Would you like to be alerted of new articles on Declaratory Judgment? Check out LawKT Premium. Law Firm Publications on Declaratory Judgment [See Also: News Articles] Last update: Mar 19, 2007 McDermott: Counsel???s Failure to File a Post-Verdict Motion is Fa...  Jan 27, 2006 Unitherm sought a declaratory judgment that ConAgra s patent covering a method for browning precooked meat was invalid and unenforceable and also alleged ConAgra had violated º 2 of the Sherman Act by attempting to enforce a fraudulently obtained patent. Following the verdict, ConAgra did not renew its motion for judgment as a matter of law under Rule 50(b), nor did it move for a new trial under Rule 59 Gibbons: The New Jersey Appellate Division Finds Exclusion In In...  Dec 20, 2005 The court affirmed summary judgment for the employer's workers compensation carrier because the allegations of the complaint brought against the employer by its former employee under the Conscientious Employee Protection Act, N.J.S.A. § 34:19-1, et seq. USLIG brought a declaratory judgment action to establish SIC's responsibility to provide coverage for the costs of defending Marcacci's CEPA action against Seabrook House Pitney Hardin: New Jersey Supreme Court Limits the Scope of the Pollut...  May 04, 2005 A declaratory judgment suit ensued with the carrier taking the position that the absolute pollution exclusion in its policies exempted coverage for personal injury caused by the inhalation of fumes. Thus, New Jersey should remain a hospitable venue for declaratory judgment actions brought by manufacturers and contractors against the insurance industry Blank Rome: U.S. Supreme Court Limits FIFRA Preemption of Common La...  May 01, 2005 The Court vacated a 5th Circuit Court of Appeals judgment, overturning the Circuit Court's rulings on some claims, and remanding two claims for further preemption analysis. Thus, even claims that do not rely on label content, such as design or manufacturing defect claims without a failure to warn component, have not survived preemption summary judgment motions Littler Mendelson: New Eleventh Circuit Ruling in Palmer & Cay Promote...  Apr 01, 2005 Employees may soon ask other states with anti-noncompete policies to extend their declaratory judgment protections in the same way. To take advantage of Georgia s anti-NCA precedent, Mr. Meathe and his new employer, Palmer & Cay, filed a declaratory judgment action in the federal district court in Savannah, Georgia, seeking an order that both the 1997 stock sale NCA and his 2002 employment-related NCA are unenforceable McDermott: Fair is Fair: Trademark Fair Use Defense Does Not Requi...  Dec 10, 2004 Shortly thereafter, Lasting Impression sent a cease-and-desist letter to KP. In response, KP brought a declaratory judgment action in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, seeking to confirm its right to continue using microcolors. KP asserted that it was making a fair use of the trademark because it used the term microcolors in a descriptive manner to describe KP s own goods and because it was not seeking to take advantage of Lasting Impression s trademark Pepper Hamilton: Circuit Court Update Highlighting recent significant ca...  Dec 08, 2004 The court of appeals affirmed the district court s judgment as a matter of law because the supervisors failed to establish two essential elements of their claims. ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CERCLA GenCorp, Inc. v. Olin Corp., No. 03-3019/3211 (Sutton, J.) (also on panel: Martin and Williams) (filed: November 22, 2004) Olin sued GenCorp under CERCLA to (1) recover a percentage of clean-up costs and (2) obtain a declaratory judgment that GenCorp bore responsibility for that same percentage of future Blank Rome: Corporate Litigation Alert  Dec 01, 2004 Alan Gershenson of Blank Rome LLP's Corporate Litigation Practice Group successfully represented Manufacturers and Traders in obtaining the summary judgment victory. The landlord sued for declaratory judgment and breach of contract contending that it did not obtain the permits in time because of unwarranted delay and allegedly extortionate and illegal demands by the Township, and that such conduct was beyond its control, thereby excusing the delay under the force majeure provision Akerman Senterfitt: 11/29/04 - Insurance-Related Appellate Update  Nov 29, 2004 Florida District Courts of Appeal Insurance -- Personal injury protection -- Offer of judgment ­ An insurer may recover attorney's fees pursuant to an offer of judgment or proposal for settlement in an action filed by its insured to recover PIP benefits. To determine if an offer of judgment is made in good faith the question to be considered is whether the offer or proposal bears a reasonable relationship to the amount of damages suffered and was a realistic assessment of liability Lane Powell: Critical Steps Even If You Think There Is No Cover  Oct 15, 2004 ...policy does not cover the claim or until you get a declaratory judgment stating the same. Failure to do so can make the company liable for the entire judgment when it is later learned that settlement offers within limits were rejected even though the file indicated the company felt all along that the case had excess potential Akerman Senterfitt: 10/04/04 - Insurance-Related Appellate Update  Oct 04, 2004 Florida Supreme Court Insurance -- Homeowners -- Declaratory judgments -- Coverage ­ Insurer may pursue a declaratory action requiring a determination of the existence or nonexistence of a fact upon which the insurer's obligations under an insurance policy depend ­ It is within trial court's discretion, by weighing factors outlined by Court as well as factors of the particular case, to determine whether the declaratory judgment action or the underlying tort action against the insured should Sills Cummis: 2004 September Alert.pdf  Sep 01, 2004 The LAD provides that "`the prevailing party may be awarded a reasonable attorney's fee as part of the cost.'" The Court held that to be a "prevailing party," a plaintiff must recover some damages, injunctive relief, or a declaratory judgment. Notably, the Court held, however, that in cases in which the jury awards only nominal damages to a plaintiff, it is left to the trial court's discretion as to whether or not to award attorneys' fees Kilpatrick Stockton: Internet Access Now Available To Pending Patent Applica...  Aug 01, 2004 Real time access to patent application prosecution files will also make it impossible to surprise an attentive competitor with a patent suit filed on the day apatent issues and may even make it possible in some cases for a third party to file a declaratory judgment action seeking a holding of non-infringement and or patent invalidity with respect to a competitor's patent on the day it issues. The availability of this information will also give businesses additional lead time in developing and Baker Botts: Licensee May Not Challenge a Patent Without Materially ...  Jul 01, 2004 When there is an actual controversy between two or more parties, the Declaratory Judgment Act provides that an interested party to the dispute can seek a declaration of the "rights and other legal relations" between the parties. The Declaratory Judgment Act applies in patent cases, and provides a useful tool by which an accused infringer, or parties told by the patentee that they need to license a patent, can seek a determination of their defenses of non-infringement or invalidity before the Seyfarth Shaw: One Minute Memo - Owner of Subservient Estate May Chang...  Jul 01, 2004 In the absence of agreement, the party seeking to relocate an easement should seek a declaratory judgment from the Court that the proposed relocation meets the criteria set forth in Section 4. 8(3) and its ruling Burr & Forman: Spring 2004 Construction Law Bulletin  Apr 01, 2004 Sutherland Asbill & Brennan: Legal Alert: Significant Changes for Prescription Drug ...  Jan 30, 2004 The notice must also include an offer of confidential access, as will be discussed in section C below, if the generic drug applicant wishes to establish its right to file a declaratory judgment action in the absence of a patent infringement suit filed against it in response to the notice. C. Declaratory Judgment in Absence of Infringement Suit The new statute codifies, with one significant change, the availability of the declaratory judgment remedy to generic applicants that file ¶ IV Morrison: New Hampshire Law Update - 08/03  Aug 13, 2003 Baker Botts: Infringement Notice Letters Alone May Not Subject Paten...  Jun 01, 2003 Baker Botts LLP | News s | In Print | Infringement Notice Letters Alone May Not Subject Patentee to Personal Jurisdiction of a Foreign Forum in a Declaratory Judgment Action On the Podium Deals its Events In Print Media Center Supreme Court Reports IP Reports Texas Technology Calendars Search In Print By Topic INFRINGEMENT NOTICE LETTERS ALONE MAY NOT SUBJECT PATENTEE TO PERSONAL JURISDICTION OF A FOREIGN FORUM IN A DECLARATORY JUDGMENT ACTIONJune 1, 2003by Chad Terrell In April of this year, Lowenstein Sandler: "Secure a Chosen Forum by Being First To File"...  Apr 28, 2003 The short answer is: by being the "first to file." This can be accomplished by filing a declaratory judgment action seeking a declaration that the client did not do the wrongful act that it is being accused of. However, the first-filed rule is not absolute and courts have the discretion to decline to exercise jurisdiction over declaratory judgment actions for a variety of reasons Jones Day: State Tax Return Newsletter  Mar 01, 2003 Sidley Austin: Winter 2003 No. 2 Reinsurance Law Report  Jan 01, 2003 TRAVELERS V. GERLING: A NON-PRODUCTS ASBESTOS ALLOCATION PUZZLE LITIGATING THE CLAIM FOR DECLARATORY JUDGMENT EXPENSES: A PRACTICAL PERSPECTIVE PREVENTING CLASS ACTIONS THROUGH ARBITRATION CLAUSES: CASES, QUESTIONS AND DRAFTING ISSUES CUTTING-THROUGH KOKEN V. LEGION: THE DOCTRINE OF THIRD-PARTY LIABILITY INSIDE. OCF moved for summary judgment in the arbitration, seeking a declaration that Travelers was obligated under the non-products coverage of its policies to defend and indemnify any asbestos Musick Peeler & Garrett: CALIFORNIA SUPREME COURT ISSUES ?LOST POLICY? DECISION  Oct 03, 2002 Dart filed an action seeking a declaratory judgment establishing that the policy issued by Commercial Union obligated it to provide a defense and indemnity. Because the policy at issue was “lost” and neither party was able to find a copy of it, Dart undertook to prove the “material terms” of the policy by testimony of Commercial Union’s agent and Dart’s broker during the relevant period, as well as through various items of “documentary evidence.” The trial court held that Dart sufficiently Finnegan Henderson: The Federal Circuit?s ?Exclusive? Jurisdiction Ain?t So...  Oct 01, 2002 Under the controlling statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1295(a), the Federal Circuit has exclusive jurisdiction of a final decision of a district court where the district court had jurisdiction because the judgment involved a claim that arose under the Patent Act. The Procedural FactsHolmes involved a declaratory-judgment action brought by The Holmes Group, Inc. to establish that a spiral-grill design on one of its fan and heater products did not infringe the trade-dress rights of Vornado Air Circulation Morgan Lewis: Federal Trade Commission Recommends Changes to Hatch-Wa...  Jul 30, 2002 Finally, the report recommends that the definition of such a "court decision" include any court decision dismissing a declaratory judgment action for lack of a case or controversy. A copy of the report entitled "Generic Drug Entry Prior to Patent Expiration: An FTC Study" is available at http://www Baker Botts: Supreme Court Restricts Federal Circuit Jurisdiction  Jul 24, 2002 Shortly thereafter, Holmes filed an action in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas, requesting a declaratory judgment that it did not infringe Vornado’s trade dress. The district court granted Holmes a declaratory judgment on the grounds that Vornado was collaterally estopped from relitigating its trade dress claims Bell: Patent Counterclaims Insufficient To Confer Federal Cir...  