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Anyone else remember blowing on their Nintendo cartridges when games failed to load? Or selling games at a garage sale when you could upgrade to a new system? Today, PC gamers and an increasing portion of console gamers use digital distribution methods. Leaving the house just takes time away from gaming. But the digital distribution of games can cause issues beyond giving me nostalgia. Some game distributors such as Steam and Origin classify their businesses as services, not goods, thereby avoiding the obligation to allow the purchaser the right to resale....

A recent Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals decision affirmed a lower court holding that the differential treatment received by disabled students seeking to transfer schools in Wisconsin is not unlawful. Rather, as the opinion notes, Wisconsin’s school district transfer program requires schools to accept transfer students if they have the “excess capacity,” which is a number the school chooses based on an individual assessment of available resources, but schools have a separate “excess capacity” number for disabled students....

In an appeal from the district court’s denial of petitioner’s motion to vacate an arbitral award, the order is affirmed where the arbitrator’s factual findings regarding the meaning of the contract at issue could not be overturned simply because the evidence was conflicting. In addition, attorney’s fees are awarded to respondent because petitioner’s appeal vexatiously multiplied the proceedings. Read DMA Int’l., Inc. v. Qwest Comms. Int’l., Inc., No. 08-1392 Appellate Information...

The Penn State-Jerry Sandusky debacle may be in the past at this point, but the criminal conviction of the university’s president, Graham Spanier, for misdemeanor child endangerment, was just overturned on appeal. Spanier was charged for his involvement in the child abuse scandal, which basically amounted to not taking the appropriate action when he discovered what was going on. Notably though, it is unclear if Spanier really knew the extent of the abuse, as he was allegedly told Sandusky and his victims were “horsing around” in the shower, and never personally witnessed the abuse....

U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez granted a preliminary injunction this week requested by the California Rifle and Pistol Association - halting enforcement of California’s law requiring background checks for those looking to buy ammunition. Calling the law “onerous and convoluted,” Judge Benitez found that the background check requirement burdened those looking to buy ammo legally while doing very little to limit access by criminals. Judge Says Background Checks Burden Legitimate Buyers Californians voted to require background checks for ammo sales in 2016 with Proposition 63, which also banned the sale of high-capacity magazines....

In US v. Lay, 08-3892, the Sixth Circuit faced a challenge to a conviction of defendant for investment adviser fraud and multiple mail and wire fraud, related to a hedge fund investment by the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. In rejecting defendant’s argument that he owed no fiduciary duty, the court affirmed the convictions in holding that, because a hedge fund investor can in some circumstances have a fiduciary relationship with an investor, the jury instructions were correct and sufficient evidence supports defendant’s conviction....

District court judgment certifying a class of employees alleging unlawful discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act is reversed where: 1) the court abused its discretion in identifying the Teamsters legal standard as controlling plaintiffs’ claims and in granting certification after adopting the Teamsters method of proof to adjudicate plaintiffs’ claims without considering the ADA’s statutory elements; and 2) the required inquiry under the ADA into the elements of qualification and reasonable accommodation cannot be evaluated on a classwide basis in a manner consistent with FRCP Rule 23, and thus the class cannot be certified as plaintiffs cannot adjudicate their claims and requested relief without it....

If our elderly loved ones can’t be in their own home, or ours, we want to know that they are safe and well taken care of. But that isn’t always so simple if we live far away or can’t visit as often as we like. And, for many reasons, nursing home residents can be reluctant to report negligence or abuse. So, what are some common nursing home injuries or signs of neglect, how can you identify mistreatment, and what can you do if a loved one has been injured in a nursing home or hospice care facility?...

Lets play a word association game. What are the first things you think of when you hear “Ninth Circuit”? Liberal. Western. Reversals. The Ninth’s reputation precedes it, and with the results of the recent spate of Supreme Court decisions, it may have reclaimed it’s title as the most reversed circuit court in America (though the Sixth is certainly putting up a good fight). In December, the ABA Journal stated that the Sixth Circuit had surpassed the infamous Ninth as the most reversed court, with an 81....

We’ve always viewed the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals as more of a leader than a follower, but it looks like the San Francisco-based appellate court may follow the Second Circuit’s lead in the Viacom-YouTube litigation. The Ninth Circuit Court might “re-examine” the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA) copyright infringement safe harbor standards, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The Ninth Circuit ruled last year in UMG vs. Veoh, a case dealing with user-uploaded music videos, that YouTube-style video-sharing website was protected under the safe harbor provision....

