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Proskauer’s perspective on developments and trends in commercial litigation.

Category Archives: Trial Issues

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For All Intents and Dual-Purposes, SCOTUS Fails to Resolve Circuit Split

A three-way circuit split has long plagued the realm of attorney-client privilege on how to treat communications that implicate both legal and non-legal concerns (known as “dual-purpose communications”). Namely, if a lawyer communicates with their client, simultaneously providing legal advice and business advice, is the entire communication protected by the attorney-client privilege? How substantial must the legal … Continue Reading

Changes to Rules Governing Expert Testimony Imminent

Last month, the Advisory Committee on Evidence of the Judicial Conference of the United States’ Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure voted to unanimously to recommend certain amendments to Federal Rule of Evidence 702, which governs the admissibility of expert witness testimony.  This vote signals imminent changes that could significantly affect federal practitioners’ requirements … Continue Reading

Changes to Rule 702 Cement Judge’s Role as Gatekeeper for Expert Testimony

A proposed amendment to Federal Rule of Evidence 702, which governs the admissibility of expert testimony in federal court, could clarify the evidentiary burden on proponents of expert testimony and a court’s role regarding its admissibility. Motions under Rule 702, frequently called Daubert motions after the Supreme Court’s opinion Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc., … Continue Reading

Using Demonstrative Exhibits as Admissible Evidence Under California Law

During trial, lawyers make many strategic decisions to try to appeal to a jury.  For example, they consider not only the substance of the evidence they present, but also the emotional impact of that evidence.  But the impact of a witness’ testimony can be blunted if your jury is not following the testimony, so the … Continue Reading

When Nondisclosure Agreements and Pharmaceutical Trade Secrets Intersect

In the United States, the scale of trade secret theft is estimated to be between $180 billion and $450 billion annually. Among the targets of this theft are pharmaceutical companies, which are some of the most research-intensive institutions in the world. Pharmaceutical research generally requires extensive work and often generates proprietary data that is pivotal … Continue Reading

Court Rules that New York’s New Anti-SLAPP Law Applies Retroactively

On June 30, 2021, pop star Kesha was reportedly handed a victory by a New York state court, which ruled that the state’s new anti-SLAPP legislation applied retroactively to music producer Dr. Luke’s lawsuit, in which he claims Kesha defamed him by allegedly falsely accusing him of rape. The court’s decision means that Dr. Luke … Continue Reading

More Lessons Learned from Theranos: Ensuring Privilege Protections

The prosecution of Elizabeth Holmes, founder of the infamous healthcare and life sciences company, Theranos, Inc., has sparked media attention around the country. With just a few months before trial is slated to begin, Holmes recently lost her pretrial battle over whether the attorney-client privilege precludes the introduction of certain emails with counsel.  While the … Continue Reading

Tolling Statutes of Limitations in Products Liability Cases: Latent Injury or Unknown Cause?

Consider a hypothetical person named Jane, who bought a chair twenty years ago. The chair was designed to help relieve back pain, but it actually made it worse. Because Jane was trying many different remedies, she did not associate the chair with the new pain. Additionally, the problems with the chair were not discovered for … Continue Reading

Divided Supreme Court Rules that State Jury Verdicts for Serious Crimes Must Be Unanimous

On April 20, 2020, the Supreme Court held in a 6-3 decision that the Sixth Amendment requires a unanimous jury verdict to convict a defendant of a serious offense in state courts. In so holding, the Court not only paved the way for potentially hundreds of defendants convicted by divided juries, like petitioner Evangelisto Ramos, … Continue Reading

Caltech Ten-Figure Patent Verdict Showcases Impact of University Intellectual Property

A California jury recently ordered Apple, Inc. (“Apple”) and Broadcom, Ltd. (“Broadcom”) to pay the California Institute of Technology (“Caltech”) over $1.1 billion in damages for infringing several patents owned by Caltech.  The patents relate to a type of error correction code used in wireless technology (known as “irregular repeat and accumulate” codes) to improve … Continue Reading

