Los Angeles Litigation BLOG

How Does a Partnership Add a New Partner?

January 24th, 2012

The main benefit of a partnership – its flexibility – can also become a liability when a major change occurs like deciding to bring someone new on board as a partner. The partnership agreement may not have been worded well enough to handle the change, and it could lead to conflict. In a state like California, which like most has passed the Uniform Partnership Act, if a partnership agreement is silent on a matter, state law – often contract law – fills in the holes, which may not lead to a welcome result. To avoid problems when bringing a new partner on board, partnerships and similar business entities should have clear provisions in their operating agreements. To bring someone new into a partnership, it is common for the partnership’s partners to have to vote the new person in and for the new person to contribute to the partnership at least…
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Tags: contract law, los angeles business litigation lawyer, uniform partnership act
Posted in Business Litigation, General Litigation | No Comments »

E3 Video Game Extravaganza Brings Piracy Awareness

January 23rd, 2012

Perhaps the biggest event of the year for computer and video game fans is the Electronic Entertainment Expo, more commonly known as “E3,” that takes place each summer at the Los Angeles Convention Center. 2012’s E3 will be taking place June 5-7. The first E3 in 1995 drew over 80,000 visitors who came to get a preview of forthcoming games and to see the latest in hardware developments. The gathering has since changed to invite-only for industry professionals, but the buzz surrounding E3 has continued to grow nevertheless. Numerous media sites like IGN and Gamespot cover the event live, and one network, G4, even broadcasts live during the week of the event. An important issue for E3 and the entity behind the expo, the Entertainment Software Association, is piracy and for good reason – some estimate the losses due to piracy amount to almost $10 billion a year worldwide. While…
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Tags: electronic entertainment expo, intellectual property infringement, los angeles business litigation attorney, trademark infringement
Posted in Intellectual Property, Trademark | No Comments »

California Has 37 Years of Tort Reform Experience

January 20th, 2012

California has already enacted tort reform of its own. The state has had 37 years now to see its effects, at least with regards to caps on medical malpractice lawsuits. California passed the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (“MICRA”) in 1975. MICRA enacted caps on certain parts of the awards that victims can receive in medical malpractice lawsuits. It limits pain and suffering awards to $250,000. The law also limits the amount of money that attorneys can receive from contingency agreements where an attorney receives money only if the plaintiff prevails. Supporters of MICRA had hoped that the law would reduce medical malpractice insurance premiums, whose soaring costs had become a financial burden on doctors. The evidence, though, suggests that the law had little effect. Premiums and healthcare services in California in general continued to grow even after MICRA’s passing in 1975. What lessons can businesses take away from California’s…
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Tags: business torts, los angeles business litigation lawyer, medical injury compensation reform act, micra, tort reform
Posted in Business Litigation, General Litigation | No Comments »