Virtual K–12 education, roughly defined as electronically-mediated teaching and learning for children, has expanded dramatically in the past decade. In December 2012, the Federal Trade Commission approved its first amendments to its original Rule implementing the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. These changes aim to strengthen the regulation over website operators and application developers to …
Attorneys’ fees and sanctions awarded by trial courts in exceptional patent cases are routinely assessed in millions of dollars. The Federal Circuit is the sole appellate authority in patent cases and thus has the responsibility of reviewing these high-stakes determinations. In Highmark, Inc. v. Allcare Health Management Systems, Inc., a 2-1 majority fundamentally shifted the …
In 2011, the prominent women’s shoe designer Christian Louboutin took fashion competitor Yves Saint Laurent to court to protect a trademark of Louboutin’s red-lacquered shoe sole design. To the industry’s surprise, the district court ruled that an entity in the fashion industry could never trademark a single-color feature because the use of a single color …
Electronic communication technology has seamlessly woven itself into the fabric of individuals’ daily lives. Technology’s rapid evolution and continuous advancement has made it possible for more people to enjoy access to devices that facilitate electronic communications. Technology’s progression, however, is starkly contrasted against the law’s inability to keep pace. Garcia v. City of Laredo highlights …
The D.C. Circuit decided Sherley v. Sebelius in favor of the National Institute of Health by holding that federal funding can be applied to human embryonic stem cell research. This decision will allow scientists to make strides in research, and it could allow for scientists to quickly characterize genetic abnormalities that predispose humans to develop …
Intellectual property law dictates that there can only be one patent per invention, and this patent can only remain in effect for a limited time. However, patent holders sometimes try to avoid this restriction by patenting a similar invention to the previously claimed art under the guise of being a new invention. In the pharmaceutical …
In 2010, Congress enacted the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act requiring video program owners to provide closed captioning for television programming streamed online. Although broad, these regulations do not apply to all video content streamed through online distributors, leaving the deaf and hearing-impaired without full accessibility to online programming. The Massachusetts District Court …
Transport programs provide a means for the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate states’ emissions that endanger human health in neighboring areas. The Clean Air Interstate Rule and the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule are transport programs implemented under the authority of the good neighbor provision. However, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit …
Many patent cases turn on the meaning of terms in the patent claims. Although the standards for interpreting claims are somewhat fluid, there is a need for some degree of rigidity so inventors can protect their inventions. This Recent Development examines how the court in InterDigital Communications, LLC v. International Trade Commission applied various doctrines …
Following months of polarized debates, the North Carolina legislature has legalized hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling through the enactment of the Clean Energy and Economic Security Act. Public discourse has primarily tracked concerns over energy security, environmental protection, and public health. What the dialogue has failed to adequately consider is the extent to which private …
