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Media & Entertainment
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August 23, 2024
Punchbowl News Gets Win In TM Spat With Punchbowl Inc.
A California federal judge has ruled there is no likelihood of confusion between a publication called Punchbowl News and a greeting card and event planning company named Punchbowl Inc., justifying the dismissal of the latter's trademark infringement claims, according to a summary judgment order.
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August 23, 2024
Off The Bench: Sunday Ticket Twist, Dartmouth-NLRB Clash
The NFL comes out of the Sunday Ticket trial with a clean slate, Dartmouth is hit with an unfair labor practice charge by its basketball players, and U.S. Tennis doesn't get a do-over on its handling of a sexual assault case. Law360 is here to catch you up on the sports and betting stories that had our readers talking.
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August 23, 2024
Wachtell Reps As MLB's Braves Announce Executive Shakeup
The parent company of the Atlanta Braves on Friday announced that Chairman and CEO Terry McGuirk will have increased voting power, representing a major shift in control after Liberty Media Corp. split off from the MLB team and its associated real estate development company in November 2022 to become a separate publicly traded entity.
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August 22, 2024
Authors Can't Use Discord Chats In Meta AI Copyright Suit
A California federal judge Thursday granted Meta Platforms Inc.'s request for an order shielding a former part-time researcher's communications on Discord from discovery requests in authors' proposed class copyright action over Meta's artificial intelligence product, holding that the communications pertain to legal advice.
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August 22, 2024
Smartmatic, Newsmax Defamation Suit Heads To Del. Trial
A Delaware Superior Court judge on Thursday teed up a four-week trial starting Sept. 30 on voting machine provider Smartmatic USA Corp. claims that it was defamed by unsubstantiated Newsmax Media Inc. reports tying the voting tech company to alleged conspiracies to steal the 2020 presidential election.
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August 22, 2024
Larry Flynt's Widow Asks 9th Circ. To End Calif. Cardroom Law
The widow of late pornography mogul Larry Flynt and two other cardroom operators urged the Ninth Circuit on Thursday to invalidate California statutes barring certain out-of-state casino investors from holding a state cardroom license, arguing the law interferes with interstate commerce and that's "a straight-up violation of the Constitution."
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August 22, 2024
Popular Mich. Sushi Bar Sues Hacker Who Deleted Instagram
A popular Michigan sushi restaurant is hoping a federal lawsuit will help it track down and hold accountable the person who hacked into and deleted its Instagram account, the loss of which the company said cost it thousands of dollars and harmed its reputation.
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August 22, 2024
Influencer-Backed Wine Glass Co. Sues Over Trade Dress
A small startup that sells colorful wine glasses is suing other companies that sell similar glasses in Colorado federal court, calling those companies "counterfeiters" that are trying to capitalize on the startup's popularity stemming from the endorsement of a popular TikTok influencer.
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August 22, 2024
UK Antitrust Arm Pauses Google, Apple Probes For New Law
United Kingdom antitrust authorities hit pause on investigations into Google and Apple policies allegedly locking app developers into their in-app payment systems, preferring to wait until new powers come online even as officials said commitments offered by Google aren't enough to address their concerns.
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August 22, 2024
Consumers Will Appeal Tossed Apple Web App Antitrust Case
Consumers have told a California federal court they plan to appeal the dismissal of a case accusing Apple of violating antitrust law by preventing iPhones from running web-based apps, instead of amending the proposed class action.
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August 22, 2024
Altice Will Pay $96K To End FCC Probe Over Outages
New York-based telecom Altice admitted to running afoul of outage reporting rules in a settlement with the Federal Communications Commission Thursday, agreeing to pay a $96,000 fine after filing mandatory service disruption reports late last year.
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August 22, 2024
Kirkland, Paul Weiss Guide $250M Investment In TickPick
Investment firm Brighton Park Capital, steered by Paul Weiss, will invest $250 million into Kirkland-led TickPick so the ticket marketplace business can accelerate its growth and scale operations, in what the companies called the largest fundraise in the industry to date, according to a Thursday announcement.
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August 22, 2024
6th Circ. Can't Say If Mich. Official Can Block Facebook Critic
The Sixth Circuit can't apply the U.S. Supreme Court's new state-action test to decide if a city manager in Michigan is allowed to block critics from his personal Facebook page because it needs more information, the appellate court said, kicking the matter back to district court.
