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This Week's Feature
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The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act: A Sword for Employers in the Computer Age
By Timothy M. Bliss
Vetter & White, Providence, Rhode Island
As new technologies emerge at a mind-boggling pace, the manner in which businesses operate continues to be redefined. This technological renaissance can be both a blessing and a curse for employers, who have seen their processes streamlined to a degree unimaginable even a decade ago, but who have also faced problems unheard of in the not-so-distant past. As businesses become more automated, employers have become increasingly vulnerable to theft of proprietary or other confidential information, which is often stored electronically in a central location and protected by limited security measures. A departing employee with access to such files can download them to a thumb drive or other storage device in a matter of minutes, conceal the drive in his or her pocket or briefcase and then leave the business without arousing any suspicion. Only after the individual begins to use the information to start a competing business or to siphon his or her former employer’s clients does the theft become known.
[FULL STORY]
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Legal News
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Supreme Court Decision: AT&T Corp. v. Hulteen, No. 07-543
In General Electric Co. v. Gilbert, 429 U.S. 125 (1976), the Supreme Court held that a disability-benefit plan that excluded disabilities related to pregnancy did not amount to gender-based discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In response to Gilbert, Congress enacted the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 (PDA), which amended Title VII to cover discrimination “because of or on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.” 42 U.S.C. § 2000e(k). On May 18, 2009, in AT&T Corp. v. Hulteen, No. 07-543, the Supreme Court held that employers need not set current pension benefits to account for a denial of work credit for maternity leave that occurred before the passage of the PDA.
[FULL STORY]
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May 26 Hearing on New Hampshire House Bill 438
NH House Bill 438 pertains to the admission of evidence of medical bills, reports and records and has already passed the NH House. This bill would make a plaintiff's medical records admissible evidence as to the reasonableness and necessity of a medical provider's services, the diagnosis or prognosis of that medical provider, and as to the opinion of the treating physician regarding the cause of the plaintiff's condition, all without calling a medical professional to testify at trial. Defense attorneys are urged to testify at the hearing, Tuesday, May 26 at 2:45 p.m. in the State House, Room 103. For more information, contact Adam R. Mordecai by phone (603.629.4575) or email: amordecai@wiggin-nourie.com.
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DRI News
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Lawyers for Civil Justice (LCJ)
Congratulations to the following DRI members who will serve as 2009-2010 LCJ officers:
Lewis F. Collins, Butler Pappas Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP, Tampa, Florida (President)
John H. Martin, Thompson & Knight LLP, Dallas, Texas (President-Elect)
L. Gino Marchetti, Jr., Taylor Pigue Marchetti & Mink PLLC, Nashville, Tennessee (Vice President)
Jeffrey W. Jackson, State Farm Insurance, Bloomington, Illinois (Secretary-Treasurer)
Gregory M. Lederer, Lederer Weston Craig PLC, Cedar Rapids, Iowa (Board Chair)
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 For a limited time only, DRI is offering 30% off select publications in the DRI Bookstore. Order now and take advantage of this special offer! Supplies are limited.
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Insurance Bad Faith and Extra-Contractual Claims Symposium
June 18-19, 2009
Seaport Hotel
Boston, Massachusetts
Defending bad faith claims against insurance companies is becoming more difficult due to adverse legal decisions and new theories being advocated by plaintiffs’ counsel. DRI’s Insurance Bad Faith and Extra-Contractual Claims Symposium will analyze the legal and practical issues confronting insurance coverage counsel, insurance defense lawyers and claims professionals arising from allegations of bad faith and other extra-contractual claims. The program offers the opportunity to participate in a discussion of cutting-edge legal developments and the challenges posed by new theories underlying bad faith claims. You will hear experienced professionals give practical advice on how to handle dilemmas facing insurers — during claims handling, in litigation, and at trial — in the face of allegations of bad faith. Don't miss this opportunity to network and build your practice while learning from some of the best practitioners and professionals in the field. To register now, click here or call 312.795.1101 for more information!
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Special Offer — Add This ERISA Resource to Your Library Today!
Didn’t have a chance to attend the April 2009 Life, Health, Disability and ERISA Claims Seminar? For a limited time, DRI is offering a special price on the 2009 edition of the DRI ERISA Litigation Primer. The Primer was distributed free of charge to all seminar attendees. You may order it, for a limited time, for the special price of $50.00. Don’t pass up this opportunity to own, at a deep discount, the brand new, authoritative ERISA Litigation Primer! To order, click here or call (312) 795-1101.
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DRI’s Insurance Law Committee is presenting their webcast, “Practical and Tactical Tools for Defending Extra-Contractual Claims,” on Tuesday, June 2, 2009 from 1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Central. This webcast will explore a number of substantive and procedural issues that insurance companies and their attorneys routinely face in evaluating and defending bad faith claims. The program also serves as a primer for some of the topics that will be addressed in detail at the Insurance Law Committee's Insurance Bad Faith and Extra-Contractual Claims Symposium on June 18-19 in Boston. To learn more about the seminar, click here.
[FULL STORY]
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And The Defense Wins!