Copyright in the Digital Age: Cisco v. Arista and the Scènes à Faire Doctrine

Imagine producing a classic Western without cowboys, saloons, or standoffs. This seems almost inconceivable because these elements are deeply integral to the genre – so much so, in fact, that they are essentially necessary for the creation of such works. Copyright law recognizes and accounts for this, by denying copyright protection to such elements under … Continue Reading

Making VHS Relevant Again: The Uncertain Scope of Personal Information Protected by the Video Privacy Protection Act of 1988

The Ninth Circuit recently became the third federal appellate court to tackle what constitutes “personally identifiable information” protected by the Video Privacy Protection Act of 1988 (“VPPA”). Last year, the First Circuit and the Third Circuit propounded different standards for applying this statute, as they each grappled with the necessary leap from the age of VCRs … Continue Reading

Location, Location, Location: Microsoft Debate Over Government’s Access to Overseas Data Heads to the Supreme Court

On October 16, 2017, the Supreme Court agreed to review the Second Circuit’s decision in United States v. Microsoft Corp., a case that highlights the current tension between law enforcement needs and privacy concerns in a rapidly changing digital landscape.… Continue Reading

Supreme Court Clarifies Specific Jurisdiction and Ends Forum Shopping Spree

The Supreme Court has put an end to a jurisdictional contrivance used by the plaintiffs’ bar to shop for a friendly state forum, even if neither the plaintiff, nor the defendant, nor the actionable conduct took place in those states. In last month’s Bristol-Myers Squibb Company v. Superior Court decision, the Court ruled that out-of-state … Continue Reading

Enforcing a Jury Trial Waiver in California: An Impossible Task?

It is not uncommon for parties to enter into agreements containing jury waiver provisions. However, enforcing such provisions in California courts may be a losing battle. California has a strong public policy in favor of the right to a trial by jury, and California courts will not enforce a jury waiver except under limited circumstances. … Continue Reading

Timing is Everything: NY Commercial Division Updates Rule on Trial Length

On March 27, 2017, the Commercial Division of the New York Supreme Courts updated its rule on trial length, giving judges the express authorization to impose time limits, at their discretion, on different phases of trial. The goal of this amendment, first proposed by the Commercial Division Advisory Council in October 2016, is simple: to … Continue Reading

California High Court Questions Privileged Nature of Attorney Invoices

In Disney’s The Lion King, the wise lion Mufasa sits atop a rock crag with his heir, the cub Simba, looking down on the Serengeti below. “Everything the light touches,” Mufasa instructs, “is our kingdom.” A similar scene plays out in countless law firms each year, when newly admitted attorneys are trained on the boundaries … Continue Reading

Arizona Sheriff’s Criminal Contempt Charge Reinforces Importance of Compliance with Civil Orders

President Andrew Jackson is reported (likely inaccurately) to have flaunted a Supreme Court decision by retorting, “John Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it!” Any litigant who has been on the receiving end of an unwanted court order may find this sentiment a familiar one. As a federal judge in Arizona recently … Continue Reading

Who’s the “Real Client”? Attorney-Client Privilege Between Firm In-House Counsel And Other Firm Lawyers

While attorneys provide legal advice to their clients, they are sometimes the recipients of such advice from their own counsel, including in-house firm counsel. Agreeing with recent decisions by the highest courts of Georgia and Massachusetts, a panel of the First Department Appellate Division this June handed down a decision declaring such advice protected by … Continue Reading

Running Into a Brick Wall, Who Wears a Black Robe: Tips For Trying a Case Before a Hostile Judge

For trial lawyers, hostile adversaries are par for the course. But judges are supposed to be irreproachably impartial, right? That is, after all, the very cornerstone of our judicial system. So when you find yourself trying a case in front of a judge who is openly hostile to your witnesses or your client’s case – particularly if … Continue Reading
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