Minnesota Court of Appeals Published Decision: Unclean Hands Not Complete Bar to Receiving Equitable Relief On February 17, 2015, the Court of Appeals held in a published decision that “[a] district …
READ MORE →Agreements between vendors and buyers are of the utmost importance because these agreements will define the relationship between the parties, have clear goals and objectives, and save both parties …
READ MORE →The WARN Act protects employees by requiring employers to provide 60 days notice of plant closing and mass layoffs. Below are some FAQ regarding the WARN Act. Which companies are covered by the WARN …
READ MORE →If you are owed money, can you take someone’s website? If you own a website, can you lose it to your creditors? These issues were recently decided by the Minnesota Court of Appeals. Specifically, the …
READ MORE →An employee is presumed to be an at-will employee if there is “an employment agreement with no definite expiration date.” Rosenberg v. Heritage Renovations, LLC, 685 N.W. 2d 320, 326 (Minn. 2004). As …
READ MORE →A coalition of business people and politicians are leading a grass-roots effort to allow equity crowdfunding under Minnesota law. The initiative, known as MNvest, seeks a “MNvest Registration …
READ MORE →The following is a guest article from Thomas H. Hubler of Hubler for Business Families. Setting Expectations and Criteria for Next Generation Leaders is Essential Family businesses are all about the …
READ MORE →When Money is Tight and Risk is Low, an LLC or S Corp are Less Valuable People starting a small part-time business have asked me whether they should invest in forming an LLC or S corporation. In …
READ MORE →A Coffee-Mark Hypothetical Consider a hypothetical that tracks the kind of dispute trademark owners regularly face. A coffee company owns a well-known trademark for its line of blended, ice-based …
READ MORE →The Significance of Triple Five v. Simon for Partnership Law in Minnesota The saga of the Triple Five decisions has great significance for partnership law in Minnesota. The case greatly expanded the …
READ MORE →How Do Courts Interpret Fiduciary Duty Limitations and Waivers? Courts take divergent approaches when interpreting partnership agreements that limit or waive fiduciary duties. Some enforce waivers …
READ MORE →The Triple Five v. Simon Case Facts Developing the Mall of America The story of the Triple Five decisions begins with an idea to build the largest shopping mall in the United States, the Mall of …
READ MORE →Statutory Limitations on Partners’ Fiduciary Duties Introduction States have adopted, with some modifications, a number of model laws applicable to partnerships. The Uniform Partnership Act of 1914 …
READ MORE →I suspect that most of you are very familiar with Disney and its signature spokesperson, Mickey Mouse. There are probably fewer of you that are familiar with Deadmau5 (pronounced “dead mouse,” real …
READ MORE →In Minnesota, you may be able to sue someone who improperly interferes with a likely business relationship. A helpful summary of “tortious interference with prospective contractual relations” is …
READ MORE →Outside the trademark arena, the idea of unfair competition exists in both the common law and statute to protect businesses that have suffered an injury through deceptive or wrongful business …
READ MORE →Minnesota Supreme Court Upholds Half-Billion Arbitration Award Seagate Technology LLC and Western Digital, along with a former Seagate employee, Sining Mao, were involved in a long legal battle …
READ MORE →The privacy tort of intrusion upon seclusion often evokes thoughts of physical intrusion as well as electronic or mechanical intrusion such as video surveillance or telephone recording, which is …
READ MORE →Unincorporated Association Trademark Example: Southern California Darts Association On August 11, 2014, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in which the states of Arizona, California, Nevada, …
READ MORE →In trademark law, “likelihood of confusion” is the primary legal standard for trademark infringement. A recent decision from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals nicely articulates the black letter law …
READ MORE →This article explains issues to consider when exploring the concept of expanding a nonprofit organization into various geographic areas by working jointly with a local leader in those areas. This …
READ MORE →After a plaintiff has been able to prove copyright infringement a defendant can allege a number of defenses, including fair use. A defense of fair use is not alleging that an infringement did not …
READ MORE →Minnesota recognizes three common-law invasion-of-privacy torts: intrusion upon seclusion, appropriation, and publication of private facts. In Lake v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 582 N.W.2d 231, 235 (Minn. …
READ MORE →Commercial disparagement under the common law allows for cause of action for when a defendant makes a false, misleading, or deceptive representation about another’s goods or services. Minnesota In …
READ MORE →Common-law and statutes allow for a cause of action when a company misrepresents the nature or characteristics of its goods to consumers. In Minnesota, a false statement in an advertisement is defined …
READ MORE →Paris Convention The Paris Convention applies to patents, trademarks, industrial designs, utility models, service marks, trade names, geographical indications, the repression of unfair competition and …
READ MORE →There are situations where you can use another company’s trademark and have that use protected as “fair use.” Some words used as trademarks also carry an independent descriptive, …
READ MORE →What is cybersquatting? Cybersquatting is the act of purchasing a domain name that uses the names of existing businesses, which are usually trademarked, for the sole purpose of either profiting from …
READ MORE →Scandalous or Immoral Every once in a while the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office is faced with an application that could potentially be deemed “scandalous or immoral.” Denial of marks that are …
READ MORE →Three Elements of Operating a Franchise in Minnesota Operating a franchise involves the combination of these three elements: A license to use a trade or service mark, The payment of a fee by the …
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