Civil Law

Bipartisan U.S. Federal Privacy Bill Circulated

Keypoint: The chances for the United States to finally enact a federal privacy bill appear to have increased with the circulation of a bipartisan discussion draft although its chances for passage are far from clear.

On Friday, June 3, House and Senate leaders released a bipartisan discussion draft of a comprehensive data privacy bill called the American Data Privacy and Protection Act (ADPPA). Although there have been many federal privacy bills introduced in the past, this discussion draft is gaining … Read the rest

Civil Law

OECD Releases Public Consultation Documents on Tax Certainty Aspects of Amount A: Public Comments Due June 30, 2022

On May 27, 2022, the OECD released two public consultation documents related to the tax certainty aspects of Amount A.  The first, entitled Pillar One – A Tax Certainty Framework for Amount A(the Amount A Draft), proposes new mechanisms for multinational enterprises (MNEs) to obtain certainty on different aspects of Amount A.  The second, entitled Pillar One – Tax certainty for issues related to Amount A (the Related Issues Draft), proposes a mandatory binding dispute resolution mechanism for issues … Read the rest

Civil Law

Fresh organic strawberries likely spread hepatitis A in U.S. and Canada

The FDA, along with CDC, the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, state, and local partners are investigating a multistate outbreak of hepatitis A infections in the United States and Canada potentially linked to fresh organic strawberries branded as FreshKampo and HEB, purchased between March 5, 2022, and April 25, 2022.

Currently, the potentially affected FreshKampo and HEB products are past shelf life. People who purchased FreshKampo and HEB fresh organic strawberries between March 5, … Read the rest

Civil Law

The Geek in Review Ep. 160 – Sonja Ebron and Ed Walters Collaborate on Courtroom5 and Fastcase to Help Pro Se Litigants Access Justice

We all know that it takes some “outside of the box thinking” to help improve the legal system in the United States, especially when it comes to Pro Se litigants. Courtroom5 CEO and co-founder Sonja Ebron does exactly that with her startup focused on guiding Pro Se litigants through complex court processes. Ed Walters, CEO and co-founder of Fastcase wants the legal industry to stop trying so hard to reinforce that “box.” Together, Ebron and Walters are creating a process … Read the rest

Civil Law

More PTAB Arthrex Remands?

New Director to Review Hirshfeld Decisions?

Patent Owners that had the option to avail themselves of the new Director Review process under former interim Director Hirshfeld have been crying foul to the Federal Circuit. Their argument being that the Arthrex holding required a Senate confirmed Director Review, and that an interim Director (promoted from within) did not meet that criteria. Argument was heard a month or so back at the Federal Circuit on this issue.

Since that time, Senate confirmed … Read the rest

Civil Law

Remember the Pandemic? Latest Wave Causes New Issues for Employers

It’s not over.

We all knew that, though some of us — including me — were hoping for a least a bit of a respite during the spring and summer months.

No such luck.  Indeed, after two years of avoiding the illness, we recently had a “visit” of COVID to our house; thankfully, the one family member who got it had fairly mild symptoms.

This latest wave is a bit stealthier because of the widespread use of at-home tests and … Read the rest

Civil Law

COVID-19 Outbreak on Norwegian Dawn – NCL Stays Mum

As of yesterday, there have been a minimum of around 120 guests who tested positive for COVID-19 aboard the Norwegian Dawn, according to a trusted, long-term reader of Cruise Law News on the ship who wishes to remain anonymous.

The NCL cruise ship left New York (Cape Liberty Bayonne NJ) on April 28th for travel to  ports in Halifax, Nova Scotia (Canada), Reykjavik (Iceland), Belfast (Northern Ireland), Dublin (Ireland),  IJmuiden (Netherlands),  Bruges (Belgium), and Le Havre (France) with the … Read the rest