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August 22, 2024
Comedians Duel With Pandora For Joke Copyright Victories
A group of comedians and companies that licensed their routines has urged a California federal judge to grant it partial summary judgment against Pandora Media LLC for copyright infringement on the same day that the company argued it should come out on top because it has implied "pass-through licenses" to broadcast those routines.
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August 22, 2024
Appeals Court Revives DC AG's Amazon Antitrust Suit
A Washington, D.C., appeals court ruled Thursday that the D.C. attorney general can pursue an antitrust suit against Amazon, overturning a lower court order that tossed district enforcers' complaint against the e-commerce giant.
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August 22, 2024
Voter Claims NC 'Ballot Selfie' Laws Violate Free Speech
A North Carolina voter hopes to take down the state's so-called ballot selfie laws, which make it illegal to take a photo with a completed ballot, arguing in a new federal lawsuit filed Thursday that the statutes trample her free speech rights.
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August 22, 2024
Judge Delays AI Trial In Thomson Reuters, ROSS IP Row
A Delaware federal judge on Thursday delayed the first trial involving an artificial intelligence product, postponing a highly anticipated clash in which Thomson Reuters is accusing tech startup ROSS Intelligence of creating an AI legal research platform using copyrighted material from the media company's Westlaw database.
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August 22, 2024
Israeli Tech Co. Cancels SPAC Deal Amid Market Rout
Pomvom, an Israeli software maker that caters to theme parks, and a special purpose acquisition company announced Thursday they have nixed their planned $125 million merger, which would've taken the tech firm public, citing a "change in global market conditions."
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August 22, 2024
Tom Girardi Takes The Stand In His Criminal Fraud Trial
Disbarred attorney Tom Girardi took the stand Thursday in his California federal fraud trial and denied stealing from any of his clients, while also showing a strong grasp of past events and people but claiming to have no memory of the trial's witnesses and key moments, or to even know his own lawyer's name.
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August 22, 2024
Deals Rumor Mill: Saudi Fund, Disney-Reliance, Repligen
Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund wants to launch a new cargo airline, India’s antitrust regulators worry about power over cricket rights if the $8.5 billion merger of Walt Disney’s Indian business with Reliance Entertainment is allowed, and drug manufacturing provider Repligen is eyeing Maravai LifeSciences. Here, Law360 breaks down these and other notable deal rumors from the past week.
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August 22, 2024
Paramount Board Vets $6B Bronfman Bid, Cravath Counsels
Paramount Global confirmed late Wednesday that a consortium of investors led by media executive Edgar Bronfman Jr. has submitted a proposal to purchase the company, interjecting a bid that complicates Paramount's existing deal to merge with Skydance Media.
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August 21, 2024
Girardi Faked Dementia Symptoms, Neurologist Testifies
A neurologist with Vanderbilt University testified Wednesday in Tom Girardi's criminal fraud trial in California federal court that the disbarred attorney was likely exaggerating his cognitive problems in late 2020 just as his law firm imploded into bankruptcy and his legal problems mounted because he believed it would be "beneficial."
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August 21, 2024
Tech Cos. Duck Proposed Calif. Bill Via News Funding Deal
Major tech companies, including Google, agreed Wednesday to pay roughly $250 million into a fund that proponents say would support newsrooms across California in a deal that avoids a proposed regulation that would've forced Big Tech to pay the state's media organizations for distributing news content.
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August 21, 2024
Finance Guru Can't Send Timeshare Fraud Suit To Arbitration
Celebrity financial planner David L. Ramsey III and his company can't pause and arbitrate a proposed class action alleging they promoted a timeshare exit fraud scheme on his radio show, a Washington federal judge said Wednesday, finding they were not included in arbitration agreements with the timeshare owners.
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August 21, 2024
Maryland Water Park Settles Liability Claim Over Injury
A Maryland water park-goer who was permanently injured after an inflatable tube buckled on a ride and slammed her feet against the bottom of the pool has settled her suit seeking to hold the facility liable for her injuries.
Expert Analysis
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Opinion
Now More Than Ever, Lawyers Must Exhibit Professionalism
As society becomes increasingly fractured and workplace incivility is on the rise, attorneys must champion professionalism and lead by example, demonstrating how lawyers can respectfully disagree without being disagreeable, says Edward Casmere at Norton Rose.
