Law360 coronavirus briefing June 16 2020
From Media & Entertainment Law360
Tuesday, June 16, 2020
TOP NEWS
4 Ways Coronavirus May Forever Change Legal Tech
When the novel coronavirus shut down courthouses and law firms, the legal industry quickly shifted to online work, with the aid of cutting-edge technology. Here, Law360 describes some of the top tech fixes that attorneys hope will outlast the pandemic.
MoFo Finds COVID-19 Optimism Growing Among Legal Pros
Top legal professionals at over 100 corporations are increasingly optimistic about how their companies are handling the COVID-19 pandemic and the long-term impacts on their business, according to a study released Monday by Morrison & Foerster LLP.
Coronavirus: How Law Firms Are Handling The Downturn
UPDATED June 15, 2020, 11:36 AM EDT | The spreading coronavirus pandemic has upended the legal industry, forcing firms to cut salaries, lay off attorneys and make changes to summer associate programs. Here is a roundup of how law firms are responding.
USPTO To Speed Up Pandemic-Related TM Applications
The U.S. Patent Trademark Office announced Monday a new examination program that aims to prioritize certain trademark and service mark applications related to the novel coronavirus in efforts to expedite the review process by an estimated two months.
Scalia Says Virus Spikes Stem From Testing, Not Reopening
U.S. Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia said Monday that states’ recent efforts to boost their economies by loosening coronavirus restrictions are not to blame for the jumps in new cases reported across the Sun Belt, pointing in part to a rise in testing capacities.
CLOSINGS AND RESTRICTIONS
Coronavirus: The Latest Court Closures And Restrictions
UPDATED June 16, 2020, 1:35 PM EDT | As courts across the country take measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, some are restricting access and altering their procedures. Here is a roundup of changes.
Coronavirus: The Latest EU Court Closures And Restrictions
UPDATED June 16, 2020, 11:46 AM GMT | As courts across the region take measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, some are restricting access and altering their procedures. Here is a roundup of changes.
WHAT IT MEANS FOR ATTORNEYS
Facing Lawsuit, Internet Archive Ends Pandemic Project Early
Following a copyright lawsuit filed by major book publishers, the Internet Archive is ending its National Emergency Library project that aimed to make more digital copies of books available during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Malaria Meds Don’t Cure Virus, May Hinder Gilead Drug: FDA
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday took back an emergency decision allowing hospital patients to use certain malaria medicines for COVID-19, warning that they’re probably not effective against it and may even interfere with a coronavirus drug sold by Gilead Sciences Inc.
McDonald’s Managers Say Workers Get Virus Safety Training
Current and former managers of Chicago McDonald’s restaurants testified Monday that they’d provided their crews with both consistent training and storewide signage to help keep employees informed and protected as they work during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
$2.6B Musk-Solar City Trial To Test Chancery COVID-19 Rules
A suit over the role tech trailblazer Elon Musk and Tesla Motors Inc. played in an allegedly conflicted, $2.6 billion acquisition of SolarCity in 2016 appears headed for one of the first Delaware Chancery Court tests of COVID-19 safety rules during a multiday public trial, after a Monday hearing.
FCA Warns Banks To Prepare For COVID-19 Debt Surge
Lenders should brace themselves for a surge in businesses that cannot pay back loans rushed out under government programs to support the economy during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Financial Conduct Authority said Tuesday.
Cannabis Grower Faces $6.1M Claim In Laos Over Broken Deal
A Laotian agriculture company has filed a $6.1 million arbitration against a subsidiary of Australian cannabis company Cann Global Ltd. after the country’s borders closed in the face of the coronavirus, leading the cannabis grower to back out of a joint CBD hemp project.
Inovio’s ‘3-Hour’ COVID Cure Claims Spark Derivative Suit
The top brass at biopharmaceutical company Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc. was hit Monday with a shareholders’ derivative action in Pennsylvania federal court accusing the firm’s leadership of preying on investors by claiming it had only needed “three hours” to come up with a coronavirus cure.
COVID-19 Test Maker Sued Over ‘100% Accurate’ Claim
A Salt Lake City company that received the world’s first regulatory clearance to sell COVID-19 diagnostic tests in Europe was hit with a securities suit on Monday for claiming its tests were “100% accurate.”
Split 11th Circ. Scraps Miami Jail’s COVID-19 Injunction
The Eleventh Circuit on Monday vacated a preliminary injunction ordering Miami-Dade County, Florida, to take certain steps to curb the spread of COVID-19 at a county jail, ruling that the trial judge wrongly determined that the jail’s social distancing efforts are insufficient and constitutes “deliberate indifference.”
EXPERT ANALYSIS
What’s Missing From The PPP Flexibility Act
The Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act broadens critical exceptions and safe harbors for employers who must balance reopening with workplace safety, but falls short by failing to clarify and correct two important provisions of the program, says Christina Strasser at Williams Parker.
How COVID-19 Will Transform Real Estate Loan Docs: Part 1
Several key provisions can be expected to appear in real estate loan documents as a result of COVID-19, requiring borrowers and lenders to address financial tests, leasing covenants and additional indebtedness moving forward, say Frederick Klein and Skyler Anderson at DLA Piper.
Employers’ Top 7 Coronavirus Data Collection Questions
Attorneys at Troutman Sanders answer key questions about using employee health information to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including whether screenings are required and how to approach data collection and storage.