Jun 01, 2002 In Holmes Group, the petitioner brought a declaratory judgment action in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas that its products did not infringe respondent's trade dress. After the district court granted the declaratory judgment for petitioner, the respondent appealed to the Federal Circuit Arent Fox: Branch Office Clause Does Not Undermine the Reasonablen...  May 03, 2002 Without filing a declaratory judgment action to determine the enforceability of the non-compete provision, the employee established a competing practice within 2 miles of the main office of the former employer. The trial court found that the non-compete was overbroad, because, once all the branch offices were considered, the non-compete area extended as far as 120 miles in one direction Holland & Knight: Insurance Law May-02  May 01, 2002 After its own investigation, Con Ed entered into an agreement with the DEC to clean up the site and commenced a declaratory judgment action against 24 insurers that had issued it general liability policies between 1938 and 1986, demanding a defense and indemnification for environmental damages arising from the contamination caused by the Tarrytown plant. The policies that were the subject of the complaint were issued in layers, and provided for a self-insured retention in the amount of $100,000 Faegre & Benson: Contractors Win Key Insurance Victory in Minnesota Supr...  Apr 01, 2002 Gordon & Rees: Aerojet-General Corporation v. American Excess Insuranc...  Mar 12, 2002 4th ___, 02 C.D.O.S. 1954 Unambiguous Terms of Prior Declaratory Judgment Barred Manufacturer from Further Claims Against Insurer for Indemnity and Defense in Subsequent Action for Industrial Pollution. The California Court of Appeal, Third District, affirmed a judgment of dismissal on demurrer entered by the Superior Court, Sacramento County, concluding that the plaintiff's action for declaratory relief was barred by principles of res judicata as a result of an earlier declaratory judgment that Shearman & Sterling: Federal Circuit Rules on Lemelson Submarine Patent*  Mar 01, 2002 Symbol Technologies, concerned that it might be forced to indemnify its customers, sought a declaratory judgment that the Lemelson patents were unenforceable. The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversed a lower court ruling and held that prosecution laches was a valid defense to an infringement claim when the patentee has unreasonably delayed in prosecuting a patent and the delay results in prejudice to the infringing party Hayboo: Declaratory Judgment and Interpleader Actions in Insura...  Feb 28, 2002 Winstead: W. Mike Baggett  Jan 01, 2002 5 billion expansion Successful reversal of judgments on appeal in excess of $56 million and set aside trial court judgments in excess of $220 million Texas Supreme Court, 1973-1974 Law Clerk for Honorable Price Daniel, Sr. Baylor University, School of Law J.D., cum laude, 1973 ODK Abner McCall Award; President, Student Bar Association and Board of Governors; Baylor Law Review; Young Graduates Award of Merit (1983) Texas Aersity B.B.A. Accounting, 1968 Yell leader (1967-1968); Corps of Cadets; Shaw Pittman: Mold-Related Bad Faith Claims Continue to Plague Insure...  Dec 05, 2001 Insurers need to be mindful of which districts or jurisdictions might properly entertain a coverage action, considering early in the claim handling process whether an affirmative declaratory judgment action in an appropriate jurisdiction may support the company s coverage determination an prevent bad faith exposure. If you have any questions regarding this Alert or any other insurance-related matter, please contact: Walter J. Andrews walter Baker Botts: Supreme Court Reports  Dec 04, 2001 A judicial candidate sought a declaratory judgment that the rule was facially unconstitutional, and the Eighth Circuit, over a dissent, upheld the law. and so that’s how I won summary judgment without even knowing who our client was Shaw Pittman: District of Columbia's Highest Court To Decide Whe...  Dec 03, 2001 CASE BACKGROUND An insurer sought declaratory judgment in federal district court in D.C. that the insurer was not obligated to defend or indemnify the owner of an apartment complex who had been sued by a security guard at the complex. The insurer moved for summary judgment based on the following pollution exclusion: This insurance does not apply to: Bodily injury or property damage arising out of the actual, alleged or threatened discharge, dispersal, seepage, migration, release or escape of Shaw Pittman: New Developments on Wheter the Absolute Pollution Exclu...  Nov 30, 2001 Cincinnati then filed a petition for declaratory judgment in district court seeking a declaration that the CGL policy that it had issued to the insured did not provide coverage for claims arising out of pollution due to the absolute pollution exclusion and that as there was no coverage, there was no duty to defend. Both parties moved for summary judgment in the district court Fried Frank: U.S. Court Releases Yahoo! Inc. from Compliance with Fr...  Nov 20, 2001 ...asked for a declaratory judgment that it did not have to comply with the French court order with respect to Nazi-oriented content, because the order conflicts with the First Amendment s free speech guarantee. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California granted that judgment; lawyers for the French anti-racism groups have indicated there may be an appeal Lowenstein Sandler: Courts Disagree on Insurance Coverage for Data  Oct 01, 2001 The insurer sought a declaratory judgment that its policy did not provide coverage for the Sprays' claim against Midwest, eliminating any duty to indemnify or defend its insured with respect to the lawsuit. The parties sought from the court a determination of the meaning of "tangible property" with respect to the loss of data on the computer tape Lord Bissell Brook: Pennsylvania Supreme Court Affirms Ruling In Favor of L...  Oct 01, 2001 However, the trial judge issued a judgment for Rohm and Haas notwithstanding the jury’s Whitmoyer verdict. Based on the evidence, the Court concluded that there was sufficient support for the jury’s verdict on the issue of fraud and that the trial court’s entry of judgment notwithstanding that verdict was error Weil: WGM Internet Law Bulletin  Sep 20, 2001 ...(Commercial Issues) Gator Corp. v. Interactive Advertising Bureau, No. 01-3279 (N.D.Cal., complaint filed 8/27/01) Plaintiff files a declaratory judgment action against the IAB, a trade association which represents Internet advertising companies, seeking a finding that its "companion pop-up banners" do not infringe on any trademarks, are not unfair or deceptive trade practices, and do not constitute unfair competition. biz top-level domain name, files a declaratory judgment action seeking a Anderson Kill & Olick: Policyholder Advisor  Sep 01, 2001 Neither company would provide Harken with a defense, and Harken filed a declaratory judgment action. The federal court held that the companies had a duty to defend and breached the policies McKenna Long & Aldridge: Insurance Advisor  Sep 01, 2001 Florida's Annotated Statutes provides: Upon the rendition of a judgment or decree by any of the courts of this state against an insurer and in favor of any named or omnibus insured. The federal act provides courts with the authority to grant "[f]urther or proper relief based on a declaratory judgment or decree ... against an adverse party whose rights have been determined by such judgment."2 In Security Ins Preston Gates & Ellis: Personal Jurisdiction Over Foreign Non-Residents Regard...  Aug 01, 2001 2d 1168 (N.D.Cal. 2001); further remarks on that court's November 2001 summary judgment decision that originally appeared in Computer und Recht International are available in the article Enforceability of Foreign Court Decisions Regarding Internet Posting of Content on our Web site. When Yahoo sought a declaration by the U.S. court that the judgment against it in France was unenforceable in the U.S., the two French organizations moved to dismiss, arguing that the U.S. court had no jurisdiction Testa: Avoid Negotiating Your Company Into an IP Lawsuit  Jul 01, 2001 A threatened party does not have to wait to be sued to vindicate its rights: it can ask the court to clear the air — and invalidate your rights — by declaratory judgment. A declaratory judgment is a court’s declaration of rights Testa: What You "Claim" is What You Get  Jul 01, 2001 "Open Source" Software Benefits and Risks Page 3 Declaratory Judgments Avoid Precipitating a Lawsuit Page 5 Joint Ownership Navigating the Complicated Terrain Page 6. A threatened party does not have to wait to be sued to vindicate its rights: it can ask the court to clear the air -- and invalidate your rights -- by declaratory judgment Marshall Dennehey: 'Creeping Disease Rule' Not Applicable in Penns...  Jun 15, 2001 Baker Botts: Second Circuit Allows Reasonable License Fee as Actual ...  Jun 01, 2001 Mr. Davis sought a declaratory judgment of infringement, as well as punitive damages and several million dollars in actual damages. The actual damages sought were a rise in the profits of The Gap's parent company during the time period in question, and damages based upon the license fee which Davis asserted he should have been paid, and would have been paid had the The Gap behaved properly Sidley Austin: California Environmental Alert - February 2001  Feb 01, 2001 In that case, Powerine Oil Company, Inc. sought a declaratory judgment on coverage respecting orders issued by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board and the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board. The Court based its ruling in large part on its 1998 ruling that CGL insurers have no duty to defend administrative agency orders Shaw Pittman: Minnesota District Court Dismisses Year 2000 Claims Aga...  Jan 22, 2001 Dec. 20, 2000) (granting summary judgment on Year 2000 remediation claim in favor of insurer on basis of late notice where insured did not notify insurer of claim until three years after it began its remediation effort, during which time the insured expended $138 million in remediation costs); Port of Seattle v. Lexington Ins. Dec. 28, 2000) (granting summary judgment in favor of insurers on insured's claim for coverage for Year 2000 remediation expenses, where insurers argued, inter alia, that Finnegan Henderson: Parisi v. Netlearning Inc.  Jan 01, 2001 Plaintiff filed a declaratory-judgment action under the ACPA and the Federal Declaratory Judgment Act, as well as a declaration of noninfringement under the Lanham Act. Defendant filed a motion to dismiss on the ground that plaintiff’s complaint constituted an improper motion to vacate an arbitration award Marshall Dennehey: FAILURE TO DEFEND MAY NOT BIND INSURER TO PAY CLAIM  Dec 01, 2000 Marshall Dennehey: PA. SUPREME COURT: NO INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR PHARMACIST...  Dec 01, 2000 Marshall Dennehey: CORPORATION CAPABLE OF WAIVING UM/UIM COVERAGE  Dec 01, 2000 Marshall Dennehey: PENNSYLVANIA INSURANCE COVERAGE/BAD FAITH LAW UPDATE  Dec 01, 2000 McKenna Long & Aldridge: Insurance Advisor  Nov 01, 2000 ...insurer failed to investigate a claim before seeking a declaratory judgment of no coverage. The insurer provided a defense, but at the same time filed a declaratory judgment action contesting coverage Shaw Pittman: Scottsdale Insurance Co v National Shooting Sports Foun...  