Copyright infringement, laches, temporary restraining order and asparagus hot grilled with walnut oil, garlic, and mediterranean herbs

Copyright -- Infringement -- Limitation of actions -- Laches cannot be invoked to bar relief on copyright infringement claim brought within three-year window of Section 507(b) of the Copyright Act -- While laches cannot be invoked to preclude adjudication of claim for damages brought within Act's three-year window, in extraordinary circumstances laches may, at very threshold of litigation, curtail the relief equitably awarded -- Where petitioner, in her suit for copyright infringement, sought relief solely for conduct occurring within three-year limitations period, lower courts' position that laches barred petitioner's suit in its entirety, without regard to currency of conduct complained of, was contrary to Section 507(b) and Supreme Court's precedent on province of laches

PAULA PETRELLA, Petitioner v. METRO-GOLDWYN-MAYER, INC., et al. U.S. Supreme Court.

Injunctions -- Temporary restraining order -- Inexcusable delay -- Motion for TRO to prevent the sale of counterfeit merchandise outside concert venue is denied where plaintiff's decision to wait until seven days prior to concert to seek injunctive relief constituted inexcusable delay resulting in a manufactured emergency violative of local rules and Federal Rules Of Civil Procedure -- TRO is also deniable on basis that plaintiff neglected to estimate the number of “bootleggers” expected, value of seized merchandise, or a reasonable amount of security -- TRO is unreasonably broad where it names unknown and unnamed “John Doe” defendants, seeks to extend injunction to a ten mile radius around concert venues, and unacceptably permits federal, state, and local law enforcement to assign service and seizure of the unauthorized merchandise to “anyone acting under their supervision”

BRAVADO INTERNATIONAL GROUP MERCHANDISING SERVICES, INC., Plaintiff, v. MIKE SMITH, JOHN DOES 1-100, JANE DOES 1-100, XYZ COMPANY, Defendants. U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida, Tampa Division.

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Two retired state justices condemn courts facing bullying and intimidation by politicians and partisans, say

"Two retired state justices are condemning an “atmosphere of bullying” that threatens the independence of the nation’s courts.
Writing for the Washington Post, retired chief justices Ruth McGregor of Arizona and Randall Shepard of Indiana cite some examples.
In Oklahoma, the supreme court dissolved its stay of execution for Clayton Lockett after the governor said she would disregard the court’s ruling and a legislator introduced a resolution to impeach the five justices who voted for the stay. (The governor had claimed the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals had jurisdiction, rather than the Oklahoma Supreme Court.)"  More.


Originally posted May 20, 2014 7:44 AM CDT By Debra Cassens Weiss
in ABA Journal

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California cuts to court budgets have led to staff shortages, case delays, garage sales, and long lines

"California has cut so much money from the courts budget that some people may be discouraged from using the system, according to the state’s chief justice.
Annual case filings in the state have dropped by about 2.5 million in the last few years, says California Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye in an interview with the Los Angeles Times.
“I don't believe we are becoming a more law-abiding, rule-following society," she said. "But we have closed more than 50 courthouses and eliminated 3,900 full-time positions. So are people finally getting the message they shouldn't bother to come to court?"
One extreme embarrassment, according to Cantil-Sakauye, was when the Kings County Superior Court held a garage sale to raise money. . . [T]he courts need an additional $266 million in the coming fiscal year "just to tread water" and an extra $612 million to be fully functional." More.

Originally posted by Debra Cassens Weiss, ABA Journal Law News, May 13, 2014 9:03 AM CDT

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Partners in study gave a lower rating on a legal memo when told author wasn’t white

In an " experiment was conducted by leadership consulting firm Nextion, according to the Forbes blog She Negotiates. Above the Law commented on the findings". . . .
The reviewers gave [a legal] memo supposedly written by a white man a rating of 4.1 out of 5, while they gave the memo supposedly written by a black man a rating of 3.2 out of 5. The white Thomas Meyer was praised for his potential and good analytical skills, while the black Thomas Meyer was criticized as average at best and needing a lot of work.

Reviewers found an average of 2.9 out of seven spelling and grammar errors in the memo by the white Thomas Meyer and 5.8 out of seven errors in the memo by the African-American Thomas Meyer. Fewer technical writing and factual errors were also found in the memo by the supposedly white writer, though the disparity wasn't as great. More.

Originally posted  Apr 21, 2014 7:09 AM CDT
By Debra Cassens Weiss
on ABA Journal Law News

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