Patent Abuse Reduction Act of 2013

Texas Senator John Cornyn introduced the Patent Abuse Reduction Act of 2013 on May 22, 2013 to reduce patent abuse by patent trolls. 

Here is the link from Senator Cornyn's web site. http://www.cornyn.senate.gov/public/?a=Files.Serve&File_id=2d0600bf-6c00-4d9d-ad6e-d58130937c26

 

 

Jenkins Law Library Virtual Tour

Jenkins Law Library in Philadelphia is now "on the map". They are an official Google Maps destination, and have a very nice photo walking tour of their library. Check it out at http://www.jenkinslaw.org/membership/virtual-tour.

Bloomberg and privacy breach

I've seen a lot of buzz about Bloomberg terminals and reporters seeing customer information. Jean O'Grady has a good summary of the issue at http://deweybstrategic.blogspot.com/2013/05/bloomberg-law-not-impacted-by-bloomberg.html, and goes on to say that Bloomberg Law is not affected.

RSS readers

I am going to be testing out two possible replacements for Google Reader for my RSS feed browsing. Both will ask for permission to access your Google account to pull in your current list of feeds, then import it into their system.

The first, InoReader (www.inoreader.com), comes in a variety of formats. I will be testing the Chrome browser extention, the web version, and the iPad mobile version. I have initially set up the Chrome extension, and succesfully installed my feed list and even read a few posts. One advantage is you can get it to look like Google Reader, so there's less stress from figuring out how to read your feeds.

The second, feedly (www.feedly.com), seems to be primarily a mobile device app or browser extension. It also will let you sign in with your Google account, then import your current feed subscriptions. feedly has several ways to look at the posts, from Flipboard style "magazine" blocks to more traditional several line blurbs.

I will post an update after I've had time to work with each.

Copyright reform?

Article from Ars Technica web site with proposals for copyright reform.
 http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/04/five-ways-congress-should-improve-the-copyright-system/

Suggested improvements:

• Bring proportionality back to copyright penalties
• Rein in asset forfeiture in copyright cases
• Reform the Digital Millennium Copyright Act
• Reduce copyright terms
• Create a mandatory database of copyrighted works

Read the entire article for the reasons why these suggested improvements should be put into place.

Reading on screen versus reading on paper

I found a fascinating article in Scientific American titled "The Reading Brain in the Digital Age: The Science of Paper versus Screens" by Ferris Jabr. Jabr reports on several experiments conducted pitting reading on paper versus reading on screen for conprehension, and finds that people still tend to learn more and retain more from reading in print. But, as electronic versions of books and other sources improve and provide better visual cues, will this change?

U.S. Supreme Court to hear Water Law Case Today

http://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=/docketfiles/11-889.htm

No. 11-889
Title:	Tarrant Regional Water District, Petitioner v. Rudolf John Herrmann, et al.
Docketed:	January 19, 2012
Lower Ct:	United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit

Case Nos.:	(10-6184)
Decision Date:	September 7, 2011
Rehearing Denied:	October 21, 2011

The questions presented are: 1. Whether Congress's approval of an interstate water compact that grants the contracting States "equal rights" to certain surface water and - using language present in almost all such compacts - provides that the compact shall not "be deemed * * * to interfere" with each State's "appropriation, use, and control of water * * * not inconsistent with its obligations under this Compact," manifests unmistakably clear congressional consent to state laws that expressly burden interstate commerce in water. 2. Whether a provision of a congressionally approved multi-state compact that is designed to ensure an equal share of water among the contracting states preempts protectionist state laws that obstruct other states from accessing the water to which they are entitled by the compact.

News backgrounders: 

1. http://stateimpact.npr.org/oklahoma/tag/tarrant-vs-herrmann/ 
2. http://www.star-telegram.com/2013/04/22/4795128/supreme-court-to-hear-tarrant.html 
3. http://www.texastribune.org/2013/01/04/texas-oklahoma-water-case-be-heard-supreme-court/

Law Sauce

Law Sauce is a legal resource app developed by Ruth Bird at Oxford University's Bodleian Law Library and Natalie Wieland at the University of Melbourne Law School. It locates case law and legislative information from 200 jurisdictions in North America, Asia, UK and Europe and links to free and subscription fee international law sites. Available on iTunes and Google Play for $4.99.  

May DALL Luncheon

Our Final DALL Luncheon for the 2012-2013 year will be Wednesday, May 15th at 12 PM. Hunton & Williams is our hosting firm and guest speaker is Nina Platt, Senior Director of Legal Market Services at LAC Group. Nina's presentation is on the usage of SharePoint in Law Libraries. Lunch will be served.

Hunton & Williams is located at:

Hunton & Williams
1445 Ross Avenue
29th Floor, Multipurpose Room
Dallas, TX 75202

Get driving directions via Google Maps.

RSVP through the DALL Survey Monkey.

For additional information, please contact Candace Cathey at cmcathey1@sbcglobal.net.

See you May 15th!

Legal Apps - Part 6, Productivity

App	Description
	The Evernote app saves, shares, and organize files and record voice notes. Available for free at iTunes and Google Play.
	Dragon Dictation is a voice recognition app that allows you to speak and instantly see your text or email messages. Available for free at iTunes.
	The Dropbox app automatically saves photos, videos, and documents. Available for free at iTunes, Google Play, Blackberry and Kindle.
	The Docs To Go app allows users to view, edit, and create documents. Available for $9.99 at iTunes and free for Docs to Go 3.0 at Google Play (additional purchase included).
	The GoDocs app allows users to view documents, edit documents online, and manage multiple accounts. Available for $4.99 at iTunes .
	The Adobe Reader app allows users to view PDF files, fill out forms, and print files. Available for free at iTunes and Google Play.