Prosecution Pointer 130

A federal court in California denied preliminary approval of a $2.3 million data breach settlement affecting over 220,000 individuals, finding seven critical deficiencies in the proposed agreement. The decision highlights the rigorous scrutiny courts apply to class action settlements, particularly regarding claims-made distribution processes, inadequate documentation of settlement value, and unexplained disparate treatment among class members.

On August 21, 2026, the Tenth Circuit granted the NCAA’s stay request in Wisne v. NCAA, temporarily restoring the NCAA’s age-based eligibility rules pending resolution of the appeal. Three weeks earlier, Judge Sweeney of the District of Colorado had issued a nationwide injunction that permitted athletes in the Class of 2022 to pursue a fifth year of eligibility.

The New Jersey Supreme Court refused to allow a respondent to benefit from its refusal to pay arbitration fees in Roach v. BM Motoring, LLC, 2017 WL 931430 (NJ March 9, 2017).

The top ten largest class action settlements in securities cases in the U.S. have recouped tens of billions of dollars in damages.

Concora Credit has agreed to pay $9.375 million to settle a TCPA class action lawsuit over wrong number robocalls, with prominent TCPA attorney Mike Greenwald securing another major victory. The settlement includes over $5 million for approximately 147,000 class members, $3 million in attorney fees, and a commitment to spend at least $1 million on TCPA compliance over three years.

A federal judge in Florida has ruled that cell phone users cannot sue under the TCPA's do-not-call provisions, determining that the FCC exceeded its authority when it extended protections to wireless subscribers in 2003. The decision challenges decades of regulatory interpretation and could fundamentally reshape telecommunications privacy litigation if adopted by other courts.

The First Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed the dismissal of a securities fraud class action against a biopharmaceutical company, ruling that literally true statements about clinical trial results were not actionable half-truths under securities law. The decision centered on whether the company's statements about the absence of retinal vasculitis cases in drug trials were misleading, despite following FDA-approved protocols that plaintiffs argued were insufficient to detect the condition.

The Fifth Circuit's en banc decision in Sterling v. City of Jackson tests whether residents exposed to lead-contaminated municipal drinking water can sue under Section 1983 for substantive due process violations. In a 10-5 ruling, the court held that environmental harms caused by government mismanagement belong to tort law and the political process, not constitutional claims, creating a significant circuit split with implications for how environmental compliance failures by public officials are litigated.

A federal court granted Disney's motion to compel arbitration in an antitrust class action, allowing the company to invoke fuboTV's subscriber terms of service after acquiring a 70% stake in the streaming platform. The ruling demonstrates how corporate mergers can fundamentally alter litigation strategy by enabling non-signatories to enforce arbitration agreements containing "future affiliates" provisions.

O'Reilly Auto Parts and its BigLaw counsel agreed to pay $18.8 million to settle a TCPA class action involving SMS messages to numbers on the DNC list, despite the claim potentially being invalid under recent Seventh Circuit precedent. The settlement, reached just weeks after oral arguments suggested SMS messages may not constitute "telephone calls" under the TCPA, could result in over $6.2 million in attorney fees while class members receive modest payouts for claims that may not legally exist.

The U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security issued guidance on May 31, 2026, clarifying licensing requirements for advanced computing items and AI technologies. The guidance maintains export restrictions for entities in certain countries while providing limited relief for data center operators, though questions remain about future regulatory direction. Companies must now strengthen their compliance programs and supply-chain due diligence as BIS continues to prioritize national security

On May 27, 2026, the Superior Court of California held that subdivision (a) of California Penal Code § 638.51 does not apply to software on commercial websites. Plaintiff Brian Blaker sued Defendant NetScout, Inc., alleging the Defendant had violated § 638.51 of the California Invasion of Privacy Act by implementing a software development kit (SDK) on its website.

In Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation v. Torrent Pharma Inc., No. 2023-2218 (Fed. Cir. Jan. 10, 2025), the Federal Circuit reversed the district court's determination...

The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board's precedential decision in In re Everwise Credit Union examines whether a credit union's use of its mark constituted bona fide commercial use or merely token use designed to reserve trademark rights. The case centers on whether Everwise Credit Union had actually used its mark in commerce by the deadline to file its Statement of Use, or whether the mark's appearance on its website was simply a placeholder for a future rebrand that occurred two months later.

The USPTO recently extended the After Final Consideration Pilot (AFCP) 2.0 to September 30, 2024. AFCP 2.0 is part of the USPTO's ongoing effort toward compact prosecution...

WIPO provides a list of those States bound by the Paris Convention but not the PCT here.

Prosecution Pointer 135.

The Federal Circuit vacated a preliminary injunction in a patent infringement case involving electrical outlet cover products, finding that the district court made critical errors in its claim construction analysis. The appellate court determined that the lower court improperly imposed unsupported limitations on key patent terms and incorrectly applied a presumption of irreparable harm.

A Massachusetts district court grants a joint motion to stay proceedings while the parties conduct venue discovery and brief a motion to dismiss or transfer in a patent infringement case between Advanced Surgical Concepts Limited and Intuitive Surgical, Inc. The order establishes specific parameters for discovery scope and briefing schedule before other case deadlines resume.

On February 5, 2024, the USPTO will retire the Electronic Patent Assignment System (EPAS) and the Electronic Trademark Assignment System (ETAS).