Re-tailoring jury trial rights: dry-cleaning patent case raises larger Seventh Amendment issues
Article Abstract:
The US Supreme Court's ruling in Markman v Westview Instruments will mark its most important Seventh Amendment decision in years and indicate the future of civil juries. Many proponents of a complexity exception to the right to a jury trial believe patent cases offer their best route to decisions made by judges, not jurors. Dissents against the Federal Circuit's ruling that the case involves issues of law, not of fact, claim that the distinction is arrogant sophistry aimed at ridding patent trials of jurors.
Publication Name: ABA Journal
Subject: Law
ISSN: 0747-0088
Year: 1996
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O.J. trial a case study in stress: experts point to ways of coping when courtrooms heat up, tempers flare
Article Abstract:
Lawyers in stressful trials can suffer serious physical or mental symptoms of that stress unless they learn to acknowledge and manage it. The current O.J. Simpson trial is a classic case, and the various lawyers as well as Judge Lance Ito have shown signs of feeling stress. Experts advise maintaining a routine, getting physical exercise, separating work from home life, keeping a realistic perspective, and talking to others about one's feelings, because legal work often distances emotions.
Publication Name: ABA Journal
Subject: Law
ISSN: 0747-0088
Year: 1995
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No lotus position for Supreme Court: experts see confusion in wake of justices' 4-4 split on software copyrights
Article Abstract:
The US Supreme Court heard in Lotus v. Borland a key test case on software copyright. The ruling did not reverse the US Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit and cannot be regarded as precedent. The issue was whether software's menu command structures are copyrightable or merely methods of operation. The court held that Borland's Quattro Pro spreadsheet was the latter and therefore not a violation of Lotus's copyright.
Publication Name: ABA Journal
Subject: Law
ISSN: 0747-0088
Year: 1996
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- Abstracts: Child abuse as slavery: a Thirteenth Amendment response to DeShaney. The case of the missing amendments: R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul
- Abstracts: Drug makers, biotech weigh patent suits; judge's ruling gives green light to sue universities. Wash. chief wants change; state's top judge seeks to shrink court, other reforms
- Abstracts: Weil group memo: go 'quid pro quo': suggested referral plan to repay big clients raises ethics issues, experts say
- Abstracts: Insurance may cover lawsuits over patents; courts are split on whether insurers have a duty to defend. No suit means no duty to defend or indemnify; California courts use literalist apporach to determine whether insurer's obligation kicks in
- Abstracts: Evidence rap remanded; but judge in Benlate case says DuPont and lawyers may have acted illegally. Flip-flop on life sentence: after intense lobbying from prosecutors, Georgia's high court reverses itself