Summary: Over the past several years, the United States Supreme Court has become increasingly involved in the area of intellectual property law.  During that time, the Court has issued significant decisions on, among other things, patent eligibility, indirect infringement, the definiteness requirement, enhanced damages and fee shifting.  The renewed focus on intellectual property law appears poised to continue into 2017, with the Supreme Court scheduled to issue decisions addressing a variety of issues, including venue in patent cases, the functionality...

On January 9, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a decision in Phigenix, Inc. v. Immunogen, Inc.1 dismissing an appeal by a petitioner from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) for lack of standing. The court held that a petitioner must be able to prove a case or controversy in its opening brief to establish its right to be heard on appeal. Background In 2011, Congress created new processes for challenging the patentability of patent...

On 30 November the European Commission published its long awaited Final Report on the capacity mechanism sector inquiry in the electricity market. The report is complemented by the “Clean Energy for All Europeans” package which will create a European legal framework for capacity mechanisms, introduce concrete rules for cross-border participation and lead to the integration of capacity markets. This new legal framework will clarify state aid assessment of capacity mechanisms by the Commission. Capacity mechanisms are support mechanisms set up by...

According to Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez, the “largest question” for the incoming administration will be how to “embrace innovation” as part of the changing nature of work, while ensuring a level of workforce protections for participants in the on-demand economy. In his Memorandum to the American People, Perez highlighted the Department of Labor’s regulatory and policy achievements over the past eight years, called on the new Congress to enact federal employment legislation, and urged the DOL under President-elect Trump...

CMBS trading activity resumed after the holiday break on Tuesday,  with volume picking up in the latter part of the week. In line with broader market equity gains, CMBS cash spreads narrowed three to 10 basis points up and down the credit stack in the past week. For CMBX indexes, Wednesday’s news of retail earnings and mass of closures appeared to weigh on spreads the following day, although, overall spreads have tightened from a weekly perspective. While CMBX 6/7/8/9 AAA...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – January 9, 2017 – Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. (Ogletree Deakins), one of the largest labor and employment law firms representing management, is pleased to announce that it has opened an office in Sacramento, Calif., expanding the firm’s presence in California and bolstering its capabilities for assisting clients with operations on the West Coast. The Sacramento office is the firm’s 50th internationally and its sixth in California. The Sacramento office joins a network of...

Harry Clark, leader of Orrick’s International Trade & Compliance team, recently spoke with The Wall Street Journal for a series of posts on its Risk & Compliance Journal blog about economic sanctions policies under the incoming Trump administration. Harry noted that while many expect sanctions against Russia to be eased by the Trump administration, it is unlikely, in his view, that the new administration will broadly roll back sanctions on Russia. This is due to congressional opposition associated...

There are, even by the most conservative estimates, billions of objects and devices connected to the Internet. Various estimates place the total number of connected devices between 40 to 50 billion by 2020; and these devices together make up the Internet of Things (IoT).  Companies across a multitude of industries are pioneering this technology and demonstrating its long-term potential. According to one forecast, spending on industrial connected objects this year alone will total nearly $870 billion, compared with $546 billion...