April 2010 Archives

More than 42,000 gallons of oil have been leaking daily following a massive explosion on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, with the potential to cause major economic and environmental damage

Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C. has filed a class action lawsuit (AL-2010-CR256941) against British Petroleum ("BP") and several other companies with ties to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The firm seeks to represent individuals and businesses that have incurred damages related to the disaster, including;  real property damages; personal property damages; loss of profits and earning capacity; loss of commercial and subsistence use of natural resources; increased costs of public services; and, loss of revenues.

The oil spill resulted from the explosion and sinking of the oil platform Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20th. Coast Guard officials estimate 5,000 barrels a day are leaking into the Gulf. The oil slick made landfall in southern Louisiana early Friday and is expected to reach Mississippi and Alabama within the coming days.

Experts are calling this the worst environmental crisis since the Exxon Valdez and are predicting the economic impact to be greater than that associated with hurricane Katrina. They estimate the massive oil spill has the potential to negatively affect the entire Gulf coastline. This includes a negative economic impact on thousands who earn their livelihood in the fishing industry, as well as tourism, itself a major industry along the scenic oceanfront. Additionally, the environmental impact is expected to be severe, with oil and byproducts damaging fragile marshlands, marine and bird life.

"We are calling on the Alabama congressional delegation to do everything in their power to speed federal resources to the Gulf coast in order to minimize damage to the environment and the thousands of families that depend on these waters for their livelihood. Our thoughts and prayers are with responders," said Jere Beasley, founding shareholder of Beasley Allen.

Beasley Allen has an experienced Toxic Tort section that includes lawyers and staff who have handled numerous environmental disaster cases. Protection of people, their property, and their livelihood from large corporate polluters is one of Beasley Allen's top priorities. Our attorneys are fighting to make a difference in the lives of those threatened by environmental pollution. We currently are handling class action litigation against the Tennessee Valley Authority in the largest coal ash spill in U.S. history. These are difficult cases, but Beasley Allen is fighting to make a difference. From the largest toxic tort settlement in U.S. history for PCB contamination - $700 million - to a $20.7 million verdict against Continental Carbon for air pollution, Beasley Allen is playing a significant role in toxic tort cases.

The debate over physician-assisted suicide and the right of incurably suffering people to end their own lives has again been brought to national attention by the HBO premiere of "You Don't Know Jack," on the HBO pay-channel, April 24th. The film is based on the book "Between the Dying and the Dead: Dr. Jack Kevorkian's Life and the Battle to Legalize Euthanasia," by Neal Nicol and Harry Wylie.

Jerry Dincin, president of Final Exit Network (FEN), urges watching (or taping!) this important movie: "While the right to die exists for residents in Oregon, Washington, and Montana, most states still have laws specifically against assisted suicide. Regulators in many parts of the country have ramped up efforts to restrict the right to die with dignity. Groups that simply provide information and counseling have come under the gun-sights of zealots, and a witch-hunt has ensued."  

The needs of mentally competent, suffering patients who have not been declared "terminal" (having fewer than six months to live) have especially not been addressed. "Non-terminal" is an awesome designation when accompanied by the diagnosis of a lethal disease, in spite of the phrase's encouraging sound. It means that for that patient, a process has already begun: a deadly, inexorable deterioration that will likely multiply exponentially past the limit of most human beings to endure. Its merciful end is death, though that destination lies currently off the map. Quality of life for these people is a distant memory; all that remains is the reality of an indefinite and hopeless future. Dincin says, "Our organization is their only advocate."

Advances made in medicine over the last 50 years have been astonishing. Thanks to sophisticated new technologies and treatments, diseases once considered death sentences are now manageable conditions. The progress is often, however, a mixed blessing. Doctors' once-revered vow to keep patients alive - no matter what - often results not in extending life but extending death. Perpetuating "life" in a nightmare of powerlessness, constant pain, social isolation, and mental deterioration is tantamount to torture.

FEN is an all-volunteer organization dedicated to counseling, support, and guidance for those clients, who themselves choose the when, how, under what circumstances, and especially IF, to proceed. Dincin stresses that "FEN does not encourage anyone to end their life, does not provide the means to do so and does not actively assist in the person's death. We do, however, believe in the ultimate human right of people to end their lives when circumstances justify, and to have support in carrying out their plan," said Dincin.

Sherri Hill, distinguished and successful designer of high quality prom dresses and evening gowns, and Sherri Hill, Inc., have sued Let's Fashion, Inc., a Los Angeles-based manufacturer and wholesaler, for knocking off distinctive elements of nine of Sherri Hill's well-known dresses.  Let's Fashion is accused of distributing the infringing dresses to boutiques and retailers for sale to customers.  Widely acclaimed for her achievements in the pageant industry, Sherri Hill has designed gowns that have been worn with success by pageant winners and contestants including recent winners of the Miss USA® and Miss America® pageants.  Her stylish prom dresses have become instant hits, and are sold through hundreds of reputable retailers throughout the world.

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles federal court by the New York-based brand protection law firm Gioconda Law Group PLLC, accuses Let's Fashion of copyright and trade dress infringement, unfair competition, as well as misappropriation of Sherri Hill's name under California law.  The Complaint specifically alleges that Let's Fashion has copied numerous distinctive and copyrighted bead and embroidery designs owned by Sherri Hill, and that employees at Let's Fashion are specifically describing them as Sherri Hill designs.  