Aug 18, 2000 The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a decision in one of the first declaratory judgment actions to address an insurer s duty to defend an underlying gun liability suit. Scottsdale, upon receipt of the underlying suits from its insured NSSF, filed this Declaratory Judgment to determine whether there existed any coverage obligations in connection with the underlying suits under commercial general liability policies issued to NSSF by Scottsdale Sedgwick: Where Did Y2K Go?  May 01, 2000 Allendale Mutual Insurance Company, Affiliated FM Insurance Company, Allianz Insurance Company, Federal Insurance Company, Industrial Risk Insurers Filed: June 18, 1999U.S. District Court,District of New Jersey Relief sought: Declaratory judgment of coverage for Y2K remediation expenses. Unisys Corporation v.Royal Indemnity Company, Sun Insurance Office of America, Inc., Allendale Mutual Insurance Company, Insurance Company of North America Filed: August 6, 1999Superior Court of the State of Sidley Austin: Alternative Dispute Resolution Developments- 4/21/00  Apr 21, 2000 The case was an adversary proceeding in which a trust that was successor-in-interest to the debtor was seeking a declaratory judgment that claims made by creditors were covered by insurance policies issued by the defendant insurance companies. The insurance companies, however, had entered into valid arbitration agreements with the debtors, and asked the bankruptcy court to refer the proceedings to arbitration Greenberg Traurig: The Expanded Availability of Declaratory Statements in ...  Apr 01, 2000 The Expanded Availability of Declaratory Statements in Administrative Law Home > Publications > Articles The Expanded Availability of Declaratory Statements in Administrative Law By Seann M. Frazier From Florida Bar Journal, April 2000 Most practitioners are familiar with the use of declaratory judgments to clarify the rights, status and other equitable and legal positions of their clients. This article compares the use of declaratory judgments to the relief available from the declaratory Hayboo: Breaking Bad News to the Public  Feb 01, 2000 Haynes Boone | KnowledgeConnect | Declaratory Judgment and Interpleader Actions in Insurance Cases 3) { window. visibility = "visible"; } } //-- PublicationHot TopicsPublicationsFirm Seminars2/28/2002 - Declaratory Judgment and Interpleader Actions in Insurance Cases AuthorsJ. David RoweRelated Practice GroupsBusiness LitigationInsurance CoverageScope of Article Declaratory judgment and interpleader actions can be very useful in insurance disputes Poyner and Spruill: Local Government Counsel Newsletter (January 2000)  Jan 01, 2000 Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Weil: Taxes on Property Transfers Under Chapter 11  Nov 01, 1999 However, in light of the Supreme Court s ruling in Seminole, the bankruptcy court concluded that the Eleventh Amendment precluded it from binding the states to its judgment. On appeal, the district court affirmed the bankruptcy court s judgment on the exemption issue but reversed on the sovereign immunity question, holding that the debtor s motion for a declaratory judgment was not a suit for Eleventh Amendment purposes Testa: Supreme Court Limits Suits Against State Entities:  Jul 02, 1999 In Florida Prepaid, the Board was formed by the state legislature but received little or no state funding, yet the bank did not argue that the Board was not an "arm of the state." Prior court decisions provide some guidance and hold that if state funds could be needed to pay any judgment against an entity, or if an injunction against the entity could affect the state, the entity could be an "arm of the state" and therefore immune from suit. Other questions Florida Prepaid did not reach are Testa: Court Approves Software and Business Method Patents  Apr 01, 1999 State Street Bank asked the court for a declaratory judgment that Signature’s patent was invalid because it did not claim patentable subject matter. The lower court judge agreed with State Street Bank, concluding that Signature’s patent fell into at least one of two exceptions to patentable subject matter—mathematical algorithms and methods of doing business—and therefore was invalid Arnold Porter: Another 180-Day Exclusivity Decision  Jan 21, 1999 ...(21 U.S.C. 355(j)(5)(B)(iv)) Teva argued, unsuccessfully, that the dismissal of its declaratory judgment action on the ground of lack of case or controversy constituted a decision holding the patent invalid or not infringed. Significantly, the government’s defense was based on the fact that it had not adopted Teva’s interpretation and left open the possibility that it would consider adopting it in subsequent notice and comment rulemaking Foley Lardner: Hostile Work Environment Sexual Harassment Covered Unde...  Jan 01, 1999 Foley Lardner: The Ninth Circuit Refuses To Enforce Compulsory Agreeme...  Jul 02, 1998 Pillsbury Winthrop: California Federal Courts Further Limit Arbitration Of ...  Jul 01, 1998 As a threshold matter, she requested a declaratory judgment stating that securities industry employees cannot be compelled to arbitrate their employment disputes under the arbitration provision in Form U-4. After extensive discovery into the arbitration system of the securities industry, the trial court denied Duffield s request for a declaratory award, granted Robertson Stephens cross-motion to compel arbitration, but certified the issue for an immediate interlocutory appeal Heller Ehrman: Lawsuits Filed To Determine Insurance Coverage For Cell...  Oct 31, 1997 Policyholders have alleged breach of contract claims against their insurance companies, as well as claims for injunctive relief and specific performance on the duty to defend, declaratory judgment on the obligation to pay defense costs and, also, for liabilities resulting from the underlying litigation, as well as attorneys’ fees and other expenses. At least one insurance company has filed suit seeking declaratory judgment that the allegations made by cell phone users do not constitute "bodily Foley Lardner: Federal Appeal Court Finds Independent Equal Protection...  Oct 10, 1997 Arnold Porter: IP News  Nov 01, 1996 The District Court granted summary judgment, finding that the showing to the prospective customer was an "offer for sale," and that the invention was sufficiently complete before the critical date as to invoke the on-sale bar because the patented method had been "extensively developed at the time the offers were made." The Federal Circuit reversed, explaining that the policy embodied in § 102(b) does not require that the one-year period start to accrue on an invention that is not yet known to Venable: "Patent Litigation In The Eastern District Of Virg...  Jan 01, 1996 Clearly, the Eastern District's speed is not only desired, but may be a reason for a party to file there first as a declaratory judgment plaintiff and thereby stay a step ahead of the patent holder. Personal Jurisdiction and Venue in Declaratory Judgment Cases As noted above, while some declaratory judgment plaintiffs in patent cases (i Pillsbury Winthrop: Federal Circuit Affirms Importance Of Notice And Markin...  Jan 01, 1995 Furthermore, an actual notice-of-infringement letter will not be effective under º 287(a) unless its content directly charges the recipient with infringement in a manner sufficient to generate a basis for a declaratory judgment action against the patent owner. (Merely advising of the existence of the patent, and an intention to enforce it, with a warning against making articles under the patent was in Amsted insufficient Pillsbury Winthrop: Patent Management: Preserve Your Damages By Proper Mark...  Jan 01, 1995 The Federal Circuit dismissed the 1986 letter as "merely informational, of the kind that companies often send to others without intending to charge infringement ... such letters tend not to be threats sufficient to justify a declaratory judgment action." (Amsted, at 1469). Nonetheless, Amsted says the statute requires more than letters which "tend not be threats sufficient to justify a declaratory judgment action, they also are not charges of infringement for `notice' purposes." Notably, the Vinson Elkins: Mooting Patent Invalidity: Justiciability and the Case ...  Mar 12, 1994 CD Solutions   1998) Plaintiff, a manufacturer of CD-ROM compact discs, sought a declaratory judgment that its domain name “cds.com” did not violate defendant’s rights in the trademark CDS (which stands for “Commercial Documentation Services”) for desktop publishing and printing services. The court granted plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment, finding that defendant could not preclude plaintiff’s use of the “cds.com” domain name in reference to compact disc products and services Technology Law Update: Sierra Applied Scis.   13, 2004)"The greater the variability of the subject of a declaratory-judgment suit, particularly as to its potentially infringing features, the greater the chance that the court’s judgment will be purely advisory, detached from the eventual, actual content of that subject -- in short, detached from eventual reality. "Please click the link above to download the entire article. Home | Offices | Meet PGE | What We Do | Newsroom | Publications | Employment | Events | Contact Us Copyright Icarumba   Interstate Net Bank v. Netbank   Network Network v. CBS   Network then filed this declaratory judgment action. In its motion for summary judgment, CBS claimed that Network’s use of the “tnn.com” domain name infringed and diluted CBS’s TNN mark under federal and state law Domain Name Clearing Co.   In 1998, plaintiff filed a declaratory-judgment action seeking a declaration of noninfringement of defendant’s trademark rights, which was eventually dismissed on jurisdictional grounds. The district court granted summary judgment in defendant’s favor that plaintiff’s registration of “clarins.com” violated the ACPA. On appeal, the Fourth Circuit affirmed, noting that the record was replete with evidence that plaintiff had a bad-faith intent to profit from defendant’s trademark Single Limit Applies   The insurer then filed the instant declaratory judgment action against the insureds, the receiver and the underlying plaintiff seeking court approval to advance defense expenses to the insureds and seeking a ruling concerning certain other coverage issues that were in dispute. Immediately thereafter, the insurer filed a motion for summary judgment as to all issues in its complaint The IP Report   In the declaratory judgment action of Video Pipeline, Inc. v. Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Inc.,14 the U.S. District Court of New Jersey granted summary judgment counterclaims against Video Pipeline for copyright infringement and other claims for placing Disney movie trailers on line after expressly receiving instructions not to do so. The court was not persuaded, and all of Video Pipeline’s motions for summary judgment were denied Lack Of Timely Notice   The plaintiffs sued the attorney for malpractice and secured a default judgment against her. The attorney was insured under two successive "claims made and reported" policies, the first from January 13, 1998 to January 13, 1999 ("Policy One") and the second from January 13, 1999 to January 13, 2000 ("Policy Two") Garofalo v. Princess Cruises   The Second District of the Court of Appeal has affirmed in part and reversed in part a ruling of the Los Angeles Superior Court granting declaratory judgment in favor of Princess Cruises against an injured passenger and the deceased passenger's former employer. The former employer's subrogation claim was found barred by the Death on the High Seas Act America Online   1999) (summary judgment), aff’d in part and vacated in part, 243 F.3d 812 (4th Cir. In a later decision, the court granted AT&T’s motion for summary judgment on its declaratory-judgment counterclaims that AOL’s marks YOU HAVE MAIL, IM, and BUDDY LIST were generic and not protectable as trademarks %20Steve%20Determination%20of%20Litigation%20Forum.pdf   Volume 3   The plaintiffs—including an online book distributor, a book publisher, a vendor of sheet music, a choir director, and a company that preserves and restores old films—are seeking a declaratory judgment that the CTEA is unconstitutional. Their primary argument is that the Copyright Clause only grants Congress the power to grant copyright protection for a "limited Time" and that giving Congress the power to repeatedly extend copyright terms effectively gives it the right to extend copyright Bulletin 02-07   Symbol filed a declaratory judgment suit against Lemelson in Nevada in July 1999 and Cognex filed a similar suit in Nevada in September 1999. Both complaints contained defenses of unenforceability due to prosecution laches, which is an equitable defense against enforcement of an otherwise valid patent based upon fundamental issues of fairness Bulletin 01-13   Declaratory Judgment To Invalidate Patent Some demand letters directly allege infringement of specific patents. These letters may give grounds for the recipient to affirmatively file a court action for declaratory judgment to invalidate the patents Barcelona.com   ...com” violated the ACPA because defendant never filed an ACPA counterclaim with the district court. On July 16, 2003, the district court entered judgment in favor of plaintiff. The court rejected defendant’s argument that plaintiff acted with unclean hands by transferring the domain name to a United States company to avoid application of Spanish trademark law. The court held that plaintiff’s registration and use of the domain name “barcelona. com” did not violate the Lanham Act or ACPA, and that Village Creek Property Owners Association   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action 03-01-04: IP Update   Upon issuance of the patent, the university immediately sued the defendant who moved for summary judgment of invalidity for failure to comply with the written description and enablement requirements. Finding that the patent-in-suit failed to meet this standard, the Court upheld the summary judgment finding the patent invalid : Cerruti 1881   ...xruti 1881, S.A. v. Cerruti, Inc. , 45 U.S.P.Q.2d 1957 (S.D.N.Y. 1998) In an earlier opinion in this dispute between two clothing and fabric designers, the court granted a declaratory judgment in favor of plaintiffs, finding that defendant had acted in bad faith and had abandoned any rights to the CERRUTI trademark. Later, plaintiffs learned that defendant was operating an Internet website at the domain name “cerrutiusa.com,” on which he marketed clothing, fabrics, and accessories under the name : On Your Mark   To promote their interests, insurers often file actions seeking a declaratory judgment supporting their denial of a claim. Often, insurers file declaratory judgment lawsuits in the midst of "negotiations" about coverage or during the insurer's "review" of the claim : February 2002   ...against Corinthians seeking declaratory judgment that his registration and use of corinthians. However, Judge Young said the kind of preemptive judgment sought by Sallen requires that the instigator of the lawsuit be a likely target of litigation under the same laws he or she cites : Insurance Industry Antitrust Newsletter   Background The action was commenced as a declaratory judgment proceeding by Clark Butler, a builder that sought to obtain from his insurance agent a rebate of a portion of the agent s commission on title insurance he was purchasing through the agent from Chicago Title Insurance. Butler s action challenged the constitutionality of Section 626 : Insurance Industry Antitrust Newsletter   Background The action was commenced as a declaratory judgment proceeding by Clark Butler, a builder that sought to obtain from his insurance agent a rebate of a portion of the agent s commission on title insurance he was purchasing through the agent from Chicago Title Insurance. Butler s action challenged the constitutionality of Section 626 Akin Gump: Landmark Ruling Strikes Down Application of California&...   In the first declaratory judgment action ever tried under California's Proposition 65, a California trial court issued a landmark ruling on October 10 striking down the application of Proposition 65's cancer warning requirement to DEHP, a plasticizer used in nearly all medical devices. The company, which uses DEHP in its intravenous feeding tubes, cardiovascular devices and kidney dialysis equipment, sued the state for a declaratory judgment that DEHP poses no significant risk of cancer Akin Gump: Finality in Litigation   While every option needs to be explored in an effort to limit the duplicative nature of litigation and to ensure that settlements and judgments can truly be considered the final resolution of a case, experience teaches us that finality is not always achievable. However, the current judicial trend is to expand the preclusive effect given to an original judgment to other parties not involved in an original lawsuit but later attempting to relitigate the issue on their own behalf Briggs & Morgan: Noncompete Agreements: Fixed-Term Employment Contracts   Brown McCarroll: Litigation Preparation: Winning the War Before the Batt...   The insurer depends upon you to exercise good judgment to protect it from insurance fraud and from claims which, legitimately, should not be paid. You should exercise your own, independent judgment in making this decision, while taking into account the input which you have obtained from others Cooley Godward: Means Claim Not Limited to Structure Common to Alternat...     Ishida Co. Ltd. And Heat ol Inc. (collectively “Ishidaâ€?) sought a declaratory judgment that their Apex Bagmaker did not infringe the ‘917 patent.   After construing the claims, the district court granted summary judgment for noninfringement Finnegan Henderson: WAWA Inc. v. Christensen   1999) WAWA sued defendant, a Danish citizen, for trademark dilution based on defendant’s use of the domain name “wawawa.com.” After defendant failed to answer, WAWA moved for a default judgment. The court entered a “declaratory judgment” that defendant’s use of the domain name “wawawa.com” violated the FTDA and the Pennsylvania antidilution statute Finnegan Henderson: Juno Online Services L.P. v. Juno Lighting Inc.   1997) Plaintiff Juno Online, an online service and e mail provider and registrant of the domain name “juno.com,” filed this declaratory-judgment action against NSI and Juno Lighting, a manufacturer of recessed and track lighting, in response to Juno Lighting’s filing of an NSI protest to the “juno.com” domain name based on its ownership of two federal registrations for the trademark JUNO for electric-lighting fixtures. But Juno Online instead amended its complaint against Juno Lighting to Finnegan Henderson: Sallen v. Corinthians Licenciamentos Ltda.   Under 15 U.S.C. § 1114(2)(D)(v), Plaintiff filed two actions in the jurisdiction to which the complainant submitted, the District of Massachusetts, seeking a declaratory judgment that his registration of these domain names did not violate the ACPA. Defendants filed motions to dismiss both actions for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, arguing that there was no case or controversy because defendants had not threatened suit under the ACPA. Because defendants later represented that they had no Hayboo: Disputes Among Insurance Carriers   Those areas include disputes regarding subrogation, policies with “other insurance” clauses, declaratory judgment actions and cases in which negligent claims handling is alleged. This paper will focus on those four areas where carriers engage in conflicts with other carriers Hinshaw & Culbertson: The Insurer Defense Obligation: A Survey of the States ...   When is a declaratory judgment action appropriate. Accordingly, while the court ruled that the insurer was not under any obligation to defend the underlying suit as Presently postured, it could not be determined at this stage whether there might eventually be a duty to defend or to pay any judgment Hinshaw & Culbertson: The Insurer Defense Obligation: A Survey of the Fifty S...   When is a declaratory judgment action appropriate. Accordingly, while the court ruled that the insurer was not under any obligation to defend the underlying suit as Presently postured, it could not be determined at this stage whether there might eventually be a duty to defend or to pay any judgment Honigman Miller: Basement Flooding Cases Remain In Federal Court   The actions, which alleged violations of water quality standards and wastewater treatment requirements, were settled by consent judgments entered by the Court. One of the pervasive problems addressed by the consent judgments related to wet weather problems ­ specifically, combined sewer overflows (CSOs) Honigman Miller: Court Interprets Pollution Exclusion Narrowly In Asbest...   8 million, LBWL sued Deerfield in federal court seeking a declaratory judgment that the Deerfield. insurance policy covered the PAS claim Knobbe Martens: Accused's Dilemma -- Federal Circuit May Have Limi...   This case undermined, to some extent, one of the accused patent infringer's most potent weapons -- a declaratory judgment action for noninfringement brought in its local court. One of the accused infringer's few aggressive courses of action is to file in its local district court a declaratory judgment action for noninfringement and/or invalidity Poyner and Spruill: New Court of Appeals Case Declares the Review of Legisl...   The plaintiffs filed a declaratory judgment action challenging the Town’s denial of their rezoning application. The trial court granted summary judgment to the Town and the plaintiffs appealed, arguing that there were genuine issues of material fact as to whether the Town’s decision was arbitrary and capricious Poyner and Spruill: Reasons for Not Using Standard Form Contracts on North ...   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Poyner and Spruill: Section Attorney Speaks at CDC Conference Regarding Dev...   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Poyner and Spruill: Special Use Permits - Questions And Answers   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Poyner and Spruill: Study of Deregulation Continues   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Poyner and Spruill: Study Commissions To Meet Before 2000 North Carolina Ge...   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Riker Danzig: 3/96 Trial by Jury Is Unavailable under New Jersey Sp...   Riker Danzig: 3/01 Constitutional Challenge to CERCLA Unilateral Adm...   GE seeks a declaratory judgment that the UAO process is invalid, arguing that §106 violates a PRP's constitutional right to due process by failing to provide a hearing prior to the issuance of EPA's order or timely and meaningful judicial review after issuance. Although the constitutionality of CERCLA has been challenged on similar grounds in the past, the timing of GE's suit may be in response to the view that the current Justices of the Supreme Court may be more amenable to constitutional Riker Danzig: 9/97 Recent Developments in Insurance Coverage Litiga...   The following are some of the more noteworthy developments: ú No right to a jury trial exists in a declaratory judgment action brought by an insured against its insurer for breach of the insurance contract and future remediation costs. Ciba-Geigy Corp. v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. and GEI International Corp. v. St. Paul Fire e Insurance Co. (New Jersey Supreme Court) Riker Danzig: 4/99 Intent to Cause Environmental Harm of One Kind Do...   In this case, CPC filed a complaint for a declaratory judgment seeking indemnification from its primary and excess insurers for remediation costs incurred at several chemical manufacturing sites. CPC and its insurers filed cross-motions for summary judgment Riker Danzig: 8/99 Policyholder's Actions Are Not To Be Judged ...   After receiving coverage denials, Universal filed suit seeking declaratory judgment against its carriers. Universal settled with all but one carrier, Commercial Union Insurance Company (“Commercial Union”), prior to trial Vinson & Elkins: "Mooting Patent Invalidity: Justiciability and the...   