Gibbons Law Alert

Gibbons Law Alert

Author: Gibbons P.C.

Supreme Court to Address Evidentiary Requirements for Determining Removal Jurisdiction in Class Actions

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Posted in Class Action Defense

On May 21, 2014

The Supreme Court of the United States granted certiorari in Dart Cherokee Basin Operating Company, LLC v. Owens, to resolve a circuit split over the evidentiary standard for determining removal jurisdiction pursuant to the Class Action Fairness Act (“CAFA”). Specifically, the Court will consider “[w]hether a defendant seeking removal to federal court is required to include evidence supporting federal jurisdiction in the notice of removal, or is alleging the required ‘short and plain statement of the grounds for removal’ enough?”

It Ain’t that Obvious to Try

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Posted in Patent / Pharmaceuticals

On May 9, 2014

In Sanofi-Aventis Deutschland GmbH v. Glenmark Pharms Inc., the Federal Circuit followed previous precedent in holding that the combination of compounds is not “obvious to try” if unexpected properties are supported by evidence. The patent-at-issue was directed to an antihypertension drug, Tarka®, which is the combination of an angiotension-converting enzyme inhibitor (such as trandolapril or quinapril, both double-ring compounds) and a calcium channel blocker. The jury found that the patent had not been proven invalid and defendant, on appeal, argued that “if a combination of classes of components is already known, all selections within such classes are obvious to try . . . .” The Federal Circuit found that there was substantial evidence supporting the jury’s verdict that obviousness had not been proved by clear and convincing evidence because of the unpredicted “longer-lasting effectiveness” achieved with the drug.

In the Limelight: Induced Infringement Issues Retakes Center Stage

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Posted in Patent

On May 8, 2014

On April 30, 2014, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Limelight Networks, Inc., v. Akamai Technologies, Inc., et al., No. 12-786. We previously reported on the Federal Circuit’s twin en banc opinions in Akamai Techs., Inc. v. Limelight Networks, Inc., and McKesson Techs. Inc. v. Epic Sys. Corp., 692 F.3d 1301 (Fed. Cir. 2012), finding inducement under 35 U.S.C. § 271(b) even when a single actor was not liable for direct infringement. Both Limelight and Epic petitioned the Supreme Court for review, but the Epic case subsequently settled.

U.S. Supreme Court Gives Downwind States Breathing Room Under the Clean Air Act

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Posted in Environmental and Green Issues

On May 7, 2014

On April 29, 2014, in EPA, et al v. EME Homer City Generation, LP, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of the US Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and its controversial “Transport Rule” which curbed nitrous oxide and sulfur dioxide emissions in 27 upwind states. The Supreme Court held it was appropriate to defer to EPA’s expertise in crafting a method of implementing the Clean Air Act’s (“CAA”) “Good Neighbor” provision to reduce pollution from upwind states onto their downwind neighbors.

“School’s Out For Summer”: Legal Issues Impacting Employers Who Engage Summer Interns

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Posted in Wage and Hour

On May 6, 2014

With summer fast-approaching, employers who plan on utilizing summer interns should be aware of two issues that can have serious legal implications. The first applies to employers who engage, or are considering engaging, unpaid interns ─ when is an unpaid intern in fact an “employee” legally entitled to wages? The second issue applies to both paid and unpaid interns ─ do the discrimination laws protect interns from adverse employment actions based on their protected class status? Consideration of the these questions before “intern season” begins can avoid problems down the road and prevent expensive and time-consuming litigation.

Eleventh Circuit Holds That Complaint for Declaratory Relief is “Up to the Task” of Satisfying the $5 Million Jurisdictional Amount for CAFA Removal

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Posted in Class Action Defense

On May 2, 2014

Recently, in South Florida Wellness, Inc. v. Allstate Insurance Co., the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held that a class action complaint seeking only declaratory relief may be removed to federal court under the Class Action Fairness Act (“CAFA”), because the class members would be eligible to recover more than $5 million — the “amount in controversy” threshold for federal jurisdiction under CAFA — if such relief were granted. Central to the court’s holding was that the “amount in controversy” is an estimate of the value of what is at stake in the litigation, and not a precise measurement of plaintiffs’ likely recovery. In affirming the removal of a complaint seeking only declaratory relief under CAFA, the Eleventh Circuit offered useful insight on the burden of proof for “amount in controversy” purposes.

Upcoming Gibbons Institute Event – “USPTO Patent Post-Issuance Proceedings Under the America Invents Act” – May 6

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Posted in Patent

On May 1, 2014

On Tuesday, May 6, the Gibbons Institute of Law, Science & Technology will host, “USPTO Patent Post-Issuance Proceedings Under the America Invents Act: Considerations Impacting the Healthcare and Technology Sectors,” at 5:00 pm in the Metropolitan Room of the Newark Club. In-house patent counsel from Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, IBM, and Alcatel-Lucent are among the featured panelists.

Clouds on the Horizon: The Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments in Aereo

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Posted in Copyright

On April 30, 2014

Last week, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in American Broadcasting Companies, Inc., et al., v. Aereo, Inc., No. 12-451, a copyright action whose outcome could dramatically shape the future of television and cloud computing. Aereo is an internet start-up that uses arrays of dime-sized, customer-specific antennas to stream and store on-demand, over-the-air television, likening its technology as an alternative to an individual using, for example, an antenna and DVR to legally capture and record over-the-air content for private viewing. Fearing the loss of their intellectual property rights and lucrative retransmission fees, a consortium of broadcasters promptly sued Aereo for copyright infringement in March 2012 in the Southern District of New York. The broadcasters sought a preliminary injunction against Aereo, arguing that Aereo’s service amounted to thinly veiled public performances, and therefore, constituted copyright infringement. The SDNY, and subsequently the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, both ruled in favor of Aereo, citing the 2008 Second Circuit Cablevision case (Cartoon Network LP, LLLP v. CSC Holdings, Inc., 536 F.3d 121 (2nd Cir. N.Y. 2008)), which established the legality of using hosted DVRs to store and replay content to individual subscribers.

Supreme Court Shuts Door on Moldy Washer Litigations

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Posted in Class Action Defense

On April 30, 2014

After much anticipation, on February 24, 2014, the Supreme Court rejected, without comment, Whirlpool Corp.’s and Sears Roebuck & Co.’s bids to challenge class certification in litigations involving allegedly defective washer machines. For a discussion of the history of the “moldy washer” cases, click here and here. In denying the writs of certiorari, the Supreme Court declined to disturb the Sixth and Seventh Circuits’ post-remand orders, concluding that Comcast Corp. v. Behrend had “limited application” to decisions where determinations on liability and damages were bifurcated.

Fifth Circuit Denies NLRB Petition to Rehear D.R. Horton

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Posted in Alternative Dispute Resolution

On April 21, 2014

On April 16, 2014, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied the National Labor Relations Board’s (the “Board” or “NLRB”) petition for rehearing en banc in D.R. Horton, Inc. v. NLRB, thus upholding its December 3, 2013 decision that arbitration agreements prohibiting class or collective actions claims do not violate the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”).

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