According to papers filed in court, the lineup of infringing dresses that appear in the current Let's Fashion product catalog "illustrates the great extent to which the design elements on Let's Fashion's dresses are copies of Sherri Hill's legally protected design elements."  Approximately ninety percent of Let's Fashion's production is domestically produced and sewn in Los Angeles, but some of the more elaborate knockoffs are allegedly made in China.  In addition to a product recall, Sherri Hill is seeking unspecified damages, an injunction, corrective advertising, as well as a list of those retailers who are selling the infringing Let's Fashion dresses to consumers.

The Gioconda Law Group PLLC, One Penn Plaza, 36th Floor, Fashion Avenue and West 34th Street, New York, NY 10119, Tel: (212) 786-7549, Fax: (888) 697-9665, www.GiocondaLaw.com.

SOURCE The Gioconda Law Group PLLC

"Anatomy of a Scandal" ,the cover story of ai5000's March/April issue, addresses the mystery of why Wesleyan University's $500 million endowment failed to notice the alleged gross misconduct of its chief investment officer for close to a decade.

Wesleyan has initiated a $3 million lawsuit against its terminated CIO, Thomas Kannam, who stands accused of submitting questionable expense reports and using university resources to engage in a series of outside ventures.

"To a large extent, this story highlights a common aberration in our nation's financial system, of which Wesleyan is just an example," observed editor Kip McDaniel. "Even when alleged misconduct is practiced in plain sight, investors don't want to look too closely at the sausage-making if the individual in question is making money for us."

Paula Vasan, co-writer of the article, added, "Although the case has yet to be decided, it appears to us that neither Wesleyan nor Mr. Kannam is blameless. The evidence suggests that Wesleyan may have looked the other way, so long as it was convenient to do so."

ai5000 describes how Kannam signed a contract in 2005 agreeing not to participate in "distracting" outside business opportunities, and soon thereafter appeared to accelerate his entrepreneurial ventures. The university's lawsuit contends that Kannam expensed family trips to the university and used university staff for external ventures. Two years later, Wesleyan noticed Kannam's "extracurricular activities" and asked him to sign a "more robust" conflict-of-interest document. His wife's response to this request: "Oucheroo." Nevertheless, ai5000 reports that

this document was "impressively vague." Ultimately, under Kannam's supervision, the endowment lost 24% in 2008, well beyond the NACUBO average of -19%.

"One of the sad aspects of this case is that the trustees and administrators of the endowment are involved in doing good and likely assume that anyone who works for them has the same mindset," McDaniel commented. "Unfortunately, laissez-faire environments don't always bring out the best in people, regardless of the larger institution's admirable intentions."

A quarterly online publication, ai5000 focuses on the 5,000 largest pools of capital in the world, across pension plans, sovereign wealth funds, endowments, foundations, insurance funds and other leading institutional investors. ai5000 is edited by Charles Ruffel, founder of Asset International and PLANSPONSOR, PLANADVISER and Global Custodian.

Asset International is a privately-held publisher and information provider to global pension funds, asset managers, financial advisers, banking service providers, and other financial institutions in the private and public sector. Asset International produces and distributes print and digital publications, conferences, research and data resources via its industry-leading brands PLANSPONSOR, PLANADVISER and Global Custodian. The company was acquired in January 2009 by Austin Ventures and has offices in New York, London and Stamford, CT.

The intellectual property Law Firm of Greenberg & Lieberman, LLC today announced that the Alexandria Circuit Court has ruled in favor of their client Alex McMillan IV, DDS, P.C., a Washington, DC area dentist, regarding a legal action initiated against a former employee charged with trademark infringement, trade secret violations, and domain theft.

On March 5, 2010, The Firm of Greenberg and Lieberman, LLC., led by Attorneys Stevan Lieberman and Debora McCormick, joined by local counsel Jonathan Westreich, completed a three day trial to adjudicate the intellectual property infringement matters brought before the court by Dr. McMillan. On March 17, 2010, the Court entered an Order which found that Thomas Winkler, the Defendant and former employee of Dr. McMillan, never had any ownership interest in Plaintiffs trademarks, "No matter how many Years and How Many Fears, It's Time for You to Smile Easy," "Burkedentists.com," and "SmileEasy.com." Further the court clarified that the trademarks are and always have been assets of Alex McMillan IV, DDS, P.C., and that Thomas Winkler deliberately and intentionally misappropriated the practice's trade secrets.

The Court Ordered Thomas Winkler to execute an assignment assigning all contested trademarks to Dr. McMillan and further ordered him to destroy all copies of a disputed patient list that the court determined was stolen from Dr. McMillan. A full copy of the Order may be seen at http://www.aplegal.com/ourwork.php. (http://bit.ly/94ToLV)

About Greenberg & Lieberman

Greenberg & Lieberman is an Intellectual Property Law Firm which has been in business since 1996 and provides patent, trademark, copyright prosecution, litigation and representation services. Greenberg & Lieberman serves clients nationally and internationally with a particular focus on computer / Internet law and patent prosecution for the small business. The firm has served over 20,000 clients.

Dr. Alex McMillan IV is a general dentist with locations in Burke and Alexandria, VA. With over 30 years of experience, Dr. McMillan's primary emphasis is on the provision of comprehensive restorative, cosmetic, implant and sedation dentistry.