Balough
December 17, 2013
The issue of whether individuals have any expectation of privacy concerning their location was explored as part of a presentation by Richard C. Balough at the American Bar Association’s Cyberspace Law Committee Institute in San Francisco. Geolocational privacy involves the ability of mobile devices to second-by-second track the physical location of individuals. The question is whether […]
Balough
December 17, 2013
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has published its final report setting forth best practices for businesses to protect consumers’ privacy and give them greater control over the collection and use of their personal data. Entitled “Protecting Consumer Privacy in an Era of Rapid Change, Recommendations for Businesses and Policymakers,” the report recommends that businesses follow […]
Balough
December 17, 2013
Law enforcement officials must obtain a warrant before placing a GPS tracking device on an individual’s vehicle, the United States Supreme Court ruled. The decision was anticipated to be the first to define boundaries of what constitutes geolocational privacy, that is, whether there is any privacy in the location of a person. However, the case was […]
Balough
December 16, 2013
For purposes of determining whether a contract not to compete is enforceable, Illinois courts must consider the legitimate business interests of the former employer, the Illinois Supreme Court found. The court said that in determining whether a legitimate business interest exists, judges must look to the “totality of the facts and circumstances of the individual […]
Balough
December 16, 2013
The use of information obtained by a warrantless-tracking of a New York state employee with a GPS device on his private car, even while he was on a week’s vacation, was approved by the state’s appellate court. The case involved an employee who was fired because of a pattern of taking unauthorized absences from work […]
Balough
December 15, 2013
Those quilted designs on toilet paper are functional and cannot be trademarked, the Seventh Circuit has found. The appellate court agreed that Georgia-Pacific’s trademark for its “Quilted Diamond Design” was invalid because the quilted design has “numerous utilitarian benefits, such as softness, comfort and absorption,” all functional features. As a result, Kimberly-Clark’s Cottonelle brand cannot be […]
Balough
December 15, 2013
It’s OK to print and sell a copy of an old movie poster on a t-shirt, but only if it is not combined with any other element of the movie, a federal appellate court ruled. The trial court granted Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. and Turner Entertainment Co.’s request to stop two companies from reproducing old […]
Balough
December 15, 2013
Sending a summary of stock recommendations via the Internet is neither copyright infringement nor can the information be protected as “hot news,” a federal appellate court found. Several brokerage firms, which send out or telephone stock recommendations to clients early in the morning, sued Theflyonthewall.com (Fly) for emailing and posting on its website a summary of […]
Balough
December 15, 2013
A beef over an advertising campaign by one of two Chicago hot dog makers can wait until trial to resolve, a federal court has found. Vienna Beef, Ltd. wanted a temporary restraining order issued against its competitor Red Hot Chicago, Inc. to prevent the competitor from advertising that its hot dog recipe is “a family […]
Balough
December 15, 2013
To maintain a lawsuit in Illinois federal court against an Internet date matching service website, the plaintiff must demonstrate that the website targeted residents in Illinois. As a result, the Seventh Circuit appellate court dismissed a case because plaintiff failed to show that defendant targeted Illinois. be2 LLC and be2 Holding filed a trademark infringement lawsuit […]
