Royalty ‘Expert’ Opinion Excluded in Patent Case
In this litigation involving patents-in-suit relating to electronic sourcing systems, which allow prospective buyers to locate items to buy from multiple electronic catalogs, a Richmond U.S. District Court grants defendant’s motion to exclude plaintiff’s expert in support of its claim for reasonable royalties. To prove damages, ePlus proffered the testimony of Dr. Russell W. Mangum […]
Court Can Decide Telecom Contract Case
In this contract dispute among several telecommunications carriers over fees that defendant carriers have agreed to pay plaintiff carriers for the use of plaintiff’s local telephone network facilities, a Richmond U.S. District Court sustains objections to a magistrate judge’s report and denies defendant’s motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and failure to exhaust administrative [&hell[...]
Lender Wins Claim for Loan Insurance Payment
In a mortgage lender’s suit against an insurance company that declined to cover losses on certain kinds of mortgage loans, a Richmond U.S. District Court grants partial summary judgment to the lender on its claim that defendant insurance company breached the insurance policy by denying claims on loans it had agreed to insure. Defendant AIG […]
Nightclub Owner’s Suppression Motion Denied
The owner of “Club Velvet,” a Richmond “gentleman’s club” under state and federal investigation for drug activities, liquor law violations and illegal nude lap dancing, cannot suppress evidence seized pursuant to a warrant issued by a state court, on a claim that the state warrant was subject to Fed. R. Crim. P. 41; the Richmond […]
Sanctions Denied for Destroyed Email
In DuPont’s lawsuit against a Korean competitor who hired a former DuPont employee and allegedly used DuPont’s confidential information and trade secrets to improve the competitor’s process for producing aramid fiber, a Richmond U.S. District Court denies the competitor’s motion for sanctions for DuPont’s alleged spoliation of evidence by deletion of email accounts and documents [&hellip[...]
Lender Loses Challenge to Insurance Premium Structure
A plaintiff mortgage lender “gambled and lost” when it entered into a Master Policy with defendant insurance carrier and negotiated a premium structure that made the lender’s renewal premiums a direct function of the number of defaults in the insured loan pools, which went way up during the economic downturn; although this arrangement left the […]
$212M awarded in Botox case
A Vietnam veteran who received a series of Botox injections to treat his writer’s tremor won a $212 million jury verdict against Botox manufacturer Allergan Inc. last month in Richmond federal court. Best known for its cosmetic use to smooth the faces of actors and socialites, Botox also can relieve symptoms of muscle tension and […]
Pitfalls for corporate, outside counsel shown
Imagine that you’re corporate counsel, and you’re preparing for a huge case. You learn – from opposing counsel – that one of your key witnesses may have altered two emails to enhance your case. Is eliminating those emails from the case enough, or do you have to pull out all stops to check the veracity […]
No ‘Jurisdictional Amount’ for Overpay Refund Claim
A company suing a former employee who continued to receive a salary after he resigned cannot meet the threshold $75,000 jurisdictional amount to sue the employee for a refund in federal court; a Richmond U.S. District Court says even adding the value of certain employee benefits, it still appears to a “legal certainty” that the […]
Probationer’s Involuntary Medication Ordered
The government’s request to forcibly medicate a psychotic probationer facing a revocation hearing for his supervised release status is evaluated under the same standard used for incarcerated prisoners with a mental illness, and a Richmond U.S. District Court denies his objection to forcible medication. Defendant asserts the court must review de novo the decision ordering […]
Fees, Not Dismissal, Are Sanctions for Phony Email
In-house lawyers and outside counsel for a mortgage company both say “no harm, no foul,” from their response to learning a company employee had altered email in a way that supported the company’s demand for insurance coverage for certain loan losses, but a Richmond U.S. District Court sees “willful blindness” of in-house counsel and senior […]
Court Certifies Class in Fair Credit Suit
A Richmond U.S. District Court certifies a class in a suit alleging defendant Equifax violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act by failing to update consumers’ credit reports, including plaintiff’s own report that failed to record that an uncontested judgment against plaintiff had been set aside and dismissed. In its credit reports, Equifax reports whether individuals […]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Jury reaches defense verdict in $4M med mal action
- Dental hygienist tripped, fractured right wrist, foot — $190,000 settlement
- Couple contracted Hepatitis A after dining at restaurant — $5.5M settlement
- Elderly man suffers hip fracture after attack by neighbor’s dog — $350,000 settlement
- Motorcyclist injured when vehicle abruptly changed lanes — $300,000 verdict
- Passenger ejected from car in high-speed chase crash — $685,000 settlement
- Defense verdict reached in fraud suit
- 8-year-old killed in crash involving tractor-trailer — $1,100,000 settlement
- Plaintiff conceived child after vasectomy — $250,000 settlement
- Delay in diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy led to surgery — $283,432.18 settlement
- Golfer stepped in sinkhole, fractured ankle — $442,000 verdict
- Jury sides with woman injured in rear-end collision — $300,000 verdict
viewpoint
- The promise and peril of artificial intelligence in patent law
- Keys to becoming an unfrazzled lawyer
- Confused about federal COVID-19 emergencies ending? You’re not alone
- Generative AI in law: New survey of lawyer perspectives and plans
- Four misconceptions about appeals
- Font choice exposes fabricated document
- USPTO launches first-time filer expedited exam pilot program
- In times of crisis, the ‘tug of war’ is over
- The ever-evolving Fourth Circuit
- Federal protections for pregnant, nursing employees coming
- It’s time for employers to embrace the ‘Big Quit’ and adapt
- Tell the whole truth? I’ll do better than that