Litigation
Is a Company Liable for Software Defects, when a Vulnerability is Discovered but Not Exploited? A Recent Cisco Settlement Suggests Liability May Be Assessed
If you are in the software business, you likely recognize that you can be sued for materially breaching contracts, infringing third party IP, and data breaches but you may not realize the extent of your liability just for making the sale of a software product deemed to contain a security flaw in the first place,…
Read MoreCan Your Company Be Sued Over a Software Update? Tesla Suit Signals New Trend in Class Action Suits
When your company releases its next software update, you may want to consider the potential legal implications of the release. There seems to be a new trend in class action litigation: suits over software updates. As Reuters first reported, an owner of a Tesla vehicle has filed a lawsuit against Tesla, Inc. claiming that a…
Read MoreSupreme Court Rules Against Apple in Antitrust Case to Determine if App Store is Monopoly
The Supreme Court has ruled against Apple in an antitrust case claiming that the App store has created a monopoly over the sale of apps and has used the monopoly to charge consumers higher than the majority price. Justice Kavanaugh delivered the opinion of the Court that the plaintiffs are not barred from suing Apple…
Read MoreCalifornia Governor Signs Net Neutrality Law; Department of Justice Responds with Suit to Block Law
Governor Jerry Brown has signed into law S.B. 822, also known as the California Internet Consumer Protection and Net Neutrality Act of 2018. The law is intended to go into effect on January 1, 2019 and, according to CNN, will establish the “strictest net neutrality protections in the country.” However, the U.S. government has responded…
Read MoreCalifornia Supreme Court Strikes Blow to Software Industry Reliance on Gig Workers
If your software company is relying on so-called “Gig workers” to provide a service managed by your app and software platform, then you need to know about a California Supreme Court ruling just issued this week, which is likely to severely limit your ability to rely on the “Gig worker” model going forward in the…
Read MoreRecent Software Class Actions Provide Valuable Lesson on Why SaaS Contracts Should Be Drafted to Fit Company’s Business Model
When SaaS companies and start-ups first contact me, they are often doing so with the idea that there are a few really well SaaS template contracts circulating in the SaaS industry and they seeking the” right” attorney to provide that industry-standard template to them. Alternatively, they contact me telling me that they’ve already put together…
Read MoreShould Your Software Company Be Concerned about Product ADA Compliance?
If your software company leases office spaces, then you may have some familiarity with the legal issues involving whether or not the space is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (the “ADA”), but have you ever considered whether your software product itself is ADA compliant? If the answer is no, then it may be…
Read MoreMicrosoft Launches New Constitutional Challenge Against Government Over Secret Data Requests
Microsoft has just opened a new chapter in the software industry’s pushback against alleged federal government overreach by filing a constitutional challenge over indefinite government gag orders when the government subpoenas information from customer cloud accounts. Microsoft’s complaint alleges that the orders violate First Amendment free speech rights and Fourth Amendment rights regarding unreasonable government…
Read MoreThird Party Hacks San Bernardino Terrorist iPhone, Ending Standoff Between Apple and FBI
The U.S. Justice Department announced yesterday that the third party who came forward and convinced the FBI that it could unlock the San Bernardino terrorist’s encrypted iPhone successfully unlocked the encrypted iPhone, ending the standoff between Apple and the FBI. The government informed the court in its filing yesterday that it had successfully retrieved the…
Read MoreSilicon Valley Software Industry Considers Impact of Supreme Court Decision on Patent Invalidity Defense to Claim of Induced Infringement
As I posted yesterday to my blog at Silicon Valley IP Licensing Law Blog, the U.S. Supreme Court has just issued an opinion in the Commil vs. Cisco Systems case, leaving the software industry to consider how the ruling will impact member software companies. Industry reaction to the ruling has been somewhat muted thus far,…
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