Weil: Patent & Antitrust Litigation: Micron Technology�...   Unlike most declaratory judgment actions in patent cases, which typically assert simply that the patents at issue are invalid, unenforceable, or not infringed, Micron s complaint also alleged that Rambus had committed fraud, had violated the antitrust laws, and should be estopped from enforcing its patents. These claims were based upon Rambus membership in JEDEC, and Rambus allegedly fraudulent and inequitable conduct in undermining the efforts of JEDEC to develop and set standards for SDRAM and Weil: Defending American Airlines Against Carl Icahn's T...   Weil: WGM Wins $416 Million Jury Verdict for ExxonMobil   The lawsuit began in August 2000 when SABIC filed a declaratory judgment action in Delaware Superior Court, asserting that it had not breached its contracts with ExxonMobil. The case was stayed until February 2002, when it was transferred to Judge Jan Jurden White and Williams: Pennsylvania Superior Court Rules That Attorney's ...   Pennsylvania Superior Court Rules That Attorney's Fees Are Not Available In A Declaratory Judgment Action Absent Bad Faith var fscontrolTP = new Object(); fscontrolTP.site_pn=location. Pennsylvania Superior Court Rules That Attorney s Fees Are Not Available In A Declaratory Judgment Action Absent Bad Faith July 2004 BY: WILLIAM J. SCHMIDT AND EDWARD M. KOCH On June 8, 2004, the Pennsylvania Superior Court issued a reported opinion that clarifies the limited availability of attorney s fees in Wiley Rein & Fielding: District Court Declines to Withdraw Reference to Bankru...   The company then brought a declaratory judgment action in the bankruptcy court seeking a determination that the I v. I exclusion was inapplicable to its claim. At that point, the insurers filed a motion with the district court to withdraw the reference of the declaratory judgment action from the bankruptcy court Wiley Rein & Fielding: Coverage Not Barred for Failure to Warn of Future Dange...   The insurer filed a declaratory judgment action seeking a ruling that the criminal acts exclusion in the policy precluded coverage. The Eight Circuit held that coverage was available Wiley Rein & Fielding: Declaratory Action to Determine Coverage Before Litigat...   WRF - Articles - Declaratory Action to Determine Coverage Before Litigation of Underlying Action Is Not Ripe if (document. src'); } } Search GO Declaratory Action to Determine Coverage Before Litigation of Underlying Action Is Not RipeThe Executive Summary, June 2004 A federal bankruptcy court in New Jersey has dismissed a chapter 11 debtor’s declaratory judgment action against its Drer seeking a determination whether the policy afforded coverage, holding that the lawsuit was not ripe because no Wiley Rein & Fielding: Vehicle Exclusion Inapplicable Where Infant Left in Van   Wiley Rein & Fielding: No Duty to Defend Dentist Accused of Sexual Assault   The court granted the insurer’s motion for summary judgment. The court concluded that, given the facts, a duty to defend could only be predicated on a finding that the dentist was providing treatment or related training for TMJ pain as a professional service Wiley Rein & Fielding: No Coverage for Claim Based on Prior Acts that Insured ...   As a result, the suit was dismissed on summary judgment for lack of evidence. The attorneys notified the insurer, which filed a declaratory judgment action based on the prior knowledge exclusion of the policy Wiley Rein & Fielding: Texas Appellate Court Applies ?Eight Corners? Rule   The dealerships then brought a declaratory judgment action. The appellate court held in favor of the insurer Wiley Rein & Fielding: Class Action Plaintiffs Not Permitted to Intervene in C...   ...src'); } } Search GO Class Action Plaintiffs Not Permitted to Intervene in Coverage ActionExecutive Summary, March 2004A federal district court in Alabama has held that class action plaintiffs were not entitled to intervene in a declaratory judgment action brought by insurers of the defendants seeking to rescind policies issued to the defendants because the class action plaintiffs did not have a legally protectable interest in the insurance dispute and because the interests of the plaintiffs Wiley Rein & Fielding: Texas District Court Holds That Fortuity Doctrine Appli...   The case arose after an insurer brought a declaratory judgment action seeking a declaration that it did not owe a duty of defense or indemnity under two commercial liability policies in connection with a civil suit alleging that the policyholder engaged in a conspiracy to violate federal antitrust laws. The insurer argued that the activities at issue constitute a "loss-in-progress" because the underlying complaint alleged that the conduct at issue predated the inception of the policy by at least Wiley Rein & Fielding: Proceeds of Adelphia?s D&O Policies Are Not Property of...   Thereafter, the insurers sought to rescind the policies and brought a declaratory judgment action against the Adelphia directors and officers. At the same time, the insurers moved for relief from the automatic stay "to the extent necessary" to name Adelphia and its affiliate as additional defendants in the declaratory judgment action Wiley Rein & Fielding: Sexual Misconduct Exclusion Bars Coverage for Sexual Ha...   After the chiropractor sought coverage under the insurance policy for damages awarded at trial, the insurer filed a declaratory judgment action, contending that coverage for the judgment was excluded under the policy. The Tenth Circuit agreed with the insurer Wiley Rein & Fielding: Court Applies ?Deliberate Acts? and ?Law Enforcement? E...   The insurer denied coverage and filed a declaratory judgment action. The district court held, based on a comparison between the allegations in the underlying complaint and the terms of the policy, that no coverage was available Wiley Rein & Fielding: Single Lawsuit Constitutes Five Claims Under Policy   The attorney representing the siblings neglected the case, resulting in summary judgment in favor of the landlord based on lack of evidence. After the siblings rejected the offer, demanding the aggregate limit, the insurer filed the instant declaratory judgment action Wiley Rein & Fielding: Amended Complaint Does Not Constitute A New Claim   The insurer sought a declaratory judgment that an officer was not entitled to coverage under any of its claims-made directors and officers policies in connection with a suit alleging fraud and tortious interference with contract that was first filed in 1998. The applicable policies covered the time period of March 1998 to March 1999, March 1999 to March 2000 and March 2000 to March 2001 Wiley Rein & Fielding: Allegations in Original Complaint Irrelevant to Determi...   The insurer filed a declaratory action, asserting that it was not obligated to defend or indemnify the company in the underlying action because the policy excluded coverage for "criminal acts" and "physical/sexual abuse." Although the amended complaint did not include allegations implicating those exclusions, the insurer argued that the initial complaint made such allegations and that the plaintiff was attempting to "perpetuate fraud on the court by artfully pleading facts to bring the excluded Wiley Rein & Fielding: Sixth Circuit Holds E&O Policy Exclusions For Specific ...   The insurer filed a declaratory judgment action seeking a determination that it had no duty to defend or indemnify. The Sixth Circuit rejected the company’s argument that it was entitled to coverage because any liability resulted from negligent conduct, concluding that the insurer had no obligation under the policy because the "damages alleged in the [underlying complaint] resulted from conduct that was excluded by the contract." The court initially noted, with respect to the exclusions, that Wiley Rein & Fielding: Controlled Enterprise Exclusion In Lawyers Policy Inapp...   The other counts in the complaint alleged various theories of "professional negligence." The insurer filed a lawsuit seeking a declaratory judgment that it had no duty to defend. It then filed a motion for summary judgment, and the magistrate judge recommended that the motion by the insurer be denied Wiley Rein & Fielding: Intentional Acts Exclusion Does Not Bar Coverage For Co...   ...src'); } } Search GO Intentional Acts Exclusion Does Not Bar Coverage For Consumer Fraud ActionThe Executive Summary, April 2003The First Circuit has held that Maine law governed a declaratory judgment action concerning an insurer’s duty to defend a travel agency, and that, under Maine law, the intentional acts exclusion in the policy did not relieve the insurer of its duty to defend a lawsuit alleging consumer fraud. Auto Europe, LLC v. Conn Wiley Rein & Fielding: Application Of ?Other Insurance? Clause Not Dependent O...   The court reasoned that the insurer had not breached a duty to defend and had promptly filed a declaratory judgment action after the general liability insurer requested fees. Additionally, the court reasoned that even if the nonprofit insurer had breached a duty to defend, "the failure to defend estops an insurer from raising exclusionary defenses, not an excess carrier defense." For more information, please contact one of WRF’s Professional Liability Attorneys at 202 Wiley Rein & Fielding: Financial Gain Exclusion Bars Coverage For E&O Claim; I...   Wiley Rein & Fielding: No Coverage For Legal Malpractice Action Under Prior Ac...   The insurer disclaimed coverage based on the prior knowledge exclusion because the lawyers did not report the claim until November 1999 and brought an action for declaratory judgment. The court ruled in favor of the insurer Wiley Rein & Fielding: Insurer Has Duty to Defend Attorney Where Notice of One...   The attorney did not move to vacate the default judgment until late 1999, more than four and a half years after he had been retained. The underlying plaintiff alleged that the attorney had failed to vacate the default judgment in a timely fashion Wiley Rein & Fielding: Business Enterprise Exclusion Does Not Bar Coverage   The insurer filed a declaratory judgment action seeking a ruling that it had no duty to defend or indemnify the lawyer based on the business enterprise exclusion. The First Circuit initially noted that "[p]rofessional liability insurers generally do not wish to provide coverage for the business activities of insured lawyers," and therefore generally include a business enterprise exclusion in their policies Wiley Rein & Fielding: Insurer Must Advance Defense Costs Despite Rescission o...   The same day it sent the letter, the insurer filed a declaratory judgment action against Kozlowski, Tyco and 14 other defendants. It subsequently amended the complaint to drop its claims except as to Kozlowski and three other defendants Wiley Rein & Fielding: Loss of Jury Verdict Does Not Automatically Create Fore...   The insurer filed this action seeking a declaratory judgment that it had no duty to defend or indemnify, arguing that the claim was excluded since the law firm knew prior to the effective date of the 2002-2003 policy that an error in the jury verdict form had occurred and therefore could have foreseen that a claim could result. After first finding the language of the prior notice exclusion to be unambiguous, the court considered when the law firm could have reasonably foreseen that its client Wiley Rein & Fielding: Professional Liability Policy Is Excess to General Busi...   This declaratory judgment action followed. On appeal, the court found that the professional liability policy was excess to the general liability policy and that the professional liability insurer was not required to contribute to defense costs Wiley Rein & Fielding: Court Applies Exclusions for Diminution in Property Val...   