Latest News & Alerts

California Court Confirms Invalidity of California Tax Rules, Awards ACMA over $330,000 in Attorney Fees

On February 13, 2024, in a lawsuit brought by Brann & Isaacson on behalf of the American Catalog Mailers Association (ACMA) against the California Franchise Tax Board (FTB), San Francisco Superior Court Judge Ethan P. Schulman issued orders on post-judgment motions affirming the ACMA’s victory and awarding the association attorney fees of $332,895.50 and costs...

Peter Brann and Eamonn Hart Prevail in VPPA Lawsuit

Brann & Isaacson lawyers, Peter Brann and Eamonn Hart, won a motion to dismiss a federal lawsuit in the Southern District of California brought under the Video Privacy Protection Act against, Boden, a British clothing retailer. B&I argued that it was wholly insubstantial to claim that the VPPA applied to showing a small snippet of...

Kevin Haley and Adam Mooney Pen MaineBiz Article on Trademarks for CBD Products

On February 7, 2024, MaineBiz published an article by attorneys Kevin Haley and Adam Mooney on the trademark issues relating to cannabis products and their suppliers, entitled, “How to find a path to trademark protection for CBD products.” Haley and Mooney discuss the difficulties of securing trademark protections for products that are legal recreationally in...

David Bertoni and David Swetnam-Burland Publish Article on Private Tax Enforcement in Tax Notes State

On January 29, 2024, Tax Notes State published the latest article by attorneys David Bertoni and David Swetnam-Burland in Brann & Isaacson’s Eyes on e-Commerce series, “New Year, Old Threats: Private Tax Enforcement Looks Back to the Future” (subscription required). The authors highlight recent developments in the private enforcement of state tax laws that practitioners...

Employee Arbitration: The Ninth Circuit Cries Uncle?

We’ve been writing a lot about arbitration of late, and so have the courts. Just today, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion on arbitration in the employee rights area reversing its own prior decisions, but it has potential application to many other areas of the law. In Dorman v. Charles Schwab Corp.,...

Involving Commerce: How Far Does the Federal Arbitration Act Reach?

Because of the risk of what some might perceive as extortion via class action lawsuits, arbitration agreements have be come a critical line of defense. But what if you are sued by residents of your own state and the claim is made that the suit isn’t one “involving commerce”?

Consumer Arbitration Clauses: Traps for the Unwary

We’ve previously written about issues related to consumer arbitration clauses for online transactions, as well as related online terms and conditions. But, some courts are loathe to enforce consumer arbitration clauses and will look for ways to avoid them, as a recent federal court case from Illinois illustrates.

To Be Or Not To Be: Standing In Invasion of Privacy Cases

In the case of Frank v. Gaos, argued before the United States Supreme Court on October 31, 2018, oral argument took an unexpected turn, leading the Justices to direct the parties (and the Solicitor General) to brief the question of whether any named plaintiff had standing, i.e., whether they were in fact injured, in a...

Online Terms of Use: An Update

On June 10, 2019, we discussed an Illinois federal court decision enforcing an online consumer arbitration agreement. There are now decisions from federal courts in New York and California that touch on related issues, and offer important guidance for online terms and conditions.

Nevada Privacy Law Goes Into Effect October 1

What happens in Vegas, may now indeed need to stay in Vegas.  Although California’s sweeping new privacy law has dominated the headlines, other states are enacting their own, different privacy laws, and it’s important to understand the differences. Partner Stacy Stitham identifies some things we should know about the new Nevada privacy law.