A federal jury in Kansas City yesterday found that Vonage infringed a Sprint Nextel patent on Internet phone calls and ordered it to pay $69.5 million. WSJ story here. Vonage suffered a similar verdict earlier this year at the hands of Verizon. See Bon Vonage.
Speaking of verdicts in intellectual property cases, Blawgletter
Per the WSJ, the Supreme Court today granted certiorari to decide "whether a patent holder can seek royalties from multiple companies as a patented product works its way through the manufacturing process." Quanta Computer, Inc. v. LG Electronics, Inc., 2007 WL 2768020 (U.S. Sept. 25, 2007). Specifically, the cert. petition asks:
Columbia University President (and lawyer) Lee C. Bollinger yesterday concluded his remarks about, and to, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with these words:
I am only a professor, who is also a university president, and today I feel all the weight of the modern civilized world yearning to express the revulsion at what you stand for.
Blawgletter pointed out two weeks ago that the D.C. Circuit hadn’t published an opinion since August 24, 2007. We looked again today, and it still hasn’t.
We also noted that the court’s pace during all of August 2007 halved its production in August 2006.
What up?
Barry Barnett
The chief judge of the Third Circuit today wrote an opinion upholding dismissal of a securities fraud complaint under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The court applied the "cogent and at least as compelling" standard that Tellabs, Inc. v. Makor Issues & Rights, Ltd., 127 S. Ct. 2499, 2510 (2007), set
The 127th installment of Blawg Review arrived right on time this morning. It fairly crackles with useful dope on voir dire. You know — that thing where you ask questions to detect the potential jurors who, if you don’t smoke them out, will sabotage your case.
Anne Reed offers the "17 Best Tips
Adam Liptak writes with wit, incision, and elegance. So today we happily feature his NYT article on former federal judge Michael B. Mukasey — "Nuance and Resolve in Rulings by Attorney General Nominee".
Mr. Mukasey comes across as a bit of a hard-ass but a fair one. He adores George Orwell — he
According to the Washington Post and the WSJ, affiliates of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Goldman Sachs have called off their deal to acquire Harman International Industries for $8 billion.
The parties signed an Agreement and Plan of Merger as of April 26, 2007. Harman anticipated a closing by year-end. But, now, KKR and Goldman
Neurontin(R) ranks 44th among the Top 50 Drugs.
Brand name drugs cost a lot more than generic versions of the same (or bioequivalent) chemical compounds. At retail pharmacies alone, consumers save over $8 billion annually by purchasing generics. Hospital buys add billions more to the savings.
But brand name drugs benefit from patent protection. A
The Federal Circuit yesterday reversed a preliminary injunction that barred a patent holder from threatening potential infringers with litigation. GP Industries, Inc. v. A Gutter Solution, LLC, No. 07-1087 (Fed. Cir. Sept. 20, 20007).
The patent holder, Eran Industries, sent letters in which it vowed to take "all necessary steps to stop the infringement"
