Many lower courts have given the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act of 1998 a wide preemptive scope. In those courts, a black-hole-like SLUSA devours all cases that come within a light year of its omnivorous gullet. If a lawsuit said pretty much anything about buying or selling an interest in a company — BAM! Into
Supreme Court Confirms That Power to Reach Out-of-Staters Turns on What They Did
The U.S. Supreme Court today held that state and federal courts sitting in State A lack the power to compel someone who resides outside of State A to answer a lawsuit in State A unless the out-of-stater did something that caused harm in State A. Hurting a person who lives in State A won't do it. You pretty
Legal Costs, the WSJ, and the Ford Pinto Case
You know what the phrase "legal costs" refers to, right? It means the amount that a plaintiff spends to achieve a recovery by way of pressing a lawsuit? US Airways, Inc. v. McCutchen, 133 S. Ct. 1537, 1550-51 (2013) (treating "legal costs" as a party's "costs of recovery").
You would never equate "legal costs" with damages – payment for actual
Constitution Bars Striking of Potential Juror for Sexual Orientation, Ninth Circuit Holds
In Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986), the Supreme Court ruled that a party may not use a "peremptory strike" to prevent a member of a jury venire from serving on a criminal jury due to his or her race. The constitutional right to "equal protection" of the laws forbids such discrimination, the
State AG’s Lawsuit Belongs in State Court, Supreme Court Holds
A 9-0 Supreme Court today ordered a federal district court to remand a case seeking restitution for all Missippians who overpaid for liquid crystal displays (LCDs) back to state court.
The lawsuit, by the Attorney General of Mississippi, accused LCD makers of conspiring to fix prices, in violation of Mississippi antitrust and consumer protection statutes.
The manufacturers removed
Supreme Court Floats Raft of New IP Cases
The big three of intellectual property disputes in federal courts – the Copyright Act, the Patent Act, and the Lanham (Trademark) Act – drew the focus of the U.S. Supreme Court today. The justices granted review in three IP cases and one IP-ish one. The cases present these questions:
Whether the Federal Circuit erred in holding
Federal Circuit Eases Test for Fee-Shifting in Patent Cases Ahead of Supreme Court Ruling
Patent law allows a trial court to make the losing party pay the winner's attorneys' fees but only in "exceptional cases". 35 U.S.C. 285. What counts as "exceptional", you say? Good question.
The U.S. Supreme Court plans to answer it in Octane Fitness, LLC v. Icon Health & Fitness, Inc., No. 12-1184 (U.S.), which
Forum-Choice Clause in Contract Trumps Local Interest in Cases, Supreme Court Holds
A contract dispute over building a child-development center at Fort Hood, in central Texas, today spawned a ruling that will bring joy to firms that put forum-choice clauses in their contracts in hopes of making lawsuits too costly to pursue.
The agreement between Atlantic Marine Construction Company and J-Crew Management, Inc., stated that all disputes between the
Chief Justice Questions Cy Pres Relief in Class Actions
On Nov. 4, Chief Justice John Roberts attached a "statement" to the Court's long list of orders in which it mainly denied review with respect to dozens and dozens of cases.
The statement related to something the Court hasn't addressed before — a challenge to a class action settlement that featured "cy pres" relief.
Cy
Quote of the Day: Richard Posner
Anyway the retroactive modification of a plan can't be used to diminish damages to which participants have been held entitled, even if the modification is lawful. In effect the defendant is arguing that okay, we screwed our participants unlawfully, but we could have screwed them lawfully, and that’s what we’ve now done by amending the