A recent opinion from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi – Tanks v. Lockheed-Martin Corp., 2004 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17123 (August 13, 2004) – suggests that an employer may not rely on the "exclusive remedy" provision of a state workers compensation statute when faced with a wrongful death claim brought by the estate of a victim of workplace violence.

If you represent a non-US client considering acquiring a US company, or a US company being considered for such an acquisition, be aware of the closer scrutiny that these transactions may experience in the current political climate.

Property owners and prospective purchasers of contaminated properties should carefully assess their strategies for managing environmental risk in light of a recent United States Supreme Court decision that changes previously settled rules governing recovery of environmental cleanup costs. <i>Cooper Industries, Inc. v. Aviall Services, Inc.</i>, decided in December 2004, establishes a significant roadblock to recovery of voluntary cleanup costs

The California Senate’s passage last month of legislation that would restrict the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) systems and the FTC’s plans to host a public workshop next month regarding the implications for consumers of this item-tagging technology are certain to heighten regulatory scrutiny of RFID systems.

For more than 50 years, courts have allowed local governments to use the power of eminent domain not just to clear slums or eliminate blight but also to facilitate pure economic development projects. But, in reaction to abuses of eminent domain, during the last eight years state courts from Illinois to Arizona, Oklahoma, and New Jersey have checked local governments by delivering restrictive rulings based on the "public use" requirement of eminent domain.

On January 29, 2004, the Federal Trade Commission published a notice of proposed rulemaking to establish a mark that will be required to be included in commercial electronic mail that includes sexually oriented material under Section 5(d) of the CAN-SPAM Act. The purpose of this mark is to inform the e-mail recipient that the message contains sexually oriented material and to help facilitate filtering of such messages.

The realities of September 11 and the conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Israel have focused the attention of the Bush Administration on homeland security as both a domestic policy and procurement priority. Facilitated by congressional willingness to enact special legislation and to allocate staggering amounts of appropriated funds to protecting against terrorist attacks, the United States government has created unprecedented business opportunities for companies developing and selling anti-terr

In most cases in which a court discusses whether a particular relationship is a "franchise," the purpose is to determine whether the contractual arrangement falls within the scope of a state disclosure or relationship law and the consequences that flow from such determination.

The extent to which neutral third parties may be embroiled in disputes between unions and other employers is a recurring issue that tests the boundaries of the First Amendment and the National Labor Relations Act.

Many franchisors own a number of U.S. trademark registrations for their principal mark. In some cases, the registrations cover the main business activities of the franchisor; in others, the registrations cover the services the franchisor provides its franchisees to establish and support its franchisees’ businesses.

In one of the first appellate court decisions to address the SEC’s ability to impose civil penalties against directors in administrative proceedings under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, on November 15, 2005, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia criticized the SEC for being "arbitrary and capricious."

The Federal Circuit recently revived the long-dormant legal canon that the possession of a patent creates a rebuttable presumption of market power - at least in tying cases brought under Section 1 of the Sherman Act

A recent development in federal securities law offers a strong defense for public companies accused of issuing false or misleading registration statements related to their public offerings of stock. On March 1, 2005, in the first published appellate decision on the issue, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an opinion in <EM>Krim v. PCOrder.com, Inc</EM>., Cause No. 03-50737, that greatly restricts who can bring suit under Section 11 of the Securities Act of 1933.

Under the Uniform Commercial Code (the UCC) in effect before July 1, 2001 (the Old UCC), financing statements filed in Maryland were effective for 12 years. Secured parties that filed financing statements in Maryland under the Old UCC would not have needed to continue those filings for 12 years.

On October 17, 2005, many of the provisions of the recently enacted Bankruptcy Abuse, Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 go into effect.

During the past few years, the United States has been negotiating bilateral agreements with the United Kingdom and Australia that would create a license exemption for exports to those countries of most items controlled by the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) (such as defense articles, including commercial satellites, and related technical data).

With recent increases in federal procurement activity and further increases expected - particularly in the areas of defense and homeland security - the Department of Justice is gearing up for a potential increase in procurement fraud investigations and prosecutions.