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Alexander F. Giovanniello of Giovanniello & Michels in Diamond Bar, California obtained a defense award in a binding arbitration, where the plaintiff alleged elder abuse, fraud and financial elder abuse. The plaintiff maintained that the decedent was neglected in a continuing care community where she suffered several falls, the last of which she incurred a facial bruise, allegedly leading to decreased mental function; that she was financially abused because there was no refund of an entrance fee; that the defendant wrongfully permitted her to transfer to a board and care home and that the defendant should have paid for a one-on-one sitter.
[FULL STORY]
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DRI members Fred Raschke of Mills Shirley, LLP in Galveston, Texas, and Robert Tait of the Columbus, Ohio, office of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease, LLP, along with a colleague, successfully defended Sterling Chemicals, Inc. in a rail car injury case. The plaintiffs, Patrick McCarthy and his two children, sued Sterling for damages totaling $62 million. The Hamilton County jury in Cincinnati, Ohio, found that Houston-based Sterling was not negligent in the on-the-job injury case and awarded the plaintiffs nothing.
[FULL STORY]
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DRI members Josh Johanningmeier and Wade Harrison of Godfrey & Kahn’s Madison office won summary judgment for their clients, Madison Area Technical College (MATC) and three current and former MATC employees, in a race and intimate association discrimination case.
[FULL STORY]
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On March 13, 2009, following a four-day jury trial in Washington County, Minnesota, a defense verdict in favor of Harley-Davidson was secured in a wrongful death, design defect lawsuit. Mark Kircher, a partner in Quarles & Brady LLP's Product Liability Group in Milwaukee, and Kent Hanson, a principal with the Minneapolis firm of Hanson Marek Bolkcom & Greene, persuaded a jury that Harley-Davidson’s Touring platform motorcycle (in this case, the 2003 Harley-Davidson Ultra Classic) was a safe product and did not have any design defect.
[FULL STORY]
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On February 19, 2009, DRI members Matthew G. Moffett and Wayne S. Melnick of Gray, Rust, St. Amand, Moffett & Brieske, LLP in Atlanta, Georgia, obtained a defense verdict for a daycare worker accused of intentionally injuring an 8 month old child under her care at the daycare facility. The plaintiffs brought claims for negligence, intentional torts and punitive damages, claiming that the child had received a “buckle fracture” to his leg while in daycare.
[FULL STORY]
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DRI wants to hear about your win! Send a short summary and recent photo of yourself to Barb Lowery by email (blowery@dri.org).
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Legislative Tracking
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Fueled by DRI’s Young Lawyers Committee, this week’s report highlights legislation from Delaware, New York, North Carolina and Virginia. The Young Lawyers Legislative Subcommittee is led by co-chairs Emily Turner Landry of Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC in Memphis, Tennessee and Sean W. Shirley of Balch & Bingham LLP in Birmingham, Alabama, plus vice-chair Paul A. Wilhelm of Dykema Gossett PLLC in Detroit, Michigan. Special thanks to these leaders, along with all of the other state contributors.
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FEDERAL
Commercial Litigation
FD SB 1074: Shareholder rights.
• A bill to provide shareholders with enhanced authority over the nomination, election, and compensation of public company executives.
• 05/19/2009 – Introduced; referred to Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
DELAWARE (Contributor: Matthew Donelson, Elzufon Austin Reardon Tarlov & Mondell, P.A.)
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 10 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO COURTS AND JUDICIAL PROCEDURE.
House Bill # 147
• This bill adds “stepson” and “stepdaughter” to the list of what constitutes a family member for purposes of family court proceedings, including Protection From Abuse proceedings.
• 5/7/09 – Introduced and assigned to Judiciary Committee
[MORE]
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Quote of the Week
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Destiny is not a matter of chance, but of choice. Not something to wish for, but to attain.
— William Jennings Bryan
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DRI CLE Calendar
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Practical and Tactical Tools for Defending Extra-Contractual Claims (webcast)
June 2, 2009
Young Lawyers
June 4-5, 2009
Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
Diversity for Success
June 11-12, 2009
Swissôtel, Chicago, Illinois
Climate Change in the Obama Administration: The Status of Proposed Global Warming Policies and Legislation (webcast)
June 18, 2009
Insurance Bad Faith and Extra-Contractual Claims
June 18-19, 2009
Seaport Hotel, Boston, Massachusetts
Defending the Wrongful Death Wound Infection Claim: "The Resident Died with a Wound, Not Because of a Wound" (webconference)
June 30, 2009
DRI's National Workers' Compensation Review
August 17-18, 2009
Orlando World Center Marriott, Orlando, Florida
Construction Law
September 10-11, 2009
The Palace Hotel, San Francisco, California
Nursing Home/ALF Litigation
September 10-11, 2009
The Westin Kierland, Scottsdale, Arizona
Strictly Automotive
September 24-25, 2009
Hilton La Jolla Torrey Pines, La Jolla, California
For all other seminars, webconferences and webcasts, click here.
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Unfair Insurance Practices: A Compendium of State Law
Evidentiary Privileges for Corporate Counsel
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