Law Reports

By Tamlin H. Bason A federal district court erred in dismissing a trade secrets claim under the relevant statute of limitations by failing to take into account significant evidence in the record, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled April 5 in an opinion designated as not for publication (Kendall Holdings Ltd. v. [...]

By Diane Davis The U.S. Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Eighth Circuit March 22 held that bonus payments received post-petition by a Chapter 7 debtor from her employer are not property of the debtor’s bankruptcy estate (Seaver v. Klein-Swanson (In re Klein-Swanson), B.A.P. 8th Cir., No. 12-6054, 3/22/13). Reversing the decision of the bankruptcy court, Judge Barry [...]

By Eleanor S. Tyler Two proposed classes of employees from Silicon Valley firms alleged to have conspired to drive down workers’ pay cannot be certified, although the employees may amend their motion in light of discovery produced since the first attempt was filed, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruled April 5 (In re [...]

By Marc Heller Congressional supporters of internet sales tax legislation have been pushing for a simpler system that will let online retailers seamlessly collect taxes for states around the country. But in passing their bill through the Senate March 22, they accepted one new wrinkle: a possible exemption for sales of business inputs. Freeing online sales [...]

By Richard Hill Louis Freeh, the Chapter 11 trustee for MF Global Holdings Ltd., parent of bankrupt futures commission merchant MF Global Inc., told the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York in a report April 4 that chief executive officer Jon Corzine failed to strengthen long-known internal control weaknesses at MFG, making [...]

By Paul Stinson AUSTIN, Texas–American Airlines cleared a significant hurdle in its bid to become the world’s largest airline March 27 as a U.S. bankruptcy judge approved the proposed $11 billion merger of the Chapter 11 debtor with US Airways Airways (In re AMR Corp., Bankr. S.D.N.Y., No. 11-15463-SHL, bench ruling 3/27/13). The approval also helps cut a path [...]

By Anne A. Marchessault A former physical education teacher with the New York City Department of Education can advance her age-based hostile work environment claim against the department, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York decided March 29 (Thomas v. New York City Dep’t of Educ., E.D.N.Y., No. 1:10-cv-00464, 3/29/13). Anna-Marie Thomas was plausibly subjected [...]

MOSCOW–The Russian Federal Service for Intellectual Property (Rospatent) on April 3 released a summary of its rulings and related court cases in connection with IPR protection matters. The agency focused on measures aimed to recognize intellectual property rights and give adequate protection to IPRs of businesses, it said. Rospatent also prioritized measures to deter IPR [...]

Matthew Taylor, a former Goldman Sachs & Co. (GS) derivatives trader, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud April 3 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York over his alleged role in a fraudulent scheme that eventually cost the firm $118 million (United States v. Taylor, S.D.N.Y., No. CR-13-_, [...]

The Italian government needs to clarify how the new Italian financial transactions tax applies to U.S. brokers as soon as possible–including whether or not the United States is treated as blacklisted, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association said in a March 28 letter. Italy is in the first wave of 11 European Union countries [...]

By David McAuley Substantiated allegations that a group of unidentified Chinese individuals used domain names that were nearly identical to <toryburch.com> to peddle low-quality products bearing counterfeited Tory Burch LLC trademarks were enough to award the fashion retailer an ex parte order transferring the domain names under the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, the U.S. District Court [...]

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held March 28 that a U.S. Tax Court proceeding brought by a bankrupt debtor is an independent judicial proceeding not subject to the automatic stay because it is not the continuation of an administrative proceeding against the debtor (Schoppe v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, 10th Cir., No. [...]

By Kevin P. McGowan An airport shuttle driver in Baltimore who worked under a franchise agreement with Shuttle Express Inc. must arbitrate his Fair Labor Standards Act and state law wage claims against the company despite a class action waiver in the agreement’s arbitration clause, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled April 1 (Muriithi [...]

The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland March 28 dismissed an investor securities suit over accounting problems at diet concern Medifast Inc.(MED) during a period of rapid growth (Proter v. Medifast Inc., D. Md., Civil Action No. GLR-720, 3/28/13). Judge George Russell III dismissed the litigation in its entirety, determining that, when viewed collectively, the lead [...]

By Lydia Beyoud Large banks and companies with significant deferred tax assets should be wary of the tax accounting that would be necessitated by any reduction to the corporate tax rate, likely causing hundreds of millions in reduced earnings on company accounts, a tax accounting specialist said March 29. In corporate tax reform, banks and [...]

By Anna Kwidzinski A former manager of a Burger King restaurant in Pennsylvania may advance her disability discrimination claims because questions exist about whether she was fired for violating a company rule or for taking too much time off to care for her son, who had cancer, a federal judge in Pittsburgh ruled March 27 (Buffington v. PEC [...]

By Diane Davis The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California March 12 held that a Chapter 11 debtor is entitled to summary judgment on one of its prepetition transfers to the defendant as an avoidable preference under Bankruptcy Code Section 547(b) (Imagine Fulfillment Services LLC v. DC Media Capital LLC (In re Imagine [...]

By Tom Azzopardi SANTIAGO–The Chilean government will send legislation to Congress to reduce the stamp tax charged on most financial transactions from 0.4 percent to 0.2 percent, Finance Minister Felipe Larrain said March 26. “This is a strong economic stimulus, especially for small and medium-sized businesses and vulnerable sectors, as this tax affects financing and discourages [...]

By Anandashankar Mazumdar An affidavit including assurance that its statements were made to the best of the affiant’s knowledge, memory, and belief did not trigger a provision in a settlement agreement that permitted termination if the affidavit had been false, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled March 18 in a decision designated [...]

By Robert Iafolla Employers increasingly are rewarding some workers and penalizing others as part of their employee wellness programs, with 83 percent of companies using some type of incentive, the human resource consulting firm Aon Hewitt said March 25. Of the nearly 800 employers responding to an Aon Hewitt survey, 79 percent said they offered rewards [...]