Civil Practice Note 7, entitled “Vexatious Application/Proceeding Show Cause Procedure” (CPN 7), is a useful tool to manage hopeless litigation quickly and efficiently. Introduced in 2018, it is a summary procedure under Rule...more
In AT&T Mobility, LLC v. Rigney, 3D21-2261 (Fla. 3d DCA Sept. 6, 2023), Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal reviewed the denial of two motions for sanctions under section 57.105, Florida Statutes. In its ruling, the...more
This article originally ran in Law360 on February 10, 2023. All rights reserved. Patent litigation brought by nonpracticing entities, or NPEs, has seen exponential growth. These cases are often filed against large retailers...more
On June 8, 2020, the Supreme Court decided Lomax v. Ortiz-Marquez, No. 18-8369, holding that the Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PLRA) prevents a prisoner who has had at least three lawsuits dismissed because they were...more
In cases allegedly involving an interest in real property, the Massachusetts lis pendens statute, G.L. c. 184, § 15, allows the defendant to file a special motion to dismiss frivolous claims. If the trial court allows the...more
In a recent case, a seventh grade boy was written up by his teacher because she saw him selling candy in class. The student told an assistant principal that he had hidden the candy in the bottom of a garbage can, and a later...more
Lawyers love to follow the intricacies of litigation - we read the court decisions and follow matters through trials like some follow the latest happenings in their favorite TV drama. CRST Van Expedited v. EEOC - From...more
The US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit officially joined its sister circuits in holding that the Supreme Court standard for awarding attorney’s fees in patent cases, set forth in Octane Fitness, LLC v. ICON Health &...more
PATENT CASE OF THE WEEK - Blackbird Tech LLC v. Health in Motion LLC, Appeal No. 2018-2393 (Fed. Cir. Dec. 16, 2019) - In this week’s Case of the Week, the Federal Circuit affirmed a fee award against prevailing...more
In 2007, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit against a trucking company, alleging a pattern and practice of sexual harassment affecting a class of 270 female employees. The district court dismissed the...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: After over a decade of litigation between the EEOC and trucking company CRST Van Expedited, the Eighth Circuit recently affirmed a federal district court’s order requiring the EEOC to pay $3.3 million in...more
A district court awarded nearly $4.7 million in fees, expenses, and costs to a trucking business after the court found Title VII claims brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) to be “frivolous,...more
The Federal Arbitration Act does not preclude a court challenge to an arbitration award. The FAA, however, does establish very limited grounds for vacatur of arbitration awards. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh...more
Reaffirming that the plaintiff in a patent case has the burden of establishing that venue is proper, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a district court’s dismissal. The Court ultimately denied the...more
One of the more frustrating things about the American legal system is that it permits people to sue for anything and, sometimes, nothing at all. Our courts groan under the weight of endless claims. Some of those claims move...more
WESTECH AEROSOL CORPORATION v. 3M COMPANY - Before Lourie, Mayer, and Reyna. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington. Summary: To establish proper venue, a plaintiff must...more
The jury was still deliberating over the personal injury case in Showan v. Pressdee, No. 1:16-cv-00468-ODE (N.D. Ga.), when the senior U.S. district judge decided to “get the ball rolling” on an expected motion for damages...more
Federal Circuit Summary - Before O’Malley, Mayer, and Reyna. Appeal from the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. Summary: A case may be exceptional if: (1) fact witnesses are compensated based on the...more
The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey denied an employee’s request to reopen her case based on alleged changed attitudes “post-Weinstein.” The Court also denied the employer’s request for sanctions but...more
Seventh Circuit Rule 30(a) requires an appellant to “append to [its] opening brief[] the judgment under review and its adjoining findings of fact and conclusions of law.” Rule 30(b) further requires an appellant to include...more
Lopez v. Routt, 17 Cal. App. 5th 1006, 225 Cal. Rptr. 3d 851 (2017) - Facts: Plaintiff sued her employer and supervisor for harassment in violation of the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”). The matter...more
In four decisions from the past few months, the Seventh Circuit has staked out positions on several cutting-edge consumer class action issues. See In re: Subway Footlong Sandwich Marketing & Sales Practice Litig., 869 F.3d...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: In the latest chapter of the ongoing legal battle between the EEOC and delivery company CRST Van Expedited regarding the agency’s sexual harassment claims, a federal district court ordered the EEOC to pay...more
A flurry of activity from various courts this past week on “exceptional cases” under Section 285 of the Patent Act provided notable guidance for practitioners and patent owners, with a particular emphasis on the motivation...more
This may not be a book my new grandson Felix will soon be reading, but it does raise a legitimate question: When you really, truly, believe a federal appeal is frivolous, and not just garden variety, I know you’re going to...more