A survey by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has revealed that 47% of all UK adults now use their personal smart phone, laptop or tablet computer for work purposes - known as 'bring your own device' (BYOD).However, fewer than three in 10 users had received guidance on how to use their devices for work. This raises concerns that users may not understand how to protect the personal information accessed and stored on these devices ...
On March 28, 2013, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) issued a final order exempting specified transactions by certain regional transmission organizations (“RTO”) and independent system operators (“ISO”) from all but the general anti-fraud and anti-manipulation prohibitions of the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA”) and related CFTC regulations promulgated thereunder (“Exemptive Order”).1 This alert outlines the Exemptive Order ...
The Federal Circuit released the results of its en banc hearing of a case involving the issue of what is patent eligible subject matter under section 101 of the Patent Act. (CLS Bank International v. Alice Corporation Pty. Ltd., F. 3d., Case No. 2011 1301 (May 9, 2013) ...
On April 12, 2013, the N.C. Supreme Court stepped into the ongoing dispute regarding the 7.2 percent rate increase sought by Duke Energy and approved by the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC) in January 2012. Duke initially sought a 12 percent rate increase, but eventually entered into a settlement with the North Carolina Public Staff, setting the rate at 7.2 percent. Duke contended that it needed the higher rates to cover $4 ...
This is the first in a recurring series of articles examining the Dodd-Frank Act and its implications for community banks. This quarter’s selection takes a closer look at reforms related to corporate governance issues.In addition to extensive provisions affecting large and small institutions, the Dodd-Frank Act set forth certain corporate governance reforms all businesses, including community banks, need to keep in mind ...
The draft law governs the organization and functioning of the natural gas sector, rules and conditions for carrying out energy activities in this sector, planning and development of the natural gas market, market regulation, "unbundling" of activities, third party access to natural gas systems ...
On May 1, 2013, Spilman Thomas & Battle, PLLC, in conjunction with the North Carolina Bankers Association, held The Future of Community Banking Symposium in Greensboro, N.C. It was a day-long discussion of the issues facing and opportunities for community banking. Our day was highlighted by a keynote address from Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), who chairs the House Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit ...
The Supreme Court’s recent decision has seeded another patent protection feather in Monsanto’s increasingly large cap, in addition to providing guidance on application of the patent exhaustion doctrine in the case of self-replicating technology. In Bowman v ...
On April 12, 2013, the West Virginia Legislature passed Senate Bill 243 which contained, among other West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (“DEP”) rules, the Rules Governing Horizontal Well Development 35-8 (“Rule”). The Rule was developed to provide further direction in the implementation and administration of the Natural Gas Horizontal Well Control Act that became effective on December 14, 2011 (“Act”) ...
An intermediate appellate court in New York recently affirmed that a local government has the authority to enact zoning ordinances banning all oil and natural gas activities within municipal limits. In 2011, the Town of Dryden amended its zoning ordinance to ban “all activities related to the exploration for, and the production or storage of, natural gas and petroleum within its borders ...
Although we observed a increasingly widespread use of computer-based solutions in the cloud ( cloud computing ) in the information systems of companies and administrations, sometimes the obvious advantages it brings to the customer do not pay the necessary attention to the assessment of corporate risks that can generate its adoption ...
As Panama became part of a number of industrial property related treaties, our internal laws have become more territorial; the use of a trademark is territorial again and registration becomes imperative for protection. Use as a Basis for Protection In Panama, as happens in most of the countries around the world, the right to register a trademark is acquired by its first use in commerce ...
In the last legislative session (2011–12), bills that would have imposed severe restrictions or even an outright moratorium on hydraulic fracturing (HF) were narrowly defeated in the California legislature. Earlier this year, we issued an alert regarding draft regulations that had been issued by the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources ...
As anticipated, on May 29, 2013, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau delivered the final version of amendments to its January 2013 Ability-to-Repay/Qualified Mortgage rules (the bureau released an early draft of the amendments when the original rule was published). For more information about the Ability-to-Pay/Qualified Mortgage rules, see our prior alerts.1 The rules, as well as the amendments, take effect on January 10, 2014 ...
Last fall, I wrote an article for Carolina Banker magazine excitingly titled “Bank Liability to Non-Customers in a Ponzi Scheme.” The crux of it concerns the potential liability to banks in Ponzi schemes and the precautions banks should take to mitigate that risk ...
It’s been well reported that the singer Rihanna has sued the UK retail chain Topshop for US$5 million in damages for the unauthorised use of her image on a t-shirt. Rihanna is apparently suing for passing-off, the argument being that people seeing the t-shirt are likely to assume that she has endorsed the brand. This may have got you wondering what the law is in South Africa on the issue of unauthorised endorsement ...
Domain names and trade marks are inextricably linked. The reason for this is simple – when a company needs to decide on a name at which it wants people to find it on the Internet, it generally opts for one of its own trade marks. As a result, the issues that crop up in trade mark disputes often crop up in domain name disputes too ...
The KZN High Court handed down a really interesting judgment in May 2013 in the case of Distell v KZN Wines & Spirits. The decision’s interesting because it not only looks at the issues that need to be considered in a trade mark infringement claim, but it also highlights the differences between trade mark infringement and passing off ...
Recently, the Court of Québec reminded merchants of their responsibility to ensure that consumers are cognizant of important contractual clauses at the time a contract is entered into. In the case of 159191 Canada inc. (Discount Location d’autos et camions) c. Waddell1, the Court had to decide whether a clause in a two-page vehicle rental contract which excluded insurance coverage in a specific situation was valid under Québec law. FACTSThe facts of the case are as follows ...
You’ve seen all the articles about the Supreme Court’s decision in Assoc. for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics Inc. and the end of DNA patents, but what does this mean outside the biotech world? It means more insight into patent eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101. While Myriad does not affect business method and software patents, it is indicative of the general trend of the Supreme Court with respect to the threshold required to obtain a valid patent ...
In January 2012, the Electronic Commerce Committee of the Canadian Council of Insurance Regulators (CCIR)1 released an issue paper entitled “Electronic Commerce in Insurance Products”, through which it invited insurers and intermediaries to provide feedback on certain targeted issues respecting online insurance distribution.Many stakeholders responded; 25 submissions were sent to the CCIR ...
On June 14, 2013, the Act respecting insurance (Quebec) (the "Act") was amended by sections 1 to 5 of An Act to amend various legislative provisions mainly concerning the financial sector. The new sections, 66.1.1 to 66.1 ...
On June 13, 2013, the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals (WVSCA) issued its decision in Faith United Methodist Church & Cemetery of Terra Alta, et al. v. Morgan, No. 12-0080, setting forth a clear definition of the term “surface” when used in deeds and other instruments of conveyance. This definition will weigh importantly on the state's shale gas industry ...
