InsideCounsel Magazine January 2007

Features

• Helping Hands

  By Adele Nicholas

  A growing number of corporate counsel are finding career satisfaction, developing new skills and networking in their communities through probono work. Learn how and why your department should get on board.

Profile

• Total Package

  By Staff Writer

  Teri McClure's timely delivery of legal services keeps UPS out of trouble.

• Corruption Cleanup

  By Keith Ecker

  In-house counsel discuss best practices to recover from scandal.

Litigation

• Election Dejection

  By Mary Swanton

  Democrats' clean sweep in the midterm elections puts tort reform on hold.

IP

• Novel Ideas

  By Steven Seidenberg

  PTO proposes a new suite of patent products to streamline applications.

Labor

• Faith Face-Off

  By Mary Swanton

  Employee demands for religious accommodations land companies in court.

Technology

• Sound Searching

  By Keith Ecker

  Speech-recognition software scans audio files for discoverable content.

Regulatory

• Killer Caps

  By Julius Melnitzer

  The Big Four accounting firms push Congress to pass audit liability cap.

Global

• Patchy Protection

  By Staff Writer

  UK ruling reopens the debate over business-method patents in Europe.

In Review

• Retro Styling

  By Staff Writer

  Toyota's FJ Cruiser updates a 1960s classic.

From The Editor

• Relevant Matters

  By Staff Writer

  The easy part of my job is keeping InsideCounsel current. All that takes is reporting on the news. But it's much harder to ensure the magazine stays relevant. That requires a constant re-evaluation and adjustment of our coverage and plans. One of the adjustments we will make this year is...

Inside Perspective

• Talent Crisis

  By Staff Writer

  America's ability to compete in the global market may turn on the outcome of the immigration debate.

Circuits

• Employees Beat UPS Policy Against Deaf Drivers

  By Staff Writer

  With 91,700 delivery vehicles on the road every day, one of the top concerns for Atlanta-based UPS Inc. is driver safety. So managers thought they were doing the right thing when they barred deaf and hearing-impaired people from driving the company's largest delivery vans. They based their decision on studies...

• Shareholder Sues ScanSource Execs

  By Staff Writer

  ScanSource, a company that makes barcode scanners, can add itself to the list of companies caught up in the options backdating scandal. On Nov. 21, 2006 Mark Wenham, a shareholder of the South Carolina company, filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina, accusing company...

• Corning NetOptix Wins Legal Fee Fight

  By Michael T. Burr

  When the SEC sued Robert Happ for illegal insider trading in October 2000, he thought his defense costs would be covered. Happ had an indemnification agreement with Galileo, an optical manufacturing company on whose board he served. The agreement said the company would cover any liabilities associated with Happ's duties...

• Court Upholds Employers' Right to Limit Medical Leaves

  By Mary Swanton

  Stuart Edward Payne worked as a mechanic for the Fairfax County, Va., Department of Vehicle Services in 2001 when a doctor diagnosed him with panic disorder, irritable bowel syndrome and Epstein-Barr disease. In October 2001, he began taking intermittent leave under the FMLA. He exhausted all 480 hours of his...

• EFF Takes On Purple Dinosaur

  By Staff Writer

  When Stuart Frankel, a New York computer repair technician, created a parody of the famous purple dinosaur Barney on his Web site, he thought it was all fun and games. However, the company behind iconic kids' character, Lyons Partnership, was less than amused. After Lyons sent Frankel several cease-and-desist letters...

• Arizona Citizens Seek Blind Justice

  By Staff Writer

  Enjoying the latest blockbuster flick can be a challenging experience for blind or deaf individuals. However, a group of Arizonans are hoping to change that by requiring all AMC Entertainment theaters in the state to install devices that would aid peopme with sight and hearing disabilities. Representing several citizens, the...

• Open-Source Providers Defeat Antitrust Claim

  By Staff Writer

  A lot of powerful companies would like to stop the infectious spread of open-source software. Microsoft has attacked the General Public License (GPL), which allows people to freely download, modify and redistribute open-source software, since 2001; SCO continues to pursue multi-billion dollar claims against IBM, Red Hat and Novell for...

• Circus Clashes with Cosmetic Co.

  By Staff Writer

  Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus has a bone to pick with Sephora over the cosmetic giant's circus-themed marketing campaign. On Nov. 28 Ringling brought suit against Sephora in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York alleging the company infringed its popular "The Greatest Show...

Small Talk

• Needy Clients

  By Staff Writer

  At the helm of a small legal department you see and hear it all.

Inside Non-Profits

• Freedom to Preach

  By Bruce D. Collins

  Elections, God and the IRS--the politics of tax exemption.

Blog Review

• ProBonoLaw Blog

  By Keith Ecker

  For in-house counsel looking to read about lawyers doing good in this world, look no further than the ProBonoLaw blog.