The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a district court’s ruling that a copyright holder’s voluntary dismissal of its claims did not render the defendant a prevailing party entitled to attorneys’ fees under...more
California courts, like most federal courts, have historically held that a party does not waive its contractual right to compel arbitration unless the party opposing arbitration has been prejudiced by the moving party’s delay...more
Many California employers require their employees to sign agreements to submit any disputes arising out their employment to binding arbitration. If an employee files a lawsuit in court, the employer then has the option of...more
The Supreme Court of Vermont (“Supreme Court”) in a May 24th opinion addressed issues stemming from a dairy farm’s installation of a drain tile system that discharged water into a streambed and lake allegedly affecting a...more
A federal appeals court recently refused to let a mortgage broker send its former employee’s disability discrimination lawsuit to arbitration, stating the company waived its right to arbitration when it actively participated...more
When has a party waived its contractual right to arbitrate? Until recently, most federal Courts of Appeal—including the Sixth Circuit— held that a party who participates in litigation (e.g., by serving and responding to...more
People appeal their case because they want a better outcome then what they received at trial. Maybe that means that the appealing party lost a jury verdict, or felt that they didn’t “win” enough at trial. Perhaps someone in...more
Without prejudice is a phrase often used in communications between parties seeking to reach settlement. Whether or not communications will be regarded as without prejudice will depend on their substance and we recently looked...more
A recent district court decision in Sonos v. Google has set forth a novel application of the prosecution laches doctrine to a patent with a post-1995 priority date. Sonos Inc. v. Google LLC, 20-06754 WHA, 2023 WL 6542320...more
The United States District Court for the Central District of California, applying California law, has held that an insurer must show prejudice to deny coverage for untimely notice under a claims-made policy....more
Yesterday, the Second Circuit rejected U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff’s typical voir dire process and vacated a defendant’s criminal conviction, remanding the case for a new trial (United States v. Nieves, 2d Cir. Jan. 26,...more
Addressing a case where a patent owner filed hundreds of applications as part of a strategy to maintain extraordinarily lengthy patent coverage, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a district court’s...more
In Johnson v. Ontario, the Ontario Court of Appeal (the “Court”) allowed for the extension of time within which the appellant could opt out of a class action. In doing so, the Court provided welcome appellate guidance on the...more
Good news for homebuilders in Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Superior Court earlier this month affirmed a trial court order that awarded judgment on the pleadings in favor of the builder and dismissing the homeowners’...more
The U.S. court system has long recognized the difficulty with equal access to justice when an individual with limited English proficiency appears in a U.S. court. Therefore, courts across the country now require that...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, applying Delaware law, has held that an insurer was not obligated to provide coverage where the insured had provided notice of its claim after the end of the relevant...more
In a recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC), System Studies & Simulation, Inc. v. U.S., No. 2021-1469 (Fed. Cir. Dec. 30, 2021), the CAFC issued an important decision holding that...more
The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides employees essentially two paths to bring lawsuits for alleged FMLA violations: retaliation claims and interference claims....more
One of a policyholder's primary contractual duties after suffering a potential loss is to provide prompt notice to the insurer. Prompt notice is often described as a condition precedent to insurance coverage. In fact, Florida...more
The United States Supreme Court recently resolved a circuit split regarding when a party has waived its contractual right to arbitrate by participating in litigation prior to seeking to arbitrate a dispute. In Morgan v....more
Many contracts these days, including employment contracts, have provisions requiring that disputes be arbitrated rather than filed in a court. Nevertheless, a party to such an agreement will often file a lawsuit in court, and...more
A recent decision of the United States Supreme Court addressed a circuit split regarding the propriety of arbitration-specific procedural rules. In support of adopting such rules, nine of the eleven federal circuits...more
In a May 23, 2022 unanimous decision, the United States Supreme Court ruled a showing that the other side has been prejudiced by a delay is not required for a party that has proceeded with litigation to waive its contractual...more
On May 23, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court considered the question of waiver in a case governed by the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) and held that a party can waive its right to arbitration irrespective of whether the other...more
Resolving an issue over when a party has waived their right to arbitrate, the United States Supreme Court recently granted plaintiff’s a major victory, holding that litigants are no longer required to show prejudice when...more