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Leveling Up IP Protections For Video Game Icons' Film Debuts
Video game creators venturing into new realms of entertainment that include their iconic characters, such as television and film adaptations, should take specific steps to strengthen their intellectual property rights, say Joshua Weigensberg and Parmida Enkeshafi at Pryor Cashman.
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The Show Must Go On: Noncompete Uncertainty In Film, TV
The Federal Trade Commission has taken action to ban noncompetes while the entertainment industry is in the midst of a massive shift away from traditional media, so it is important for studio heads and content owners alike to understand the fate of the rule and their options going forward, say Christopher Chatham and Douglas Smith at Manatt.
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A Refresher On Calculating Political Advertising Costs
With election season well underway, it is important for broadcasters, political candidates, time buyers and others concerned with how the cost of broadcast political advertising is determined to know what the Federal Communications Commission factors into lowest unit calculations, and how the commission has defined "commercial advertisers," says Gregg Skall at Telecommunications Law Professionals.
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Series
Serving In The National Guard Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My ongoing military experience as a judge advocate general in the National Guard has shaped me as a person and a lawyer, teaching me the importance of embracing confidence, balance and teamwork in both my Army and civilian roles, says Danielle Aymond at Baker Donelson.
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A Midyear Forecast: Tailwinds Expected For Atty Hourly Rates
Hourly rates for partners, associates and support staff continued to rise in the first half of this year, and this growth shows no signs of slowing for the rest of 2024 and into next year, driven in part by the return of mergers and acquisitions and the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence, says Chuck Chandler at Valeo Partners.
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Opinion
States Should Loosen Law Firm Ownership Restrictions
Despite growing buzz, normalized nonlawyer ownership of law firms is a distant prospect, so the legal community should focus first on liberalizing state restrictions on attorney and firm purchases of practices, which would bolster succession planning and improve access to justice, says Michael Di Gennaro at The Law Practice Exchange.
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Navigating The Extent Of SEC Cybersecurity Breach Authority
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's broad reading of its authority under Section 13(b)(2)(B) of the Securities Exchange Act in the R.R. Donnelley and SolarWinds actions has ramifications for companies dealing with cybersecurity breaches, but it remains to be seen whether the commission's use of the provision will withstand judicial scrutiny, say attorneys at Sullivan & Cromwell.
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Series
Solving Puzzles Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Tackling daily puzzles — like Wordle, KenKen and Connections — has bolstered my intellectual property litigation practice by helping me to exercise different mental skills, acknowledge minor but important details, and build and reinforce good habits, says Roy Wepner at Kaplan Breyer.
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Series
After Chevron: FCC And Industry Must Prepare For Change
The Chevron doctrine was especially significant in the communications sector because of the indeterminacy of federal communications statutes, so the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the doctrine could have big implications for those regulated by the Federal Communications Commission, bringing both opportunities and risks for companies, say Thomas Johnson and Michael Showalter at Wiley.
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Opinion
'Trump Too Small' Ruling Overlooks TM Registration Issues
The U.S. Supreme Court's decision last month in Vidal v. Elster, which concluded that “Trump Too Small” cannot be a registered trademark as it violates a federal prohibition, fails to consider modern-day, real-world implications for trademark owners who are denied access to federal registration, say Tiffany Gehrke and Alexa Spitz at Marshall Gerstein.
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Texas Ethics Opinion Flags Hazards Of Unauthorized Practice
The Texas Professional Ethics Committee's recently issued proposed opinion finding that in-house counsel providing legal services to the company's clients constitutes the unauthorized practice of law is a valuable clarification given that a UPL violation — a misdemeanor in most states — carries high stakes, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.
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Why High Court Social Media Ruling Will Be Hotly Debated
In deciding the NetChoice cases that challenged Florida and Texas content moderation laws, what the U.S. Supreme Court justices said about social media platforms — and the First Amendment — will have implications and raise questions for nearly all online operators, say Jacob Canter and Joanna Rosen Forster at Crowell & Moring.
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In Memoriam: The Modern Administrative State
On June 28, the modern administrative state, where courts deferred to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, died when the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its previous decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — but it is survived by many cases decided under the Chevron framework, say Joseph Schaeffer and Jessica Deyoe at Babst Calland.
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How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts
As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.