges of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are officers of the United States within the meaning of the Appointments Clause . If so, then they would have to [...]
The US Supreme Court granted certiorari Monday in two cases dealing with the question of whether breaking into a mobile home or other “nonpermanent or mobile structure” constitutes a burglary under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) , consolidating them for oral argument. The ACCA provides that people who have been convicted of “violent felonies” [...]
The EU and Mexico on Saturday signed a free trade agreement . The agreement reduces tariffs on food and drink while allowing for the EU Geographical Indications to be maintained. Irish Whiskey and French Champagne will be distinguished when sold from domestically produced products. In addition to reducing tariffs and non-trade barriers by harmonizing regulations, [...]
Indian President Ram Nath Kovind signed an ordinance Saturday that modifies the Indian Penal Code to allow for the death penalty to be imposed on anyone who rapes a child under 12 years of age. Allowing the death penalty to be imposed is not the only change to the penal code. The ordinance also increases [...]
Here’s the international legal news we covered this week: A US federal judge on Thursday sentenced a former Liberian commander known as “Jungle Jabbah” to 30 years in prison for defrauding the US immigration authorities and lying about his role during the Liberian civil war. A federal judge on Thursday enjoined the US government from [...]
Here’s the domestic legal news we covered this week: The Democratic National Committee (DNC) filed a lawsuit Friday against Donald Trump, Russia, Julian Assange, Wikileaks, and several Trump aids including Donald Trump Jr., Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort. A Texas appeals court ruled Thursday that the Relationship Privacy Act , which prescribes criminal and civil [...]
The Challenge of Policing Facebook Are our institutions up to the challenge of protecting users from information-age problems? This is the high-level question emerging from the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica debate. While on one hand Facebook and similarly-situated companies will pay some regulatory price, our public institutions are also in the crosshairs. In the U.S., the much-praised [...]
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) filed a lawsuit Friday against Donald Trump, Russia, Julian Assange, Wikileaks, and several Trump aids including Donald Trump Jr., Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort. The complaint, filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York , alleges 12 causes of action, including computer crimes, trespass, fraud, [...]
