Supreme Court Opens New Political Contribution Opportunities for Big Donors | By Jim Kahl

In a divided 5-4 ruling in McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, the Supreme Court this past Spring struck down the federal election law's long-standing "biennial limit" – the aggregate amount that a person can give to federal candidates and other committees in a two-year election cycle.
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Supreme Court Issues Landmark Rulings in Two Patent Cases, Further Admonishes Federal Circuit and Lowers the Bar for Patent Challenges By Kirk Watkins and Christine Dupriest

Since Chief Justice Roberts became the top jurist in the nation, the Supreme Court has demonstrated a surprising willingness to overturn or vacate Federal Circuit jurisprudence.(FN1) Its recent unanimous decisions in Nautilus and Limelight Networks – each likely to have immediate and potentially far reaching consequences on the practice of patent law – continue that trend.
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Era of Interference: The Roberts Court's Take on Federal Circuit Expertise and Patentee Rights By Barry Herman and Christine Dupriest

There is no doubt that the United States Supreme Court under Chief Justice Roberts has taken a much more active role than previous regimes in shaping our nation's patent laws. 
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Supreme Court Makes it Easier to Recover Attorney's Fees in Patent Cases | By John Morrow, Barry Herman, Tryn Stimart, and Preston Heard

The United States Supreme Court issued two opinions today that eliminated the Federal Circuit's rigid two-part test a prevailing party must meet in order to recover attorney's fees in a patent case, and heightened the appellate standard of review of a district court's determination to award attorney's fees.
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Supreme Court Overturns Fourth Circuit Precedent on Time Limitations for Filing ERISA Benefit Lawsuits By Kathy Lange

ERISA does not contain a statute of limitations governing the filing of a lawsuit for employee benefits under an ERISA plan, nor does it specify when the clock begins to run.
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Supreme Court's Decision in Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) Case Overturns 4th and 11th Circuit Rule Governing Finality of Judgment |By Kathy Lange

When a United States District Court judge enters judgment in a case, but postpones for a later date determination of a party's motion for attorneys' fees, when is the Court's decision "final" under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, particularly when counting the 30 days by which to appeal under the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure? Until recently, the answer in the Fourth and Eleventh Circuit was: "It depends."
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Supreme Court Refocuses the 11th Circuit in its Review of an ESOP Fiduciary's Duty of Prudence By Kathy Lange

Two years ago, when called upon to address an ESOP fiduciary's duty of prudence in the context of a motion to dismiss, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals followed a long line of cases: "We join our five sister circuits in ...review[ing] only for an abuse of discretion the defendant's decision to continue investing in and holding [company] stock in compliance with the direction of the Plan."
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