Changes in Europe that are Critical for Patent Holders After 45 years, the European Patent Office is replacing the existing regional patent system that has local enforcement with a new Unitary Patent (UP) system that has enforcement throughout Europe by a Unified Patent Court (UPC). Not only will Unitary Patents (UPs) be subject to the UPC, but existing European patents will also be subject to the UPC unless specific actions are taken. This long-awaited change is significant and alters the landscape...

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Last week, the first jury trial under the Illinois Biometric Privacy Act (BIPA) resulted in a $228 million verdict in favor of the plaintiff and the class. The case, Rogers v. BNSF Railway Co., was filed in May 2019 and was pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. A class was certified in March 2022. Plaintiff alleged that BNSF unlawfully scanned his and other truck drivers’ fingerprints for identity verification when he and they visited...

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On October 11, 2022, the U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced settlements with Bittrex Inc. (Bittrex). The settlements arise from violations of the Bank Secrecy Act—the federal law that imposes anti-money laundering (AML) requirements on financial institutions—and violations of OFAC's sanctions regimes. This matter represents the first time that FinCEN and OFAC jointly have penalized a money services business (MSB) for inadequately monitoring virtual currency transactions for suspicious and illegal activity....

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Amongst the various measures provided by the so-called Labour Deal to improve employees’ work-life balance, is the alternating weekly working regime. In short, this system allows full-time employees to work more one week and less the following week. Part-time employees are excluded since the existing legal framework already allows them to organise their working regime in cycles that extend over more than one week in which periods with longer and shorter working hours alternate in a fixed order. Employer’s choice The draft Act...

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We are thrilled to welcome our newest Senior Associate: Daniel Jason Ain. We are thrilled to welcome Daniel Jason Ain as the newest member of our Media and Entertainment and Employment Departments. Dan counsels production companies, independent producers, and talent on a broad range of projects across all stages of development and production. He brings to our firm years of experience representing talent in entertainment transactions, including in film, television, digital media, theater, live music, podcasts, literary publishing, and endorsements....

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Cozen O’Connor served as U.S. and Canadian counsel in Investindustrial’s acquisition of a majority stake in Eataly S.p.A., the global chain of upscale Italian marketplaces. A team led by M&A attorney and Italy Practice Chair Christian Moretti conducted significant due diligence of more than 20 Eataly businesses in the United States and Canada, in collaboration with Deloitte Legal Italy and Studio Legale Chiomenti. For nearly two decades, Eataly has been operating high-quality Italian food markets and restaurant concepts in prestigious locations...

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Editor's Note: In the U.S. laws and regulation space, the White House is focusing on privacy, evident through its session on accountability for big tech and the recent executive order highlighting cybersecurity risks. Meanwhile, the governor of California signed into law the Age-Appropriate Design Code Act and the New York legislature is considering a similar bill titled the Child Data Privacy and Protection Act. In U.S. litigation, a former security chief was convicted of obstructing justice in relation to...

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On Oct. 3, the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) took another step in identifying, assessing, and responding to the risks various types of digital assets pose to the financial system by releasing its Report on Digital Asset Financial Stability Risks and Regulation (Report) in response to President Biden’s March 2022 Executive Order on “Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets.” The Report reviews the specific financial stability risks and regulatory gaps digital assets pose and provides recommendations to address such risks....

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Amidst the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, some U.S. taxpayers were unable to file their 2019 or 2020 income tax returns within the IRS’ filing deadlines The Internal Revenue Service, in a show of understanding, fully waived penalties for individual taxpayers and businesses who filed certain late returns by September 30, 2022. Although the deadline has recently passed  — and the IRS is not extending it — taxpayers who file late 2019 or 2020 returns may nonetheless be eligible...

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Commission recommends candidate status for Bosnia and Herzegovina The EU is in favor of nominating Bosnia and Herzegovina as a candidate for accession to the European Union and has recommended the EU Council to grant the country candidate status. This was announced by the Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday at the European Union Ambassadors’ Conference where the Commission presented their 2022 Enlargement Package, evaluating the reforms in the Western Balkan states and Turkey. Keep reading. MEPs support new...

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