California

Expert Analysis

• How Drug Cos. Can Adapt To New Reference Pricing Rules

  

  Considering the Trump administration's aggressive drug reference pricing rules, and more price control measures potentially on the horizon, drug and biotech companies should prepare a comprehensive readiness strategy tailored to country-specific considerations, says Meenakshi Datta at Sidley.

• Declaratory Judgments Unavoidable For Biosimilar Applicants

  

  Data from recent Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act litigation suggests that a biosimilar applicant will inevitably face a declaratory judgment action irrespective of the amount and type of information it provides to the brand holder, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• Musk's Crypto Tweets Likely Didn't Violate SEC, CFTC Rules

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission will be hard-pressed to argue Tesla CEO Elon Musk's recent tweets about cryptocurrencies amounted to illegal communication of material information to investors, or constituted market manipulation, say Kenneth Breen and Phara Guberman at Paul Hastings.

• Ethics Tips For Attorneys Telecommuting Across State Lines

  

  Attorneys working remotely from jurisdictions in which they are not admitted should take precautionary steps to avoid engaging in unauthorized practice of law, say John Schmidt and Michael Seaman at Phillips Lytle.

• Opinion

  Calif. Lemon Law Suits: A Problem Of Auto Cos.' Own Making

  

  A recent Law360 guest article criticized attorneys who use California's Song-Beverly Act to fight for consumers who have purchased cars with serious defects — but automakers could avoid litigation if they simply followed the law and bought back defective vehicles promptly, says Nancy Peverini at the Consumer Attorneys of California.

• 6 Ways Legal Employers Can Help Pandemic-Weary Parents

  

  Parenting during the pandemic has introduced a series of competing personal and professional obligations for attorneys and professional staff, and even organizations that are supportive of their parent employees can take steps to do better, says Meredith Kahan at Saul Ewing.

• Questions Loom About DOJ Dismissal Power In FCA Suits

  

  The Second Circuit's recent decision to grant a U.S. Department of Justice motion to dismiss a False Claims Act suit, without weighing in on the standard for assessing the agency’s decision, illustrates a significant trend, given an increase in agency dismissals and the expected uptick in FCA cases amid the pandemic, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

• Republican AGs Likely To Challenge Biden On Multiple Fronts

  

  During recent presidential administrations, state attorneys general have challenged federal regulations and obtained nationwide injunctions against executive orders — and there is every reason to believe that Republican attorneys general will continue this trend, resisting Biden administration efforts on climate change, health care, immigration and more, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

• 3 Degrees Of Legalization Show True Prevalence Of Cannabis

  

  The three degrees of state marijuana legalization regimes throughout the U.S. show that cannabis is only fully illegal in three U.S. states and one territory — not 14 states as some counts indicate — and even in those places, there are stirrings of change, says Julie Werner-Simon at Drexel University's Thomas R. Kline School of Law.

• Charitable Fund Dispute Opens Doors For Litigation Wave

  

  Although a California federal court recently ruled a donor-advised fund sponsor did not breach prudent investor standards in Fairbairn v. Fidelity Charitable, the case shows that disgruntled donors may initiate claims against charities over nonbinding advisory privileges, and could introduce a wave of litigation over alleged investment mismanagement, says Karl Mill at Adler & Colvin.

• Remote Working Tips For Lawyer Trainees And Their Firms

  

  The prospect of joining a law firm during the pandemic can cause added pressure, but with a few good practices — and a little help from their firms and supervising attorneys — lawyer trainees can get ahead of the curve while working remotely, say William Morris and Ted Landray at King & Spalding.

• 9th Circ. Ruling Could Limit Copyright Statutory Damages

  

  After the recent Desire v. Manna Textiles decision tossing a statutory damages verdict in the Ninth Circuit, copyright plaintiffs there may no longer be able to multiply the number of available statutory damage awards per work based on the number of downstream infringers, says Matthew Gershman at Greenberg Traurig.

• Employers Must Prioritize Pay Equity

  

  The recent federal and state trend toward strengthening equal pay laws is sure to gain momentum, so it is now more important than ever before for employers to develop pay equity strategies, says Erin Connell at Orrick.

• Series

  Fixing Ch. 11 For Small Biz: SBRA's Puzzling Preference Edit

  

  The Small Business Reorganization Act's seemingly straightforward amendment to the Bankruptcy Code, attempting to streamline preference litigation by requiring the trustee to consider parties' reasonably known defenses, actually raises a host of questions regarding due diligence and implications for other bankruptcy provisions, say Joel Cohen at Stout, and Robert Michaelson and Howard Magaliff at Rich Michaelson.

• Obtaining General Jurisdiction Over Out-Of-State Insurers

  

  A series of recent court decisions illustrate the challenges of litigating against insurers in a state where neither party resides, and demonstrate alternate means of securing jurisdiction, says Richard Mason at MasonADR.