After the dismissal of the six counts, the insurer filed a declaratory judgment action, contending that since the policy specifically excluded coverage for the remaining counts in the complaint it had no duty to defend or indemnify. The district court granted the insurer’s motion for summary judgment Wiley Rein & Fielding: Bankruptcy Court Stays Litigation of Rescission Action ...   ...src'); } } Search GO Bankruptcy Court Stays Litigation of Rescission Action Against Adelphia Directors and OfficersExecutive Summary, December 2003 The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York has stayed the litigation of rescission issues in a declaratory judgment action brought by Adelphia’s D&O insurers. Thereafter, the insurers sought to rescind the policies based on fraud and brought a declaratory action against the Adelphia directors and officers Wiley Rein & Fielding: Court Determines That Claim Made Before Bankrupt Law Fi...   The first insurer sought a declaratory judgment that no coverage was available because the claim was filed after the dissolution of the law firm. The Eighth Circuit first determined that the term "dissolved" should be interpreted under Missouri partnership law, noting that the word "dissolved" is a legal term of art that applies to partnerships Wiley Rein & Fielding: Court Refuses to Apply I v. I Exclusion Where Officers ...   Two individual defendants in the securities litigation then filed a declaratory judgment action challenging the applicability of the I v. I exclusion. The court held that the I v. I exclusion did not apply in these circumstances Wiley Rein & Fielding: Claims-Made E&O Policy Provides Coverage For Loss Cause...   8 million, the state brought a declaratory judgment action against its E&O insurer. The insurer had issued a claims-made policy that had a retroactive date of July 1, 1990 and had a $5 million deductible Wiley Rein & Fielding: Validity Of Conseco Coverage Decision Challenged In Ban...   Although Section 362 on its face applies only to actions "brought against the debtor," and the Indiana action was "brought by the debtor," Conseco argued that because the coverage action was a declaratory judgment action, the roles of plaintiff and defendant are effectively reversed. Moreover, the insurers contended that Conseco was obligated to satisfy the settlement agreement pre-petition, and thus any judgment it obtained in the coverage action would expand the bankruptcy estate by Wiley Rein & Fielding: No Coverage Under Business Enterprise Exclusions   After the attorney sought coverage under the policy for both suits, the insurer filed a motion for declaratory judgment. The court ruled in favor of the insurer Wiley Rein & Fielding: Liability of Information Broker May Not Be Insured   When Docusearch requested a defense and indemnity from its insurer, Preferred National Insurance Company, Preferred filed this declaratory judgment action, seeking a determination that the insurance policy it issued to Docusearch did not provide coverage for the Remsburg lawsuit. Assault and Battery Endorsement Upheld The insurance policy contained three potentially applicable coverage parts: (1) coverage for bodily injury and property damage (Coverage A); (2) coverage for personal or Wiley Rein & Fielding: Four Suits Concerning Sale of Same Investments Are Sepa...   The insurer filed a declaratory judgment action to determine its obligations under the two policies. The insurer argued that coverage was available only under the first policy, even though some of the lawsuits were filed during the second policy period, because the four suits were related claims since they all concerned the investments in COCOTs Wiley Rein & Fielding: City?s Liability Policies Provide Civil Rights Violatio...   The city filed the instant declaratory judgment action against three insurers that issued its primary and excess liability coverage. The district court denied the second insurer’s motion for summary judgment in its entirety CD Solutions   1998) Plaintiff, a manufacturer of CD-ROM compact discs, sought a declaratory judgment that its domain name “cds.com” did not violate defendant’s rights in the trademark CDS (which stands for “Commercial Documentation Services”) for desktop publishing and printing services. The court granted plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment, finding that defendant could not preclude plaintiff’s use of the “cds.com” domain name in reference to compact disc products and services Icarumba   Interstate Net Bank v. Netbank   Network Network v. CBS   Network then filed this declaratory judgment action. In its motion for summary judgment, CBS claimed that Network’s use of the “tnn.com” domain name infringed and diluted CBS’s TNN mark under federal and state law Domain Name Clearing Co.   In 1998, plaintiff filed a declaratory-judgment action seeking a declaration of noninfringement of defendant’s trademark rights, which was eventually dismissed on jurisdictional grounds. The district court granted summary judgment in defendant’s favor that plaintiff’s registration of “clarins.com” violated the ACPA. On appeal, the Fourth Circuit affirmed, noting that the record was replete with evidence that plaintiff had a bad-faith intent to profit from defendant’s trademark Garofalo v. Princess Cruises   The Second District of the Court of Appeal has affirmed in part and reversed in part a ruling of the Los Angeles Superior Court granting declaratory judgment in favor of Princess Cruises against an injured passenger and the deceased passenger's former employer. The former employer's subrogation claim was found barred by the Death on the High Seas Act California Environmental Alert   In that case, Powerine Oil Company, Inc. sought a declaratory judgment on coverage respecting orders issued by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board and the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board. The Court based its ruling in large part on its 1998 ruling that CGL insurers have no duty to defend administrative agency orders The IP Report   In the declaratory judgment action of Video Pipeline, Inc. v. Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Inc.,14 the U.S. District Court of New Jersey granted summary judgment counterclaims against Video Pipeline for copyright infringement and other claims for placing Disney movie trailers on line after expressly receiving instructions not to do so. The court was not persuaded, and all of Video Pipeline’s motions for summary judgment were denied America Online   1999) (summary judgment), aff’d in part and vacated in part, 243 F.3d 812 (4th Cir. In a later decision, the court granted AT&T’s motion for summary judgment on its declaratory-judgment counterclaims that AOL’s marks YOU HAVE MAIL, IM, and BUDDY LIST were generic and not protectable as trademarks Volume 3   The plaintiffs—including an online book distributor, a book publisher, a vendor of sheet music, a choir director, and a company that preserves and restores old films—are seeking a declaratory judgment that the CTEA is unconstitutional. Their primary argument is that the Copyright Clause only grants Congress the power to grant copyright protection for a "limited Time" and that giving Congress the power to repeatedly extend copyright terms effectively gives it the right to extend copyright Bulletin 02-07   Symbol filed a declaratory judgment suit against Lemelson in Nevada in July 1999 and Cognex filed a similar suit in Nevada in September 1999. Both complaints contained defenses of unenforceability due to prosecution laches, which is an equitable defense against enforcement of an otherwise valid patent based upon fundamental issues of fairness Bulletin 01-13   Declaratory Judgment To Invalidate Patent Some demand letters directly allege infringement of specific patents. These letters may give grounds for the recipient to affirmatively file a court action for declaratory judgment to invalidate the patents Barcelona.com   ...com” violated the ACPA because defendant never filed an ACPA counterclaim with the district court. On July 16, 2003, the district court entered judgment in favor of plaintiff. The court rejected defendant’s argument that plaintiff acted with unclean hands by transferring the domain name to a United States company to avoid application of Spanish trademark law. The court held that plaintiff’s registration and use of the domain name “barcelona. com” did not violate the Lanham Act or ACPA, and that Village Creek Property Owners Association   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action FTC Health Care Workshop: What Physicians   The FTC study concluded with three recommendations: defining "commercial marketing" to include the marketing of the brand name, eliminating the bottleneck that occurs on the 180-day period for the first generic drug entry and deeming a declaratory judgment a "sufficient decision" to allow use of the remedies in the Hatch-Waxman Act. In summary, the FTC workshop highlighted the FTC s plans for enforcement actions against large physician groups in urban areas, against consummated and future FTC Health Care Workshop: What Physicians   The FTC study concluded with three recommendations: defining "commercial marketing" to include the marketing of the brand name, eliminating the bottleneck that occurs on the 180-day period for the first generic drug entry and deeming a declaratory judgment a "sufficient decision" to allow use of the remedies in the Hatch-Waxman Act. In summary, the FTC workshop highlighted the FTC s plans for enforcement actions against large physician groups in urban areas, against consummated and future Bulletin 03-11   ...com responded by filing suit in the District Court for the Northern District of California seeking a declaratory judgment that its activities did not infringe or dilute L.L.Bean trademarks or violate any other applicable laws. The court granted L.L.Bean's motion to dismiss the case, finding that it did not have general jurisdiction over L.L.Bean July 2   Among other monetary remedies, plaintiffs seek a declaratory judgment that the record labels' conduct is illegal and an order enjoining them from continuing the manufacture of copy-protected compact discs. (Jurisdiction) Newmark v. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., (C.D.Cal., complaint filed 6/6/02) Plaintiffs file suit against several major entertainment industry companies seeking a declaratory judgment that their use of Replay TV 4000 digital video recorders is lawful and does not violate the September 16   ...(8/4/03), In response to competitor SCO s public statements, Red Hat files complaint seeking declaratory judgment that its LINUX software does not infringe SCO s copyrights and is not the product of a misappropriation of SCO s trade secrets. The plaintiff seeks a declaratory judgment that the section does not apply to providers who are merely relaying communications sent through other providers, impinges upon the First Amendment rights and Fifth Amendment due process rights of subscribers, and Owens-Illinois   Those companies, in turn, file declaratory judgment actions seeking indemnification from the insurance companies that issued them comprehensive general liability (CGL) policies for the relevant time period. Eventually, EPA and a group consisting of other PRPs for the site obtained judgments of liability against Spaulding totaling $13,000,000 Trademarks on the Internet: How Does Fair Use Fare?   Plaintiffs sought a declaratory judgment that they were not infringing The Rockies' federally registered trademarks. 