The New Hampshire Supreme Court affirmed a determination of the state Board of Tax and Land Appeals that the City of Concord properly granted to an Assembly of God church an ad valorem property tax exemption on only sixty percent … Continue reading
In a May 31, 2012 opinion, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit declared unconstitutional section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”), 1 U.S.C. § 7, which denies federal economic and other benefits to same-sex couples. … Continue reading
On May 30, 2012, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (“FDA”) denied a petition filed by the Corn Refiners Association to authorize the use of “corn sugar” as an alternate common or usual name for high fructose corn syrup (“HFCS”). … Continue reading
A federal court in Los Angeles, California dismissed claims that a subsidiary of PepsiCo. violated a variety of California laws and the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act (“MMWA”) by misrepresenting its no-calorie, vitamin enhanced, flavored water drinks. Hairston v. South Beach … Continue reading
On May 16, 2012, with the signature of Governor Peter Shumlin, Vermont became the first U.S. state to ban hydraulic fracturing wells for natural gas and oil production. See H.R. 464 (Act No. 0152). The state legislature determined that hydraulic … Continue reading
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that the term “Texas Toast” is a generic expression when applied to croutons, and thus is not subject to protection under U.S. trademark law. T. Marzetti Co. v. Roksam Baking … Continue reading
In a 98-page ruling, a U.S. district judge in Nashville, Tennessee dismissed an unfair competition lawsuit in which singer Sam Moore claimed that The Weinstein Co., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., and others involved in the creation of the 2008 comedy film … Continue reading
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld the dismissal of copyright infringement claims by a plaintiff who alleged that the creators of the reality television show The Biggest Loser copied text and ideas from her written proposal … Continue reading
From the New York State Senate Committee on Ill-Conceived Ideas: a bill to require the removal of anonymous comments from Internet blogs. The title of New York Senate Bill 6779 is”An ACT to amend the civil rights law, in relation … Continue reading
Today the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”) upheld the judgment of the General Court of the European Communities that Lindt & Spruengli AG was not entitled to register as a European Community trade mark the three-dimensional shape of a chocolate … Continue reading
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