The Third Circuit held today that civil claims under the Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act didn’t run afoul of "reverse pre-emption" under the McCarran-Ferguson Act. The M-F Act bars courts from reading any federal statute to "invalidate, impair, or supersede" any state law "enacted . . . for the purpose of regulating the business of
Antitrust Modernization Commission Speaks, Offers Nutty Ideas
Bloomberg published an item today on recommendations by the Antitrust Modernization Commission. If accurate, the report will provoke no joy among the private attorneys-general who prosecute civil cases under federal and state antitrust laws.
You can cast your eyeballs across your own copy of the full report, which the AMC just now made available
Certificate of Correction for Patent Can’t Broaden Claims or Correct Non-Obvious Mistakes
The Federal Circuit reversed a summary judgment of infringement because it relied on an invalid "certificate of correction". The patent related to a chemical solution that keeps heart tissue alive during surgery. The certificate of correction changed "osmolarity" to "osmolality" — terms that refer to different ways to measure solution concentration. The court held the
Iran Apologizes?
No. But its government should. Especially that pinhead Ahmadinejad.
Barry Barnett
Fiduciary Exception to Privilege Doesn’t Apply to Insurer, per Third Circuit
Does a "fiduciary exception" to the attorney-client privilege exist with respect to ERISA fiduciaries and, assuming it does, does it apply to an ERISA fiduciary that merely sells policies to health benefit plans? Skipping over the existential question, the Third Circuit held today that the exception, if it does exist, doesn’t cover fiduciaries that act
Upstream Assignment Doesn’t Defeat Diversity Jurisdiction, Eleventh Circuit Holds
Today, the Eleventh Circuit reversed dismissal of a diversity-and-RICO case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction over claims that non-diverse subsidiary corporations assigned to their diverse parent. The court did uphold the dismissal to the extent it tossed out the civil RICO counts for failure to state a viable claim, but it went on to
Defense Doesn’t Beat Bankruptcy Trustee’s Standing: Eighth Circuit
The Eighth Circuit held today that a bankruptcy trustee has standing to sue third parties for harm to the debtor in bankruptcy despite a possible in pari delicto defense. The court rejected the Second Circuit’s approach, which treats in pari delicto as a standing-killer. In re Senior Cottages of Am., LLC (Moratzka v. Morris)
Global Warming: Court Tells EPA to Regulate Greenhouse Gases
By a 5-4 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court today rejected the Environmental Protection Agency’s views (1) that the Clean Air Act doesn’t require regulation of carbon dioxide emissions from motor vehicles and (2) that, even if the Act does mandate regulation, the EPA may choose not to. Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency, No. 05-1120
Antitrust Crime Watch
A little over a month ago, Blawgletter pointed to a curious lag in antitrust law enforcement:
Blawgletter notes, with concern, that the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division hasn’t brought a single new price-fixing case in 2007. Worse, in all of 2006, the Division filed only one — against a magazine paper manufacturer — according
Reverse Darwinism: The Weak, Firing the Strong
Fredo Corleone didn’t survive the fishing
trip.
Six days ago, Blawgletter pondered "Who Hires Weak Lawyers?" We answered that clients who don’t respect lawyers do.
Today, Blawgletter goes a step further, plumbing the question of what kind of lawyer helps weak lawyers do the master’s bidding.
Current events supply context. Consider the resumes of