9 Plaintiff, a manufacturer of compact discs or "CDs," sought a declaratory judgment that its domain name "cds.com" did not violate defendant's rights in the federally registered trademark CDS ("Commercial Documentation Services") for desktop publishing and printing services Circuit Court Review Highlighting cases from the Third   Law Firm of Pepper Hamilton LLP | Publications @import "style.css"; -- Register/Login Publications Circuit Court Review 10/05/2004 THIRD CIRCUIT CASES Antitrust (Burden to withstand motion for summary judgment in an action for horizontal price fixing) In re Flat Glass Antitrust Litigation, No. 03-2920 (Chertoff, J.) (also on panel: Nygaard, J. and McKee, J.) (Filed: September 29, 2004) The Third Circuit reversed in part a lower court s grant of summary judgment for the defendant in a class 01-01-00: Ip Update   The lower court, in response to a summary judgment motion, ruled that the claim was indefinite since essential subject matter (the content of the article) was improperly incorporated by reference; and that without the IEEE article, there was no disclosed structure for performing the claimed function. Ms. Welles succeeded on her motion for summary judgment that her use of the Playboy mark in titles and in metatags on her web site did not constitute trademark infringement 01-01-00: Ip Update   The lower court, in response to a summary judgment motion, ruled that the claim was indefinite since essential subject matter (the content of the article) was improperly incorporated by reference; and that without the IEEE article, there was no disclosed structure for performing the claimed function. Ms. Welles succeeded on her motion for summary judgment that her use of the Playboy mark in titles and in metatags on her web site did not constitute trademark infringement 02-01-02: IP Update   In response to being notified that their customers had received letters in 1998 from the Lemelson Foundation indicating that the use of the plaintiffs products infringed certain Lemelson patents, Symbol brought an action for declaratory judgment asserting, inter alia, that the Lemelson Foundation should be equitably barred from asserting infringement by Symbol s products because Mr. Lemelson "unreasonably delayed" the prosecution of the patents at issue in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office 02-01-02: IP Update   In response to being notified that their customers had received letters in 1998 from the Lemelson Foundation indicating that the use of the plaintiffs products infringed certain Lemelson patents, Symbol brought an action for declaratory judgment asserting, inter alia, that the Lemelson Foundation should be equitably barred from asserting infringement by Symbol s products because Mr. Lemelson "unreasonably delayed" the prosecution of the patents at issue in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office 02-01-04: IP Update   On that issue the Court reversed the summary judgment of non-infringement and remanded the case for development of the record to address whether PVA constituted a foreseeable, controlled-release agent at the time of amendment. " The patents describe a device having a row of adjacent nozzles that sporadically shoot concentrated jets of water or other liquid into the turf and topsoil. The Federal Circuit reversed the summary judgment holding that the `168 patent was inherently anticipated by the 03-01-04: IP Update   Upon issuance of the patent, the university immediately sued the defendant who moved for summary judgment of invalidity for failure to comply with the written description and enablement requirements. Finding that the patent-in-suit failed to meet this standard, the Court upheld the summary judgment finding the patent invalid 04-01-04: IP Update   The district court granted Globetrotter s summary judgment motion, holding that Globetrotter s infringement allegations were not objectively baseless and that Globetrotter, therefore, was allowed to notify Rainbow and the market of its claims. " Because the patentee did not expressly indicate a broader meaning of "adjoining," the Federal Circuit reversed the district court and granted summary judgment of non-infringement because the regions of the accused products were fully separated and thus 05-01-01: IP Update   The patentee argued that a final judgment of infringement had already been entered and the"law of the case" applied. The Federal Circuit, citing US Supreme Court precedent, held that the Festo decision must apply retroactively "in all cases still open on direct review and as to all events." Because the "final judgment" was still open before the Federal Circuit for review (albeit on the issues of damages and whether induced infringement should apply to one defendant), the Federal Circuit held 05-01-01: IP Update   The patentee argued that a final judgment of infringement had already been entered and the"law of the case" applied. The Federal Circuit, citing US Supreme Court precedent, held that the Festo decision must apply retroactively "in all cases still open on direct review and as to all events." Because the "final judgment" was still open before the Federal Circuit for review (albeit on the issues of damages and whether induced infringement should apply to one defendant), the Federal Circuit held 05-01-03: IP Update   On the basis of that claim construction, Cisco moved for summary judgment of non-infringement. The court determined that a "remote location" was "a location outside the operating room where the patient undergoing surgery is located" and granted summary judgment in favor of Intuitive 05-01-03: IP Update   On the basis of that claim construction, Cisco moved for summary judgment of non-infringement. The court determined that a "remote location" was "a location outside the operating room where the patient undergoing surgery is located" and granted summary judgment in favor of Intuitive 06-01-02: IP Update   In Holmes, the Supreme Court vacated the judgment of the Federal Circuit and remanded the case to the Tenth Circuit, finding the Federal Circuit erred in asserting jurisdiction over an appeal where the complaint did not allege a claim arising under patent law. Holmes filed suit in the district court seeking a declaratory judgment that its products did not infringe Vornado s trade dress 06-01-02: IP Update   In Holmes, the Supreme Court vacated the judgment of the Federal Circuit and remanded the case to the Tenth Circuit, finding the Federal Circuit erred in asserting jurisdiction over an appeal where the complaint did not allege a claim arising under patent law. Holmes filed suit in the district court seeking a declaratory judgment that its products did not infringe Vornado s trade dress 07-01-00: IP Update   The lower court granted the defendants summary judgment of non-infringement. Glitsch then filed a separate declaratory judgement (DJ) action in the same district court, alleging the same patent and trade secret misuse claims that were the subject of its prior motion in the original action 07-01-00: IP Update   The lower court granted the defendants summary judgment of non-infringement. Glitsch then filed a separate declaratory judgement (DJ) action in the same district court, alleging the same patent and trade secret misuse claims that were the subject of its prior motion in the original action 09-01-03: IP Update   Patents / Claim Construction Claim Terms Are Not Limited by Industry Standard Meaning By David Stein The Federal Circuit recently overturned a grant of summary judgment in favor of 3Com, holding that the district court erroneously restricted a claim limitation to the industry standard meaning of a term rather than giving the term its plain, every day meaning. In the case, Electronics for Imaging (EFI), a California company, sued Kolbet Labs, a Nevada company, and its alleged alter ego, Coyle, 11-30-04: IP Update   Patents / Claim Construction The Ordinary Meaning Trumped by Inferences Drawn from Intrinsic Evidence By Steven Allis In affirming a summary judgment of non-infringement based on a narrow claim construction, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has confirmed dictionary definitions are not preemptive of the intrinsic evidence, and courts are not permitted to disregard the intrinsic record in claim construction. The lower court ruled on summary judgment that there was no infringement 12-29-03: IP Update   The Federal Circuit noted that in an earlier infringement claim against a similarly situated hotel defendant (Choice Hotels), the Federal Circuit affirmed summary judgment against Phonometrics based on a claim construction rendered in yet an earlier case filed by Phonometrics against Northern Telecom. When Phonometrics affirmed, the district court entertained motions for summary judgment and granted Westin summary judgment of non-infringement : Cerruti 1881   ...xruti 1881, S.A. v. Cerruti, Inc. , 45 U.S.P.Q.2d 1957 (S.D.N.Y. 1998) In an earlier opinion in this dispute between two clothing and fabric designers, the court granted a declaratory judgment in favor of plaintiffs, finding that defendant had acted in bad faith and had abandoned any rights to the CERRUTI trademark. Later, plaintiffs learned that defendant was operating an Internet website at the domain name “cerrutiusa.com,” on which he marketed clothing, fabrics, and accessories under the name : On Your Mark   To promote their interests, insurers often file actions seeking a declaratory judgment supporting their denial of a claim. Often, insurers file declaratory judgment lawsuits in the midst of "negotiations" about coverage or during the insurer's "review" of the claim : Insurance Industry Antitrust Newsletter   Background The action was commenced as a declaratory judgment proceeding by Clark Butler, a builder that sought to obtain from his insurance agent a rebate of a portion of the agent s commission on title insurance he was purchasing through the agent from Chicago Title Insurance. Butler s action challenged the constitutionality of Section 626 : Insurance Industry Antitrust Newsletter   Background The action was commenced as a declaratory judgment proceeding by Clark Butler, a builder that sought to obtain from his insurance agent a rebate of a portion of the agent s commission on title insurance he was purchasing through the agent from Chicago Title Insurance. Butler s action challenged the constitutionality of Section 626 : Interstellar Starship Services   2002) Threatened with having its domain name placed on hold, Interstellar Starship (“ISS") brought an action for a declaratory judgment against EPIX, Inc., a computer company. The court disagreed and granted ISS’s motion for summary judgment, finding that consumer confusion was unlikely in view of the substantial differences between using a domain name to publicize a theater group and the goods and services recited in Epix’s trademark registration : ORANGE BOOK UPDATE: Recent Case Law   If no suit is brought within those 45 days, the generic drug maker can seek a declaratory judgment that it does not infringe any of the brand-name patents. Also, generic drug makers will be entitled to bring countersuits against brand-name drug makers that have listed patents in the Orange book that should never have been listed in the first place : C&P Report: Insurance Reinsurance Regulation   Massachusetts Jury Finds Casualty Facultative Reinsurance Certificate Covers Declaratory Judgment Expenses. reinsurance certificate provides coverage for declaratory judgment expenses Akin Gump: Landmark Ruling Strikes Down Application of California&...   In the first declaratory judgment action ever tried under California's Proposition 65, a California trial court issued a landmark ruling on October 10 striking down the application of Proposition 65's cancer warning requirement to DEHP, a plasticizer used in nearly all medical devices. The company, which uses DEHP in its intravenous feeding tubes, cardiovascular devices and kidney dialysis equipment, sued the state for a declaratory judgment that DEHP poses no significant risk of cancer Akin Gump: Finality in Litigation   While every option needs to be explored in an effort to limit the duplicative nature of litigation and to ensure that settlements and judgments can truly be considered the final resolution of a case, experience teaches us that finality is not always achievable. However, the current judicial trend is to expand the preclusive effect given to an original judgment to other parties not involved in an original lawsuit but later attempting to relitigate the issue on their own behalf Blank Rome: Options: Renewal At "Market Rental Rate" Too ...   