I’m a trial lawyer for injured people and businesses at The Beasley Firm. Founded in 1958, we have recovered over $2 billion for our clients through hundreds of verdicts and settlements in excess of $1 million. We’re listed in Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers in America, U.S. News’s Top Lawyers, [...]
Barbie v. Bratz: What Went Wrong for Mattel and Right for MGA
[UPDATE: the Ninth Circuit eviscerated the verdict, as well as the trial court's imposition of a constructive trust and an injunction.] As mentioned yesterday, a jury awarded Mattel $100 million* for the Bratz infringement, one-twentieth of the $2 billion requested in their closing argument, just over three times the $30 million suggested by MGA (and which may be reduced to $40 million, discussed below). * see end of post, damages are apparently only $20 million due to duplication on verdict sheet What happened? Mattel misjudged the jury's outrage and overshot. Here's the jury's breakdown: The jury awarded damages of $20 million ... Continue Reading
Jury Awards One-Twentieth of Requested Damages in Mattel v. Bratz
Interesting: A federal jury in Riverside, Calif., just returned a $100 million verdict for Mattel, according to an early Reuters report, about $1.9 billion less than the company asked for. Quinn Emanuel’s John Quinn, who repped Mattel, asked the jury for $2 billion for stealing the conceptual drawings of the Bratz doll — at least $1 billion in Bratz profit and interest, and another nearly $800 million for the complicity of MGA’s CEO, Isaac Larian. I say "interesting" because I doubt the $2 billion was pulled out of thin air. If you win liability, and get a real shot at serious ... Continue Reading
The Unicorn Rides Again: Early Settlement is the Result of External Factors
Victoria Pynchon at Settle It Now says she has spotted a settlement unicorn out in the wild. Indeed, she says she actually caught it and fully and finally released its to become the certified check it always wanted to be. I dispute the taxonomy. What she caught was nice, but it was at most a narwhal. The case, a medical malpractice action, had already progressed through substantial discovery, including the plaintiff's deposition and, I presume, the written discovery, which usually happens before the major depositions. Moreover, there seems to be an element of res ipsa, too, as it was not ... Continue Reading
Brain Food Smörgåsbord: from Seeing in Four Dimensions to the Spanish Influenza
Some fascinating stuff that's rolled across my desktop lately... They Might Be Giants' children's music picks Visualizing four dimensions How an amateur solved the Cryptonomicon mystery Using Causality [self-organizing systems] to Solve the Puzzle of Quantum Spacetime Great Diagrams in Anthropology, Linguistics, and Social Theory Utilizing antibodies from survivors of the 1918 flu pandemic to combat avian flu today Finally, a digital camera with comparable quality to film (for a tiny fraction of the price) Put your thinking caps on and dive in. ... Continue Reading
Which is Worse: Suing Over Your Hit and Run Bentley or Blackmailing Your Kids?
Two heroes today in legal news. Hero #1 (via): A Coney Island businessman is suing the city for damaging the Bentley he was driving when he killed a Brooklyn dad in a hit-and-run accident. Harry Shasho, who pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident, says the NYPD failed to safeguard the battered black 2005 Bentley GT luxury sedan that was impounded as evidence of the fatal crash. He's asking for at least $190,000. ... Shasho says the Bentley was in "excellent condition ... with no noticeable defects or damage" when he turned himself in, according to the suit ... Continue Reading
The Watchmen Movie: Copyright Infringement, Injunctions, Options, Laches, and a Circuit Split All in One
We're aiming for new heights of nerdom here at Litigation & Trial, combining comic books, movies, old law school contract cases, equitable principles, permanent injunctions, and recent circuit splits in one post. The Watchmen lawsuit -- which is less copyright infringement and more commercial litigation, since the dispute is largely over contract terms -- gives us license (har har) to do so. Graphic novels (née "comic books") are serious money these days, at least when adapted for the big screen. In addition to the normal superhero adaptations, like Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk (which have generally done quite well), particular ... Continue Reading
The New Era of Marketing: Two New Brilliant Web Ads
How cool are you? Do you have a video showing your cell phone do this? When someone makes fun of a minor glitch in your product, how do you respond? ... Continue Reading
Are Lawyers Risk-Averse For Not Working On Contingent Fees?
Carolyn Elefant picks up Dan Hull discussing the tendency of lawyers to be risk-averse. She asks: Not sure about the answer to Hull's questions, but Los Angeles-based Quinn, Emanuel, Urquhart, Oliver and Hedges is one firm that doesn't sit on the sidelines, at least as it's described in this Fast Company profile. (For more background, see The American Lawyer's 2006 profile of the firm.) As the article reports: Quinn Emmanuel has adopted the strategy, attitude, and accoutrements of a Red Bull-fueled startup. It focuses only on business litigation: no tax, real estate, or other common corporate practices. Even more galling ... Continue Reading
Huber v. Taylor (3d Cir. 2008); A Case for “Lawyer’s Lawyers”
One of my favorite cases, Huber v. Taylor, filed 2002, loaded with allegations against the plaintiffs former attorneys and all kinds of fun remedies like disgorgement, just finished its second round on appeal, back down to the District Court for the third time. The prior opinion, Huber v. Taylor, 469 F.3d 67 (3d Cir. 2006), was one of the more important recent opinions for "lawyer's lawyers" in the Third Circuit. The case is also a great example of how the paperwork these cases, e.g. attorney malpractice or disputes between lawyers, can quickly mushroom, and why they get so expensive. Most importantly, ... Continue Reading
Attorneys’ Fees in Pennsylvania Contractor / Subcontractor Breach Actions
A reminder: failure to pay general contractor / subcontractor disputes can get expensive, per 73 P.S. § 512: § 512. Penalty and attorney fee (a) PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH ACT.-- If arbitration or litigation is commenced to recover payment due under this act and it is determined that an owner, contractor or subcontractor has failed to comply with the payment terms of this act, the arbitrator or court shall award, in addition to all other damages due, a penalty equal to 1% per month of the amount that was wrongfully withheld. An amount shall not be deemed to have ... Continue Reading