Hillbilly Hotties. Java Juggs. Twin Peaks. Dreamgirls Espresso. If you haven’t been following the “Bikini Barista” trend over the past decade, the names of Pacific Northwest establishments offering drive-thru coffee “with a view” may leave you wondering whether they are cafes or strip clubs. And city officials in Everett, Washington contend there was little difference, justifying a Dress Code Ordinance requiring employees, owners, and operators of Quick-Service facilities to cover “minimum body areas....

Must nonresident attorneys keep a physical office in the State of New York in order to practice there? Ekaterina Schoenefeld, a lawyer licensed in both New York and New Jersey, was surprised to find out that was the case after attending a CLE class in New York City. She was so outraged (for some reason) that she filed a federal lawsuit against the State of New York, alleging a violation of the Privileges and Immunities Clause of the U....

In 1997, Hamas orchestrated a triple suicide bombing in Jerusalem that wounded 200 and killed five people. U.S. citizens who were wounded, suffered emotional distress, or lack of consortium sued Iran in federal court arguing that Iran was responsible for the bombings because Iran provided support and training to Hamas. The plaintiffs were successful and won a $71.5 million judgment against Iran – though in hindsight, that may have been the easiest part of this litigation....

The Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Tuesday that a private attorney temporarily retained by the government to carry out its work is entitled to seek qualified immunity from a civil rights lawsuit. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the opinion for the unanimous court, overturning the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision in the case. The case evolved from an employment investigation. Nicholas Delia, a City of Rialto firefighter, missed work after becoming ill on the job....

Hate crimes and violent attacks against Asian Americans have been on the rise since anti-Asian rhetoric grew around coronavirus. If you witness a hate crime, follow these steps to report it – and keep yourself safe in the process. What Should I Do If I Witness a Hate Crime? Legally you do not have to do anything unless you are required by law to protect the person (often teachers, coaches, or parents)....

We get it. A lot of alleged criminals aren’t so bright. But when a suspect has a lawyer — and a note from his lawyer saying that he doesn’t want to talk to the cops without counsel — we can’t understand why he would agree to speak to the FBI. Luckily, the courts will occasionally step in to save people from themselves. Five years ago, Manuel Santistevan became a suspect in a series of Denver-area robberies, and FBI Agent Eicher obtained a warrant for his arrest....

A recent unanimous High Court decision is making headlines thanks to it clearing up some semantic confusion. According to SCOTUS, the crime of burglary not only includes homes, businesses, and livable structures, but also vehicles that can be adapted to be, or are designed to be, lived in. The case made it to the Supreme Court because of purported ambiguity when it came to sentencing under the Armed Career Criminal Act, which imposes mandatory sentencing guidelines for federal convicts with prior violent crime convictions, including burglary....

In US v. Martinez, No. 09-2117, the court of appeals affirmed defendant’s sentence for conspiring to defraud the State of New Mexico during the construction of the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Courthouse in Albuquerque, on the grounds that 1) the district court did not err in applying the 2008 version of the Sentencing Guidelines; 2) the district court properly refused to embark upon an “apples and oranges” comparison between the fraudulent proceeds defendant gained from this conspiracy and the contract revenues for services rendered that other co-conspirators previously gained from allegedly bribing an official; and 3) any disparity between defendant’s and the official’s identical terms of imprisonment was explained by their different plea agreements....

If you’ve ever been in Boston or some other cramped northeastern city after a snowfall, you may have seen the chaos firsthand. After they shovel out their cars parked on the street, residents claim those spots as their own by plunking down traffic cones, lawn chairs, or any number of other cheap objects. Obviously, you can’t claim a portion of public street as your own, but they do it anyway. And woe to anyone who chooses to remove the marker and park their car in those spaces....

Well, he did it. Elon Musk actually did it. Twitter’s Board of Directors unanimously approved his purchase of the popular and influential social media platform for roughly $44 billion. Technically, it’s a little premature to say that Musk “owns” Twitter. Shareholders and regulators must still approve the deal. But given the board’s unanimous approval of the deal, these hoops may prove little more than technicalities. The deal is likely to close later this year....