On January 4, the USPTO announced the appointment of new leaders for the agency’s policy and communications teams. Sharon Israel will serve as the Chief Policy Officer and Director for International Affairs, and Jack...more
In recent years, conjoint analysis has proliferated as a methodology for calculating class-wide damages in consumer class actions. While conjoint analysis first emerged as a marketing tool for measuring consumers’ relative...more
In January, GM became the first large US auto manufacturer to commit to stop manufacturing gasoline-powered passenger cars and switching entirely to zero emissions vehicles for passenger cars, vans, and SUVs by 2035. The news...more
This report helps automotive suppliers inform their legal and operational decisions to help address challenges and opportunities. Key developments - IHS Markit predicts a global production loss of 1.3 million...more
Notable Cases - Here are a few of the major cases of interest within the state Attorneys General community that are receiving significant press coverage. ...more
West Virginia Supreme Court Hears Arguments in Horizontal Drilling Taxation Case Involving Antero - "At issue is a consumer sales tax assessment of around $1 million the West Virginia State Tax Department has levied on...more
On September 11, the Central District of California granted summary judgment in a putative class action involving an alleged defect in Honda vehicles. The court’s order provides a thorough dissection of the methodological...more
On July 28, the Ninth Circuit held in a putative automotive class action that the jurisdictional requirements of the Class Action Fairness Act (“CAFA”) do not override the more specific jurisdictional requirements under the...more
COVID-19- Attorneys General Are Vigilant About Pandemic-Related Price Gouging and Illegal Balance Billing- •Pennsylvania AG Josh Shapiro sued online seller M & B Multi Services Inc. and its owner (collectively “M&B”)...more
Report on Supply Chain Compliance 3, no. 13 (June 25, 2020) - A cyberattack brought Honda Motor Company Ltd.’s manufacturing, financial services and customer services operations to a standstill, the company announced via...more
Decorated lead automotive analyst John Murphy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch recently unveiled the 2020 edition of his much anticipated “Car Wars” report. The premise of Car Wars is simple: for automakers, a faster...more
On April 29, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court’s order denying a motion to certify a putative class of consumers who purchased or leased Honda Pilots with allegedly defective power windows. The court also affirmed...more
PATENT CASE OF THE WEEK - Arctic Cat Inc. v. Bombardier Recreational Products Inc., Appeal No. 2019-1080 (Fed. Cir. Feb. 19, 2020) - In this week’s Case of the Week, the Federal Circuit addresses issues relating to the...more
McDermott’s Annual European Competition Review summarizes key developments in European competition rules. During the previous year, several new regulations, notices and guidelines were issued by the European Commission. There...more
The Chinese Supreme People's Court ("SPC") recently handed down its latest judgment on whether Original Equipment Manufacturing ("OEM") may constitute trademark infringement in China. In its judgment, the SPC refines its...more
The Department of Justice (DOJ) recently reached a settlement with Honda Aircraft Company, LLC (Honda Aircraft) resolving a claim that Honda Aircraft violated the Immigration and Nationality Act’s (INA) anti-discrimination...more
Quite a start to the week for consulting powerhouse McKinsey & Co., with a Times expose on the questionable relationship between McKinsey’s clients and the investments its hedge fund has made in those same clients, not to...more
Honda is joining forces with General Motors in an effort to win the race to develop self-driving cars through a $750 million stake in GM’s Cruise Holdings autonomous vehicle unit. The Japanese carmaker plans to contribute a...more
Mirroring Kevin Durant joining forces with his direct competition, the Golden State Warriors, Honda and General Motors (“the companies”) have teamed up – working together on next-generation electric vehicle (“EV”) batteries –...more
Automakers reported strong June sales in the United States. Riding a wave of truck sales and new crossovers, GM posted a 4.6% increase for the second quarter and increased its market share to 16.6%. Ford increased total sales...more
On June 8, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced a monetary penalty against American Honda Finance Corporation (American Honda) for alleged violations of the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR), the...more
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has issued a £70,000 fine against Flybe and a £13,000 fine against Honda Motor Europe Ltd for breaching Regulation 22 of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR)...more
On March 16, 2017, the Federal Communications Commission’s Media Bureau (Bureau) released a Memorandum Opinion and Order (Order) addressing Honda Motor Co., Ltd’s (Honda) January 2017 petition for limited waiver of video...more
One of the highlights at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) was the parade of new connected vehicle technologies. Automakers and their suppliers rolled out a number of innovative capabilities that promise to shape...more