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The Globalization Of Entrepreneurial Litigation: Law, Culture, And Incentives, John C. Coffee Jr.
The Globalization Of Entrepreneurial Litigation: Law, Culture, And Incentives, John C. Coffee Jr.
Faculty Scholarship
The fiftieth anniversary of Rule 23’s adoption in 1966 provides an opportunity to consider how legal change occurs. Law, culture, and incentives all play a role. But which dominates? The adoption of Rule 23 preceded a significant surge in the use of the class action, and some areas of litigation came to depend on Rule 23’s availability (e.g., securities litigation, antitrust litigation, and, for a time, mass torts litigation). Perhaps even more importantly, Rule 23 spurred the growth of the plaintiff’s bar, enabling small firms with a handful of lawyers to develop into major institutional firms of one hundred or …
The Sum Is More Public Domain Than Its Parts: Us Copyright Protection For Works Of Applied Art Under Star Athletica's Imagination Test, Jane C. Ginsburg
The Sum Is More Public Domain Than Its Parts: Us Copyright Protection For Works Of Applied Art Under Star Athletica's Imagination Test, Jane C. Ginsburg
Faculty Scholarship
In Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands, the Supreme Court granted certiorari to resolve confusion in the lower courts regarding the "separability" predicate to copyright protection of decorative features of useful articles. Adopting the Gordian imagery evoked by other appellate courts, the Sixth Circuit in Varsity Brands lamented "[c]ourts have twisted themselves into knots trying to create a test to effectively ascertain whether the artistic aspects of a useful article can be identified separately from and exist independently of the article's utilitarian function." Star Athletica involved the "surface decorations" of stripes, chevrons, and color blocks applied to cheerleader uniforms. While the …