USA

Litigation

Final does not always mean final
McDermott Will & Emery
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit denied Philips’ petition for rehearing and affirmed its decision to issue a writ of mandamus directing a district court to stay its proceedings pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1659 until the parallel US International Trade Commission (ITC) proceedings were no longer subject to judicial review.

Banking

US court rules maritime law preempts UCC
White & Case LLP
On April 24, 2007, a federal district court in the Southern District of New York held that an electronic fund transfer, or EFT, through an intermediary bank in New York can be subject to an attachment pursuant to federal maritime law, even if such attachment conflicts with New York state law regarding funds transfers.

Capital Markets

“Fraud on the market” presumption requires showing of loss causation
Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP
Plaintiffs, common stock investors in Allegiance, a national telecommunications provider, brought a securities fraud class action lawsuit under section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 alleging that former Allegiance executives fraudulently misrepresented information about the company’s operations, which resulted in a drop in the company’s stock price when a corrective disclosure was ultimately made.

Competition

Has the US Supreme Court made it harder to sue in federal courts?
Squire Sanders & Dempsey LLP
On May 21, 2007, the United States Supreme Court, in a 7-2 opinion written by Justice Souter, decided Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, determining what a plaintiff must plead to state a claim under §1 of the Sherman Act.

E-commerce

Settlement – Google news case
Venable LLP
A highly publicized case that has been going on for the last two years in which the large international service, Agence France-Presse, sued Google Inc. claiming Google, through Google News, infringed on its copyrights was settled last week.

Healthcare

District court denies all challenges to FDA decision concerning rights to market and sell generic versions of Pfizer’s Norvasc®
McDermott Will & Emery
In a case involving generic versions of Pfizer’s high blood pressure drug Norvasc® (amlodipine besylate) and the availability and applicability of both 180-day generic drug exclusivity and pediatric exclusivity the United States District Court for the District of Columbia denied all requests for preliminary injunction related to amlodipine besylate tablets and supported the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) position concerning Mylan’s current status as holder of the only approved Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for all strengths of this product.

Federal Court rules finds that resident research time may be included in IME reimbursement
Dorsey & Whitney LLP
In a decision having a significant impact on research hospitals, the Federal Court for the District of Arizona ruled that Medicare must reimburse hospitals through indirect medical education (IME) for resident time spent on research.

Florida appellate court recognizes new statutory bad faith cause of action in medical malpractice claims
Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge
A Florida appellate court has recognized a new statutory bad faith cause of action in medical malpractice claims.

Insolvency & Restructuring

Congoleum pre-packaged settlement is unreasonable and unenforceable against insurers
Wiley Rein LLP
The Superior Court of New Jersey has ruled that Congoleum's pre-packaged bankruptcy plan settling asbestos claims is not enforceable against its insurers.

Insurance & Reinsurance

New York court holds asbestos coverage available under premises-operations hazard
Wiley Rein LLP
A New York state trial court ruled on May 8 that asbestos claims arising out of a policyholder's installation of asbestos-containing materials fell within the policy's premises-operations hazard rather than the policy's products hazard.

Congoleum pre-packaged settlement is unreasonable and unenforceable against insurers
Wiley Rein LLP
The Superior Court of New Jersey has ruled that Congoleum's pre-packaged bankruptcy plan settling asbestos claims is not enforceable against its insurers.

Florida appellate court recognizes new statutory bad faith cause of action in medical malpractice claims
Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge
A Florida appellate court has recognized a new statutory bad faith cause of action in medical malpractice claims.

Intellectual Property

Federal Circuit enters the post-KSR obviousness era
McDermott Will & Emery
With the Supreme Court decision in KSR v. Teleflex barely ten days old, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit looked to the “goal” of a claimed invention and held that the invention would have been obvious over a combination of references and the knowledge of one of skill in the art.

District court denies all challenges to FDA decision concerning rights to market and sell generic versions of Pfizer’s Norvasc®
McDermott Will & Emery
In a case involving generic versions of Pfizer’s high blood pressure drug Norvasc® (amlodipine besylate) and the availability and applicability of both 180-day generic drug exclusivity and pediatric exclusivity the United States District Court for the District of Columbia denied all requests for preliminary injunction related to amlodipine besylate tablets and supported the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) position concerning Mylan’s current status as holder of the only approved Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for all strengths of this product.

Dismissal of first suit without prejudice or conditions is proper where second action on same issues is pending
Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner LLP
In Walter Kidde Portable Equipment, Inc. v. Universal Security Instruments, Inc., No. 06-1420 (Fed. Cir. Mar. 2, 2007), the Federal Circuit affirmed the district court’s dismissal of the complaint without prejudice and without conditions.

The Federal Circuit’s first post-KSR decision
Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP
On May 9, 2007, the Federal Circuit issued its first decision addressing obviousness after the Supreme Court’s recent KSR decision.

Settlement – Google news case
Venable LLP
A highly publicized case that has been going on for the last two years in which the large international service, Agence France-Presse, sued Google Inc. claiming Google, through Google News, infringed on its copyrights was settled last week.

The perception and reality of the Supreme Court's decision on obviousness
Venable LLP
The Supreme Court’s April 30, 2007 decision in KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc. strikes at the heart of the U.S. patent statute – Section 103’s criteria for determining obviousness – and as such has potentially wide-ranging implications.

Media & Entertainment

Settlement – Google news case
Venable LLP
A highly publicized case that has been going on for the last two years in which the large international service, Agence France-Presse, sued Google Inc. claiming Google, through Google News, infringed on its copyrights was settled last week.

Product Liability

New York court holds asbestos coverage available under premises-operations hazard
Wiley Rein LLP
A New York state trial court ruled on May 8 that asbestos claims arising out of a policyholder's installation of asbestos-containing materials fell within the policy's premises-operations hazard rather than the policy's products hazard.

Professional Negligence

Florida appellate court recognizes new statutory bad faith cause of action in medical malpractice claims
Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge
A Florida appellate court has recognized a new statutory bad faith cause of action in medical malpractice claims.

White Collar Crime

“Fraud on the market” presumption requires showing of loss causation
Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP
Plaintiffs, common stock investors in Allegiance, a national telecommunications provider, brought a securities fraud class action lawsuit under section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 alleging that former Allegiance executives fraudulently misrepresented information about the company’s operations, which resulted in a drop in the company’s stock price when a corrective disclosure was ultimately made.

Professional Negligence

Florida appellate court recognizes new statutory bad faith cause of action in medical malpractice claims
Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge
A Florida appellate court has recognized a new statutory bad faith cause of action in medical malpractice claims.