Copyright Trolls

  • Morning Docket: 09.01.16
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 09.01.16

    * Quinn Emanuel sanctioned by the U.S. International Trade Commission over the Apple-Samsung case. [Law.com]

    * No rest for the dissolving: Kenyon & Kenyon hit with malpractice suit. [Law360]

    * Indiana’s Go Ahead And Hate Gays Religious Freedom Act invoked in child abuse defense. It’s truly a testament to how kerfunkered this whole election is that this episode isn’t going to be a devastating scandal for the Trump-Pence ticket. [Chicago Tribune]

    * Former tech GC takes on housekeeping gig. [Corporate Counsel]

    * Katten Muchin Rosenman; Manatt, Phelps & Phillips; and Eisner Jaffe all land stadium renaming deals, proving that there’s money to be made everywhere. Enjoy AshleyMadison.com Park! [The Am Law Daily]

    * Score one for the anti-trolls: A federal judge orders a lawyer to pay $22K in legal fees after he filed multiple lawsuits over the use of his pictures. [ABA Journal]

    * Palestinian Authority terrorism verdict given the heave ho by Second Circuit. [NY Times]

  • Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.09.15

    * Bob McCulloch, the prosecutor who handled (mishandled?) the Michael Brown / Darren Wilson case in Ferguson, Missouri, was recently named as “Prosecutor of the Year” by the Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys. This probably wasn’t a good idea. [Slate]

    * American Apparel filed for bankruptcy, and rather than Biglaw firms representing the embattled clothier, they’re trying to snatch up fees. Skadden, White & Case, and Paul Hastings are each owed quite the pretty penny. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg]

    * Which law school dean was just named as senior counsel at Dentons, the largest law firm in the world? That would be Nicholas Allard of Brooklyn Law School. Perhaps this law dean’s academic cash flow wasn’t all that it was cracked up to be. [Brooklyn Daily Eagle]

    * “Unless the industry cleans itself up, we can expect more lawsuits like this in the future.” In an interesting turn of events, the marijuana industry is now seeing its first product liability suit. A protip for growers: No one wants to smoke fungicide. [Los Angeles Times]

    * Just when you thought patent trolls couldn’t get any worse, they started to harass members of the fashion industry. Copyright trolls (i.e., Stephen Doniger and Scott Alan Burroughs) are suing over textile prints left and right, and that’s so last season. [Fortune]

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  • Copyright, Law Schools, Non-Sequiturs, Trademarks

    Non-Sequiturs: 08.29.14

    Ed. note: Due to the Labor Day holiday, we’re on a reduced publication schedule today. We’ll be back to our normal Saturday schedule tomorrow. But you don't care about that. More importantly we’ll be off on Labor Day and back to normal on Tuesday. A restful and happy Labor Day to all! * Jesus, this Elle Woods fascination just won’t die. [Law School Lemmings] * Lawyers seek to ruin something beautiful: ALS Association wants a trademark on the concept of an ice bucket challenge. [Washington Post] * Ah, fun tales of the Streisand Effect. [Popehat] * UC Davis Law saw increased applications. Dean Kevin Johnson says, “I do think the market is coming back. And I do think the naysayers of law schools and being a lawyer, their days are limited in number.” You’re the only school in California showing an increase and the country as a whole is down and you’re conveniently not charging any application fee, but yeah, our days are limited. [UC Davis Law] * Lawyer who showed up to court going by the name “Lord Harley of Counsel” gets a tongue-lashing from the judge. [Legal Cheek] * Ant-f**king. OK. [Legal Juice]
  • American Bar Association / ABA, Barack Obama, Clerkships, Intellectual Property, Law Schools, Marijuana, Non-Sequiturs, Rape, Tax Law

    Non-Sequiturs: 08.28.13

    * Fort Hood shooter Major Nidal Hasan gets the death penalty. Looks like that gradual end of the death penalty won't be fast enough for him. [CNN] * Man gets 30 days in jail for raping a 14-year-old who later killed herself. The judge explained that he’d already been punished with “the scarlet letter of the internet.” The new sentencing guidelines are really web-literate. [Jezebel] * The “most intimidating man in hip-hop” is a Columbia Law grad. Hip-hop has come a long way from allegedly dangling rappers off hotel balconies. [GQ] * Infilaw is taking over Charleston School of Law eliminating all the pretense. [Post and Courier] * On that note, Steven J. Harper discusses President Obama’s call to eliminate the third year of law school. Simpler Harper: Law schools and the ABA are too vested in ripping off students to listen to reason. [Chronicle of Higher Education] * The Internet Strikes Back: A new crowdsourcing tool tracks IP trolls. [Technology Law Source] * A call for former law clerks to fight for an end to sequestration. [Judicial Clerk Review] * The state-legal yet federal-illegal status of medical marijuana leads to some very complex tax returns. You should smoke up to take the edge off. [TaxProf Blog] * For those beginning law school, here’s some advice from the National Women Law Students’ Organization. [Ms. JD]
  • Copyright, Depositions, FCC, Intellectual Property, Non-Sequiturs, Paul Caron, Racism, Technology

    Non-Sequiturs: 08.27.13

    * Mike Brown, the man at the center of the would-be South Carolina restaurant racial discrimination suit, has a post over at xoJane telling his story. [xoJane] * Time for a Team Prenda update! Now they are making really embarrassingly terrible “your mom” jokes. [Popehat] * Contrary to Elie’s tweet, there is kind of a legal angle to the debacle at the VMAs that was Miley Cyrus dancing with an aging Michael Keaton dressed as Beetlejuice Robin Thicke. MuckRock has submitted a FOIA request to find out how many complaints were filed with the FCC. Unfortunately, my bet is that the number is more than zero, despite the FCC having no legal authority over indecency on MTV. If you have no idea what we’re talking about, here’s a collection of GIFs. [MuckRock] * Shots fired! Law Librarian Blog snarks on Law Professor Blogs 2.0 re-design. Palace Intrigue: Blogger Edition. [Law Librarian Blog] * A new website provides an online course in general deposition prep for witnesses. Will this work? Pro: Deposition prep involves haphazard application of life lessons from a lawyer’s individual career and a professionalized course is beneficial. Con: Why would a firm forfeit all those billable hours to a third-party? [The Perfect Witness] * Not every law school is cutting back. San Joaquin College of Law is expanding its enrollment. It’s not ABA-accredited, so all these students are sure to land on their feet. [KFSN] * Since we’re likely to be at war with Syria by the end of the week, here’s a thoughtful piece on the legality of intervention in light of the UN charter and moral obligations. [Boston Review]

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