Blog Roundup
Below are several of the latest posts from the Porter Wright blog network. They cover diverse topics ranging from the recent Wal-Mart Supreme Court decision to ensnarement and SEC witness immunity to nanotechnology inclusion in the National Defense Authorization Act.
Wal-Mart v. Dukes: Supreme Court Rejects "Expansive" Gender Bias Class Action In Absence of "General Policy of Discrimination"
The much-awaited decision of the United States Supreme Court is here. Dubbed by Justice Scalia as "one of the most expansive class actions ever," the Supreme Court unanimously reversed the decision of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals which had affirmed the certification of a class of approximately 1.5 million current and former female employees alleging discrimination in pay and promotion. Read more.
Discovering Ensnarement
Ensnarement is a powerful defense in any patent case where the doctrine of equivalents is at issue. It's time for defendants to "discover" this under-utilized defense. Despite litigating numerous doctrine of equivalents cases, I've only litigated one case where an ensnarement defense was vigorously asserted. Read more.
SEC Delegates Authority To The Director of the Division of Enforcement To Issue Witness Immunity
On Monday June 13, 2011, the SEC announced that it was amending its rules to delegate authority to the Director of the Division of Enforcement to issue witness immunity orders to compel individuals to give testimony or provide other information. This rule will go into effect for an 18-month period once it is published in the Federal Register. Read more.
FY 2012 National Defense Authorization Act: The Senate
On June 17, 2011, the Senate Committee on Armed Services announced that S. 1253, the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2012 had been passed unanimously and had been reported out of Committee and sent on to the Senate for debate. S. 1253 provided $200 million in funding for the "Rapid Innovation Program" established by PL 111-383, the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act. $50 million of this is directed to the development of advanced materials, including nanomaterials, as described in S. Report 112-26. Read more.
