How Does Immunity Work in a Federal Criminal Case?
Munro involved a dispute over the design of a Georgia intersection. No. A23A0404, 2023 WL 4194716 (Ga. Ct. App. June 27, 2023). The plaintiff alleged that the defendant improperly designed the intersection, never corrected...more
Welcome to Construction & Claims, a periodic digest of the headlines, statutory and regulatory changes and court cases involving construction news, claims, bid protests, contract administration and payment-related disputes....more
Consider the following hypothetical: for the last decade, Distributor, Inc., had great success selling Acme Co. widgets. The widgets are a useful consumer product, previously deemed safe for household use around kids and...more
Since it was passed in 1998, Iowa’s Drug-Free Workplaces Act has been one of the most comprehensive and complex drug-testing statutes in the United States. On June 25, 2021, the Iowa Supreme Court issued a pair of decisions -...more
Vaccine mandates are the subject of much discussion and controversy in nearly every industry, both in America and abroad. As protests rage across the country, many workers question the ability of employers to mandate...more
The United States District Court for the Western District of Washington’s decision interpreting the Health Care Quality Improvement Act, 42 U.S.C. § 11101, et seq., (“HCQIA”), highlights specific requirements for immunity...more
With the click of a pen, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a new law — the most aggressive of its kind compared to others passed across the country — that protects businesses, educational and religious institutions,...more
This 26th edition of Unprecedented, our weekly update on COVID-19-related litigation, sees us returning to now-familiar topics involving liability protection for businesses, wrongful death lawsuits (particularly those...more
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp signed Georgia Senate Bill 359 into law last week. Georgia's COVID-19 Pandemic Business Safety Act (the Act) is an undoubted win for businesses, health care and otherwise, as Georgia's legislature...more
As we continue our weekly update on COVID-19 related litigation, we have decided that this 19th issue of Unprecedented is the most fitting time for a format change to make viewing our content easier. Now, all content is...more
The Background: Test manufacturers and labs are rushing to offer molecular and antibody tests for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) to meet huge demand. Meanwhile, regulatory oversight during this national emergency has...more
The workers’ compensation statute in many states provides that the workers’ compensation benefits received by an injured employee is the employee’s exclusive remedy. The benefits are paid based on a no-fault basis and the...more
On July 1, 2019, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed into law Public Act No. 19-113 “An Act Concerning the Use of Automatic External Defibrillators” (PA 19-113). This law takes effect October 1, 2019....more
It seems sometimes that no good deed goes unpunished. Landowners who permit access to their property for outdoor enthusiasts to engage in their favorite recreational activities – such as camping, hiking and hunting – could...more
Atrium Health (formerly known as Carolinas Healthcare System) scored a big victory in its defense of an antitrust class action on March 4, when the Court ruled that the plaintiffs in Benitez v. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg...more
In a recent case, a federal bankruptcy court in Michigan reviewed important questions involving breach of fiduciary duty and the application of the business judgment rule to both management and volunteer board members of a...more
In a closely-followed dispute, the California Supreme Court vacated a lower court order, based upon a default judgment in a defamation action, which had directed Yelp, Inc. (“Yelp”), a non-party to the original suit, to take...more
Despite a recent trend indicating that it might be on life support, immunity under the Communications Decency Act (CDA) remains alive and kicking, at least in California. Based on Section 230 of the CDA, on July 2, 2018, the...more
The California Supreme Court ruled that an online publisher cannot not be forced by a court to remove a third-party post that was judicially determined to be defamatory. The 4-3 ruling by the California Supreme Court, issued...more
On July 2, 2018, the California Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Hassell v. Bird, a case that challenged the federal statutory immunity that online services have traditionally enjoyed under 47 U.S.C. Section...more
The Background: The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ("ACCC") has proposed allowing health insurer Hospitals Contribution Fund of Australia Limited ("HCF") and participating dentists to agree on the maximum...more
Retailers are familiar with Yelp.com as a ratings website with a star rating system that allows customers to rate products and services they receive, as well as add individual reviews and comments. Positive reviews can...more
On May 11, 2016, President Obama signed into law the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (“DTSA”), which amends the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 to provide a federal cause of action to private companies for trade secret...more
The new Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”) allows owners of trade secrets to now bring a civil action in federal court to protect their trade secrets and confidential information. Further, under the DTSA, a trade secret owner...more
On May 11, 2016, we reported in a WSGR Alert that under the new Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), employers seeking exemplary damages or attorneys' fees in a trade secrets misappropriation action must provide employees with...more