Category: Civil Remedies
Data Breach Lawsuits: Challenges Persist After Spokeo v. Robins
Data breaches are as common as the common cold—unfortunately, just as incurable. Run a news search on “data breaches” and you’ll find that all kinds of institutions—major retailers, tech companies, universities, even government agencies—have been vulnerable at some point. Now run a search on “data breaches,” but include the word “lawsuit.” You’ll find that many… Read More
Copyright & Trademark Protections- Is Metadata Included?
A Canadian federal court recently released an opinion holding that meta tags, at least in some circumstances, are not entitled to copyright protection. Although the precedent is not binding in American courts, the well-reasoned opinion provides an excellent logical analysis on why meta tags may or may not be afforded copyright protection. In Red Label… Read More
A New Remedy for Online Defamation
In the United States it is enormously difficult to remove allegedly defamatory information from the internet. A victim can take the expensive and time-consuming step of suing the author for defamation in court. However, even if a court rules that the statement is defamatory—that is, that the published statement is false and harmful to the… Read More
Healthcare Fraud Recoveries at All-Time High Since 2009
Fiscal year 2013 marked the fourth consecutive year in which the Department of Justice has recovered at least $2 billion from cases involving charges of healthcare fraud. Make no mistake: these record-setting yields were no accident. The Obama Administration has prioritized busting healthcare fraudsters since it took office, and for good reason. A 2009 analysis… Read More
Bill Could Put Reins on Prosecutors’ Efforts to Seize Domain Names
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif), a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, has indicated that she is drafting legislation that would seek to increase judicial oversight over prosecutors’ efforts to act against Internet domain names accused of copyright infringement. While the value of such legislation will depend on the details of the bill, the notion… Read More
Will High Court Consider Key Issue Defining Prosecutorial Misconduct?
The Supreme Court will soon be considering whether to take up an interesting question involving when monetary sanctions may be imposed for prosecutorial misconduct. More than 50 former federal judges and U.S. attorneys are pushing to get an 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling from last year overturned. In early August, the former judges and… Read More
Appellate Court Casts Doubt on Acceptability of ‘Obey-the Law’ Injunctions
We recently blogged about the recent decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Securities and Exchange Commission v. Goble, 2012 WL 1918819 (11th Cir. May 29, 2012). There, we discussed the appeals court’s limitation on the reach of the concept of “securities fraud” under Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act… Read More
Obama Escalates ‘Fast and Furious’ Battle With Congress by Claiming Executive Privilege
On June 20, 2012, President Barack Obama escalated a battle with the GOP-controlled House of Representatives by claiming executive privilege for 1300 executive-branch documents that relate to the White House and the Justice Department’s response to subpoenas about the botched Fast and Furious gun-trafficking operation. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, chaired by Rep…. Read More
FBI Raid Targets For-Profit School in Florida: Was This Necessary?
When you hear of FBI agents descending upon a place, you might think of a hostage situation, a drug raid, or the penetration of a terrorist cell. But you probably wouldn’t assume that those armed agents were working with the U.S. Department of Education on a raid on a Florida for-profit college. FBI agents raided… Read More
Appeals Court Ruling Emphasizes Limits on Reach of SEC Anti-Fraud Powers
While the recent economic crisis brought newly invigorated political support for SEC enforcement against financial services companies, a recent case shows that the courts will still prevent the SEC from overreaching in its efforts to punish those it views as wrongdoers. In Matter of the Securities and Exchange Commission v. Richard L. Goble, a May… Read More
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