The tenant objected and requested a declaratory judgment to have the "market- rental-rate" language severed, and therefore base the renewal rent on the rent for the last year of the original term as set forth in the first part of the rental formula. The trial court supported the tenant's argument that the second part of the renewal option was unenforceable because it was too vague Blank Rome: Condominium Associations: Proceeds From Sale Of Unit Fo...   The bank then filed a request for a declaratory judgment that the sale proceeds must first be applied to satisfy the bank's lien. The trial court granted the bank's motion based on the theory that since the bank's lien had priority over the association's assessment lien, the association was required to apply any proceeds from the sale first to satisfy the bank's lien Finnegan Henderson: WAWA Inc. v. Christensen   1999) WAWA sued defendant, a Danish citizen, for trademark dilution based on defendant’s use of the domain name “wawawa.com.” After defendant failed to answer, WAWA moved for a default judgment. The court entered a “declaratory judgment” that defendant’s use of the domain name “wawawa.com” violated the FTDA and the Pennsylvania antidilution statute Finnegan Henderson: Juno Online Services L.P. v. Juno Lighting Inc.   1997) Plaintiff Juno Online, an online service and e mail provider and registrant of the domain name “juno.com,” filed this declaratory-judgment action against NSI and Juno Lighting, a manufacturer of recessed and track lighting, in response to Juno Lighting’s filing of an NSI protest to the “juno.com” domain name based on its ownership of two federal registrations for the trademark JUNO for electric-lighting fixtures. But Juno Online instead amended its complaint against Juno Lighting to Finnegan Henderson: Sallen v. Corinthians Licenciamentos Ltda.   Under 15 U.S.C. § 1114(2)(D)(v), Plaintiff filed two actions in the jurisdiction to which the complainant submitted, the District of Massachusetts, seeking a declaratory judgment that his registration of these domain names did not violate the ACPA. Defendants filed motions to dismiss both actions for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, arguing that there was no case or controversy because defendants had not threatened suit under the ACPA. Because defendants later represented that they had no Fried Frank: OMB Circular A-76 and Privatization Update - COFC Susta...   In a 56-page opinion, the court granted Hunt's Motion for Judgment on the Administrative Record, concluding that Hunt had established three prejudicial violations of the solicitation. The court also granted Hunt's requests for a declaratory judgment and the "extraordinary remedy" of a permanent injunction Garvey Schubert Barer: Controlling Legal Costs   Not only is it rarely effective, threatened action, particularly where intellectual property is concerned, will give your opponent grounds to file a declaratory judgment lawsuit against you to protect its home-field advantage. 9 Hayboo: Disputes Among Insurance Carriers   Those areas include disputes regarding subrogation, policies with “other insurance” clauses, declaratory judgment actions and cases in which negligent claims handling is alleged. This paper will focus on those four areas where carriers engage in conflicts with other carriers Honigman Miller: Basement Flooding Cases Remain In Federal Court   The actions, which alleged violations of water quality standards and wastewater treatment requirements, were settled by consent judgments entered by the Court. One of the pervasive problems addressed by the consent judgments related to wet weather problems ­ specifically, combined sewer overflows (CSOs) Honigman Miller: Court Interprets Pollution Exclusion Narrowly In Asbest...   8 million, LBWL sued Deerfield in federal court seeking a declaratory judgment that the Deerfield. insurance policy covered the PAS claim Honigman Miller: Appeals Court Upholds CERCLA Settlement   The City then sued the Simon Group, Eaton and other past users of the Property, seeking to recover the environmental cleanup and investigation costs already incurred, and entry of a declaratory judgment with respect to future remediation costs. The City moved for partial judgment before trial on a claim that the Simon Group was responsible for all of the City's PCB cleanup costs Knobbe Martens: Accused's Dilemma -- Federal Circuit May Have Limi...   This case undermined, to some extent, one of the accused patent infringer's most potent weapons -- a declaratory judgment action for noninfringement brought in its local court. One of the accused infringer's few aggressive courses of action is to file in its local district court a declaratory judgment action for noninfringement and/or invalidity Morris: "HIPAA: Delayed Deadlines Unlikely" Winter 20...   The AAPS litigation seeks declaratory judgment that the privacy regulations (1) violate the Fourth Amendment by requiring physicians to allow government access to personal medical records without a warrant or patient consent and by authorizing the government construction of a centralized database of personal medical records with personal health identifiers; (2) violate the First Amendment to the extent they chill patient and physician communications by requiring them to be subject to warrantless Morris: Synopsis of Title Insurance and Escrow Litigation in Ge...   Under that option, the insurer assumes the risk of an adverse judgment or settlement by the insured, if a court later determines that the claim is covered by the policy. Third, the insurer may agree to defend the title with a reservation of the right ultimately to deny coverage and may seek a declaratory judgment regarding coverage Morris: Synopsis of Title Insurance and Escrow Litigation in Ge...   Under that option, the insurer assumes the risk of an adverse judgment or settlement by the insured, if a court later determines that the claim is covered by the policy. Third, the insurer may agree to defend the title with a reservation of the right ultimately to deny coverage and may seek a declaratory judgment regarding coverage Morris: Synopsis of Title Insurance and Escrow Litigation in Ge...   Under that option, the insurer assumes the risk of an adverse judgment or settlement by the insured, if a court later determines that the claim is covered by the policy. Third, the insurer may agree to defend the title with a reservation of the right ultimately to deny coverage and may seek a declaratory judgment regarding coverage Poyner and Spruill: Reasons for Not Using Standard Form Contracts on North ...   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Poyner and Spruill: Section Attorney Speaks at CDC Conference Regarding Dev...   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Poyner and Spruill: Special Use Permits - Questions And Answers   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Poyner and Spruill: Study of Deregulation Continues   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Poyner and Spruill: Study Commissions To Meet Before 2000 North Carolina Ge...   Rezoning decisions are legislative and, thus, must be challenged by an action for declaratory judgment seeking to invalidate the ordinance that effectuated the zoning change. In Village Creek, the plaintiff-opponents filed only a declaratory judgment action Vorys Sater: Ohio Policyholders Beware: That Reservation of Rights L...   The insurance company now seeks a declaratory judgment that it owed no duty to defend your company in the underlying infringement action. The parties file cross-motions for summary judgment on the duty to defend issue Weil: Patent & Antitrust Litigation: Micron Technology�...   Unlike most declaratory judgment actions in patent cases, which typically assert simply that the patents at issue are invalid, unenforceable, or not infringed, Micron s complaint also alleged that Rambus had committed fraud, had violated the antitrust laws, and should be estopped from enforcing its patents. These claims were based upon Rambus membership in JEDEC, and Rambus allegedly fraudulent and inequitable conduct in undermining the efforts of JEDEC to develop and set standards for SDRAM and Weil: Defending American Airlines Against Carl Icahn's T...   Weil: WGM Wins $416 Million Jury Verdict for ExxonMobil   The lawsuit began in August 2000 when SABIC filed a declaratory judgment action in Delaware Superior Court, asserting that it had not breached its contracts with ExxonMobil. The case was stayed until February 2002, when it was transferred to Judge Jan Jurden Weil: a200205   4/8/02) The Ninth Circuit vacates a decision upholding a copyright registration, ruling that under the doctrine of "primary jurisdiction", the validity of a copyright registration raised in a declaratory judgment action is an administrative issue for the Copyright Office. (Copyright, Jurisdiction) Efford v. The Jockey Club, No. 1621 EDA 2001 (Pa Weil: Third Circuit Constrains the Granting of Injunctions Ag...   The bankruptcy court in Delaware reached a different result and granted L&H a declaratory judgment stating that any claims asserted by Stonington would be subject to mandatory subordination and entitled to the same priority as the common stock of L&H under section 510(b) of the Bankruptcy Code. After additional proceedings in both countries, L&H filed an amended complaint in the Delaware proceeding seeking declaratory relief that any claims asserted by Stonington would be subject to mandatory Wiley Rein & Fielding: Policy Provides Coverage for Claim Made During Extended...   The court also held, however, that the policyholder was not entitled to attorneys’ fees incurred in defending itself against the insurer’s declaratory action. The insurer instituted this declaratory action to determine whether the policy covered claims first made during the extended reporting period Wiley Rein & Fielding: ?Other Insurance? Clauses Are Inapplicable Where Polici...   The general liability insurer filed a declaratory judgment action seeking a determination that the errors and omissions insurer must bear a pro rata share of the underlying defense costs because, despite the defamation exclusion, the other allegations were covered under the policy. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the errors and omissions insurer Wiley Rein & Fielding: Advertising Liability Issues Create Headaches for Broad...   ...com, filed a lawsuit in August 2004 against the government asking the court to issue a declaratory judgment that advertisements for such online casinos are constitutionally protected free speech. Until the resolution of the Casino City suit the media is urged to proceed with caution, especially in light of a recent $158,000 settlement agreement between the U.S. Attorney’s Office and owners of three St. Louis sports radio stations, KFNS-AM, KFNS-FM and KFRT AM. Under the settlement, the three CD Solutions   1998) Plaintiff, a manufacturer of CD-ROM compact discs, sought a declaratory judgment that its domain name “cds.com” did not violate defendant’s rights in the trademark CDS (which stands for “Commercial Documentation Services”) for desktop publishing and printing services. The court granted plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment, finding that defendant could not preclude plaintiff’s use of the “cds.com” domain name in reference to compact disc products and services Icarumba   Interstate Net Bank v. Netbank   2d 513 (D.N.J. 2002) (granting plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment that NETBANK is generic for banking services); 348 F. Supp. 2d 340 (D.N.J. 2004) (granting plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment to cancel defendant’s registration)