2021 was a doozy for business litigators — and their clients — in Florida state court. In the span of about a year, the Florida Supreme Court introduced three sweeping changes to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure: a fresh summary judgment standard, a new apex deponent rule and immediate review of early punitive damages decisions. While these changes touch all civil litigation, they've reverberated particularly powerfully throughout the Florida business litigation world ...
The Federal Circuit issued numerous precedential opinions last week, two of which answered long simmering questions about inter partes reviews (IPRs). Below we discuss a case addressing whether admissions of prior art in the patent itself can be considered as prior art in an IPR. Our Case of the Week reversed Federal Circuit precedent concerning the scope of IPR Estoppel ...
Investing in India can be challenging in view of the myriad of laws at both the Central and State level, as well as cumbersome sector specific requirements. Many-a-times, foreign investors tie up with Indian promoters to overcome these hurdles. However, difficulties get amplified when they get embroiled in litigation / arbitration with Indian promoters over issues related to mismanagement, control, earn-out payments etc ...
Key Points As of January 2022, CMS is posting each skilled nursing home's weekend staffing levels and staff turnover rates on its public-facing Care Compare website. This information will be used in the Nursing Home Five Star Quality Rating System and will affect facilities' Five Star ratings starting in July 2022 ...
Key Points As of January 1, 2022, skilled nursing facilities are not limited to hiring licensed nurses to fill the role of infection preventionist. California still requires the total time dedicated to the infection preventionist role be full-time. In January 2021, Assembly Bill (AB) 2644, codified as Health & Safety Code Section 1255 ...
Regulation (EU) 536/2014 of the Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 on clinical trials on medicinal products for human use (“Regulation”) came into force on 31 January 2022. The Regulation was adopted by the European Parliament in 2014 and released in May of the same year. It was subsequently officially published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 31 July 2021 and came into force six months after that date ...
The Third District Court of Appeal recently reinforced the deference afforded to cities and counties in interpreting subjective design guidelines for residential development. (Old East Davis Neighborhood Association v. City of Davis (2021) WL 6426082 ...
Article by Anne Coulon, Regional Legal Adviser, DFDL Thailand This article considers the various modes of dispute resolution used the most in Thailand, with particular reference to several key industry sectors of Thailand. Even where significant commercial interests are at stake, a dispute need not necessarily lead to an all-out confrontation. The opposing parties may attempt to settle their dispute through negotiation, and sometimes, mediation ...
Nature Simulation Systems Inc. v. Autodesk, Inc., Appeal No. 2020-2257 (Fed. Cir. Jan. 27, 2022) In its only precedential patent decision this week, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit corrected what it considered to be an incorrect standard for claim indefiniteness applied by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. In doing so, the Federal Circuit reversed the lower court’s holding that claims of Nature Simulation Systems, Inc ...
In this article we look at the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the social and health care sector in the build up to the upcoming Public Inquiry, due to commence in Spring 2022. Upsetting scenes arising from the COVID-19 pandemic included photographs of bereaved families with only six people in attendance at family funerals ...
January 31, 2022 By: Tracy A. Warren and Yvonne A. Ricardo 2022 has many California employers suffering from PAGA fatigue. Too many times, plaintiffs’ attorneys use the Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (“PAGA”) to drive up settlement demands, gaining large attorneys’ fees, over what are seemingly nuisance claims ...
Law No. 21,394, officially published on November 30, 2021, introduced a set of reforms to the justice system to promote efficiency in judicial processes and to limit the need for physical presence in courts. For that purpose, the Law reformed certain provisions of the Organic Code of Courts, the Code of Civil Procedure, and the Electronic Procedure Law, regarding the collection proceeding: Legal deadline to file an opposition to the collection complaint ...
The reforms introduced to the justice system by the publication of Law No. 21,394, dated November 30, 2021, has regulated transitory provisions on the procedure before courts with civil jurisdiction, Courts of Appeals and Supreme Court, for civil and commercial matters, with provisory effect, to facilitate the implementation of the permanent provisions of the Law ...
On November 30, 2021, Law No. 21,394 was published, introducing a set of reforms to the justice system to promote efficiency in judicial proceedings and to limit the need for physical presence in Courts. In addition, on December 13, 2021, the Supreme Court issued Act N°271-2021, enacting a decree (auto acordado) to regulate the remote appearance at pleadings and hearings before courts with civil jurisdiction, the Courts of Appeals and the Supreme Court ...
On November 30, 2021, Law No. 21,394 was published, introducing a set of reforms to the justice system to promote efficiency in judicial proceedings and to limit the need for physical presence in Courts. In addition, on December 13, 2021, the Supreme Court issued Act N°271-2021, enacting a decree (auto acordado) to regulate the remote appearance at pleadings and hearings before courts with civil jurisdiction, the Courts of Appeals and the Supreme Court ...
Here’s a fun conversation starter for lenders, borrowers and attorneys who regularly work on HUD-insured multifamily and health care facility loans: If HUD had a list of Ten Commandments for obtaining a HUD-insured loan, what would be Commandment No. 1? Most professionals in the HUD-insured loan universe would likely put the “first lien” requirement at or near the top of the list of Ten Commandments ...
Introduction Non-liability clauses are often included in many types of contracts. In principle, they are valid and used to limit (limitation of liability clause) or eliminate (exoneration clause) the liability of a party with respect to its obligations contained in a contract. The recent unanimous decision of the Supreme Court of Canada confirms that under Quebec law, parties may limit or exclude their liability in a contract by mutual agreement ...
The advent of streaming video on demand platforms (SVOD) has made access to virtual content relatively easy. As a matter of fact, it is one of the many benefits that comes with the internet and technological evolution. However, when sharing or transmitting virtual contents to consumers or subscribers, these platforms must ensure that the appropriate licences are obtained from holders of intellectual property rights to avoid claims of infringement ...
For many years, the question of whether there should be more openness in the family courts has been a live issue. But previous proposals calling for increased transparency, including the initial government proposal of 2006 to allow the media to report on family cases, have been unsuccessful. In May 2019, President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, launched a review into transparency in the family courts and the report outlining his findings was published on 29 October 2021 ...
