Readers of this newsletter know we’re big fans of high-quality medical research. Well-designed, statistically robust studies have saved lives, changed medical practice, and made the world a better place....more
On October 11, 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom signed an extensive housing package consisting of 56 bills to help address California’s decades-in-the-making housing crisis by simplifying and expediting the construction of new...more
The Mercury News – December 6- Just one day after the start of the new legislative session, Senator Scott Wiener announced Senate Bill 4 — the “Affordable Housing on Faith Lands Act.” The bill would remove red tape for...more
Decision highlights the need for applicants to focus on additional improvements to technology when drafting and prosecuting applications directed to computer-implemented diagnostics methods. On March 25, 2021, the Federal...more
On March 25, the Federal Circuit issued an opinion in In re Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior Univ., No. 2020-1288 (Fed. Cir. Mar. 25, 2021), affirming the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s rejection of the...more
In Washington - The Senate failed Thursday to advance the Republican “skinny” coronavirus relief bill, the latest blow to stalled efforts to pass another package to mitigate the pandemic’s economic damage. The measure...more
On March 12, 2019, the Justice Department unveiled its indictment and charges of 50 individuals involved in one of the most sweeping admissions scandals to hit higher education. Eight universities have been implicated in the...more
Stanford University is facing a new FCRA class action with, potentially, over a thousand class members. And it’s not the first time Stanford has faced these claims. According to the class action complaint in Richards v....more
It’s no secret that cybersecurity concerns are a daunting challenge for higher education with their sprawling networks and databases. But industry leaders are predicting that data security will be one of the most serious...more
A cybersecurity vulnerability at Stanford University exposed thousands of sensitive files containing details of sexual assault investigations and disciplinary actions. The story of what happened—and why it should be an object...more
A series of cybersecurity vulnerabilities at Stanford University exposed thousands of sensitive files containing details of sexual assault investigations, disciplinary actions and more. The details of what happened—and why it...more
The global economy must triple its annual investment in low-emissions technology, from $750 billion per year between 2010 and 2015 to $2.3 trillion per year going forward until 2040, to keep the planet under 2 degrees Celsius...more
On October 11, 2017, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and the Stanford Cyber Initiative held a joint conference on various topics related to cyber insurance. Below are key takeaways and hot topics discussed...more
In reviewing a decision from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) deciding three interferences involving competing claims directed to testing methods for fetal aneuploidies, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit...more
As the recent U.S. Commerce Department survey affirmed (and discussed in our blog previously), intellectual property (IP) is a significant driver for our economy. Since universities are both key sources of IP and training...more
In a recent decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendants in a case involving the discharge of a union employee following his alleged...more
The issue of whether students may be considered employees for purposes of organizing under the National Labor Relations Act has been hotly contested over the past decade. On August 23, 2016, the Board reversed itself again...more
A new study by Stanford University researchers finds that Medicare Advantage plans pay lower prices than traditional fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare for most types of hospital admissions. According to the study—published...more
The light criminal sentence meted out to former Stanford swimmer Brock Turner, coupled with a scathing independent report about the way Baylor University purportedly responded to claims of sex misconduct in general and sex...more
Last week, an anonymous Stanford University publication called The Fountain Hopper gained the attention of not only Stanford students, but admissions officers nationwide, when it disseminated a communication encouraging...more
In a decision this month (IPR2013-00308), the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) has ruled against Stanford University’s patented method for detecting Down’s syndrome and other chromosomal defects, finding all of the...more
Renewable Energy Focus - Another solar record set, renewables power nearly quarter of California: KCET - May 20 -- Yet another milestone in California's quest to go solar: the state's industrial-sized solar power...more
The ”hits” to data bases, in any event. Here is a rundown of some of the most recent data breach reports – Oregon Health & Science University Data Breach Compromises 3,000 Patients’ Records in the Cloud. Modern...more