Mass Law Blog
Intellectual property and business litigation, Massachusetts and nationallyWritten by humans
Lee Gesmer’s Mass Law Blog began in 2005, and contains almost 600 posts. The site initially focused on Massachusetts law, but today it follows business and intellectual property law nation-wide. The site is hosted by Gesmer Updegrove LLP, a law firm based in Boston, Massachusetts. The firm represents startup and established companies in the areas of litigation, transactions (including financings, mergers and acquisitions), IP rights, taxation, employment law, standards consortia, business counseling and open source development projects and foundations. You can find a summary of the firm’s services here. To learn how Gesmer Updegrove can help you, contact: Lee Gesmer
Judge Young's Decision in the Situation Management Copyright Case
Many lawyers in Massachusetts would agree that Massachusetts Federal District Court Judge William Young is one of the most erudite judges in the district. Yet, he has written relatively few copyright law decisions in his 23 years on the federal bench. A Westlaw search shows that he has authored fewer than ten substantive copyright decisions. In a decision issued on February 28th in the case Situation Management Systems v. ASP Consulting Group, Judge Young undertook the question that has caused...
"A Million Here, A Million There, and Pretty Soon …." Judge Harrington Awards $10 Million in Attorney's Fees in Medtronic Patent Litigation
The Patent Statute states: The court in exceptional cases may award reasonable attorney fees to the prevailing party. 35 U.S.C. 285. While finding no "willfulness" in the underlying infringment, Judge Harrington has imposed attorney's fees of $10 million based on Medtronic's trial conduct in the long-running Medtronic/Depuy Spine patent infringement litigation. Specifically, Judge Harrington concluded that Medtronic's lawyers attempted to "mislead and confuse the jury in a manner inconsistent...
It's Difficult to Get a Preliminary Injunction in a Patent Infringement Case (understatement)
When you can prove that you likely are the victim of copyright or trademark infringement, or trade secret misappropriation, you have a good shot at getting a preliminary injunction (if you can afford the bond). That's because there is a legal "presumption" of irreparable harm associated with these types of IP claims. Prove likelihood of success and you are well on your way to the promised land of "irreparable harm." But, this is not true in patent cases. It's quite difficult to get a...
Old Lawyers Never Die, They Just Lose Their Judgment
One of the most highly respected Massachusetts Superior Court Judges, Allan van Gestel, retired on December 31, 2007, at the age of 72. A recent press release from JAMS shows that Judge van Gestel is following the time-honored practice of becoming a mediator and arbitrator for JAMS (or another large mediation/arbitration organization). A lot of judges that try this really don't seem very well suited for the task, for reasons that escape me. Maybe they have a hard time transitioning from a...
The "Alliance for Open Competition" or "Noncompete Agreements Should Not Be Enforceable in Massachusetts"
In December I wrote a post title Why Has Silicon Valley Outperformed Boston/Route 128 as a High Tech Hub? The topic was whether the legality of noncompete agreements ("NCAs") in Massachusetts has put the state at a disadvantage to California, where NCAs are not enforceable. The Alliance for Open Competition is a blog where people and organizations who would like Massachusetts to join California (and other states) and make NCAs illegal express their views on this issue. The first entry in the...
First Circuit Widens Door to Claims of "Hostile Work Environment"
The words "hostile work environment" get tossed around a lot by lawyers. But, just what constitutes a hostile environment that's actionable under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is uncertain. It's sort of a "I can't define it, but I know it when I see it" standard. That standard may work at the two extremes (clearly egregious vs. obviously benign behavior), but it can be difficult to apply in the grey zone. The First Circuit has weighed in on this issue with an important decision,...
This site is hosted by Gesmer Updegrove LLP, a technology law firm based in Boston, Massachusetts. You can find a summary of our services here. To learn how GU can help you, contact:
Lee Gesmer