Justia Law Blog

Seventh Circuit Clarifies When You Can Sue a City Official for Prospective Relief Updated: by

Last week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled in Teesdale v. City of Chicago that a city’s legal argument in a civil proceeding does not constitute its official policy. One of the threshold questions before a person or entity may sue another in federal court is…

New York’s New Surveillance System: Necessary or Invasive? Updated: by

On Wednesday, New York City unveiled a new surveillance system powered by Microsoft that would provide near-real-time analysis of camera footage across the city. In its press release, the City boasts that the system features “the latest crime prevention and counterterrorism technology.” The security-minded among us may cheer this development…

The Ultimate Internet Research Reference: The Cybersleuth’s Guide to the Internet Updated: by

ABA authors and Cybersleuth seminar speakers Carole Levitt and Mark Rosch have revised and updated their book, The Cybersleuth’s Guide to the Internet, now in its twelfth edition. The Cybersleuth’s Guide provides both basic and advanced information for anyone wanting to do cost-effective investigative or legal research on the Internet.…

Patent Infringement Claim Against Apple Severed From Complaint, Transferred to Northern District of California Updated: by

H-W Technology LC is suing Apple and 31 other companies for alleged patent infringement. It is not the first time this nearly unknown company has sued technology companies. The complaint alleges that the 32 companies violated Patent Number 7,525,955, which is described as “Internet protocol (IP) phone with search…

Sixth Circuit Holds “Instinctive Jump” is Not a Search in Violation of the Fourth Amendment – United States v. Sharp Updated: by

On July 27th, 2012, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee's ruling that a canine’s jump and subsequent sniff inside the defendant's car was not a search in violation of the Fourth Amendment because the jump was instinctive and…

App Developer Opposes Twitter’s Application for TWEET Mark Updated: by

On July 19th, Rick Quereshi filed a Notice of Opposition against Twitter’s application for the mark TWEET.  Although Twitter applied for trademark protection of TWEET back on April 16, 2009, and the application was published for opposition later that year, Quereshi opposes the registration for the following reasons: 1) Twitter…

Writer’s Picks July 17, 2012: High Noon and Negligent Weathermen Updated: by

This week’s cases are more like news of the weird than any special legal precedent. Take Burke v. Air Serv. Int’l, Inc., which held that plaintiff was not entitled to rely on Westerns in the place of expert testimony. Yeah. In that case, the Plaintiff, a former British soldier, was severely…

Sprint Asks Court to Subpoena Twitter, Facebook, Google for Identity of Self-Proclaimed Company ‘Mole’ Updated: by

Last week, Sprint filed several requests for the issuance of subpoenas in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The purpose of the subpoenas, according to the declarations accompanying them, is to reveal the identity of one who identifies him/herself as a 'mole' or insider in the…