I Am Still Here

Tuesday, October 19, 2010 by David Castor
So I have been a bit behind in blogging these past few weeks.  With the new addition to my family (my 3rd son), life has been hectic.  But, I am back and ready to role.

As a general update, Alerding Castor Hewitt continues expand as technology legal counsel in SaaS law, funding law and entrepreneurial law fields.  We have some exciting new Internet-based and SaaS clients.  This month we helped a client negotiate a stock purchase deal and have handled no less than thirty SaaS or software licensing...Read More »

TRADEMARK DISPUTE – YOU CAN SUE A HAM SANDWICH, OR AT LEAST DISPUTE THE NAME OF A HAMBURGER

Thursday, October 14, 2010 by Scott Kreider

In the spirit of entertaining legal stories like the one below that Chris recently shared with our Alerding Castor Hewitt, LLP audience, I thought I would share a story I ran across yesterday about a trademark dispute.  Also, because Chris is a connoisseur of fine comfort food, I’m sure that he will enjoy it. 


A restaurant in Bellevue, Washington, John Howie Steak, has come up with a caloric-intensive burger that starts with grilling a 12-ounce ground chuck patty and then tops it with Kurobuta...

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The interesting privacy litigation issues raised by a Duke student's sex-ploitation

Monday, October 11, 2010 by Chris Stephen
Ok, I'll admit it.  I was in a rut.  Although I found numerous interesting tidbits through-out cyberspace, I could not find anything that piqued my interest enough to put aside the billable hours of a technology legal counsel for a few moments to blog about it.  But, lo and behold, a college student with a sense of panache, an aspiration for humor, decent journaling skills, and access to PowerPoint and the Internet has become my muse. 

For those of you that don't know,  2010 Duke graduate...Read More »

INTERNET LITIGATION – WEBSITES AND PERSONAL JURISDICTION

Thursday, October 7, 2010 by Scott Kreider
Your friendly Indianapolis attorney at Alerding Castor Hewitt, LLP with a brief overview (not an in-depth analysis of all of the legal issues) of some recent Seventh Circuit decisions involving internet litigation, trademark disputes, and anti-cybersquatting that could affect technology, software, and business clients maintaining websites and engaging in cyber-marketing. 
           
Last Friday, October 1, 2010, the Seventh Circuit upheld the dismissal of a suit for lack of personal jurisdiction...
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Connecticut Insurance Deparment Requires Notification of Privacy Security Breaches

Wednesday, September 8, 2010 by Chris Stephen
Here is one of those convergence points where business law and privacy law intersect and effectuate additional administrative duties on the business holder.  In a rather interesting bulletin, the Connecticut Department of Insurance issued a directive on August 18, 2010, requiring "that all licensees and registrants of the Department notify the Department of any information security incident which affects any Connecticut residents as soon as the incident is identified, but no later than five (5)...Read More »

FTC settles case with paid reviewer

Sunday, August 29, 2010 by Chris Stephen
Back in October, 2009, I posted about the new endorsement / testimonial rules set out by the Federal Trad Commission (blog.alerdingcastor.com/blog/alerding-castor/0/0/ftc-makes-changes-to-blog-law).  There has been some development since that time, but mostly everyone is still watching and waiting.  The FTC did threaten to pursue Ann Taylor back in April, but otherwise, it has been relatively silent.

That is, however, until now.  On August 26, 2010, the FTC reached a settlement with Reverb...Read More »

BUSINESS LAW – WHAT’S IN A NAME?

Thursday, August 26, 2010 by Scott Kreider

Your friendly Indianapolis attorney at Alerding Castor Hewitt LLP here with a history lesson and tie in to business law.  Most of you have probably heard the term “gerrymander” and know that it refers to a process of dividing a territory into districts in order to give one political party an advantage over another by concentrating the voting strength of that party in as many districts as possible.  Fewer of you probably know the origin of the term, and I imagine that  even fewer know much about...

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Minority and Women Owned Business Enterprises

Friday, August 20, 2010 by Janet Monroe
Indiana Technology LawyerSomething that women and/or minority business owners may want to consider is registration with the Indiana Department of Administration Minority and Women's Business Enterprises Division to become certified as a minority-owned or woman-owned business.

Established in order to give such businesses an equal opportunity to participate in the state purchasing process, the criteria considered for such certification include that the minority/woman member possess:
  • ownership of the business (at least...
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Firm Joins Innovation Summit as a Sponsor

Wednesday, August 11, 2010 by Lainey Scheetz

FIRM JOINS INNOVATION SUMMIT AS SPONSOR

 

For the second year in a row, the firm committed to this year’s Innovation Summit as the Plenary Panel Sponsor. 

 

This annual event brings together entrepreneurs, executives and policymakers for learning, dialogue and debate on the central challenge of today’s economy – turning today’s ideas into tomorrow’s business breakthroughs. The Summit includes keynote speakers, breakout sessions on a variety of innovation related topics, and dozens of trade and...

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INDIANAPOLIS LITIGATION—COMMISSIONS AND WAGES

Thursday, August 5, 2010 by Scott Kreider

It’s not often that we at Alerding Castor Hewitt, LLP run into issues regarding the payment of commissions for our business law, SaaS law, and Indiana technology clients.  When the subject does arise, however, it usually occurs when an employee separates from employment and makes a wage claim for unpaid commissions.  The debate about whether the commissions are wages centers on whether the employee was entitled to the commission at the time of sale OR when the client pays for the product,...

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ALERDING CASTOR HEWITT, LLP CLIENT NAMED 10TH FASTEST GROWING PRIVATE COMPANY IN INDIANA FOR THIRD TIME

Friday, July 23, 2010 by Lainey Scheetz

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 23, 2010
Contact: Lainey Scheetz
317.403.9012
lscheetz@alerdingcastor.com

ALERDING CASTOR HEWITT, LLP CLIENT NAMED 10TH FASTEST GROWING PRIVATE COMPANY IN INDIANA FOR THIRD TIME

Indianapolis, IN – Iasta, the leading provider of eSourcing software and solutions, was titled as the 10th Fastest Growing Private Company in Indiana for 2010 by the Indianapolis Business Journal (IBJ).  A third time honoree, Iasta boosted its three-year growth rate at 134 percent.

The report...

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Indianapolis Litigation — Successful Resolution For Saas Law Client During Collections Process

Thursday, June 24, 2010 by Scott Kreider

Your friendly Indianapolis attorney at Alerding Castor Hewitt LLP here with a quick follow up on my first blog regarding collections for our business law, technology law, and SaaS law clients.  A link to that post is listed below for those interested.

One of our Saas law clients recently obtained a favorable resolution in one of their cases to collect on a contract from an out-of-state debtor. We had obtained a default judgment for the client and were pressing forward with the proceeding...

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Imposing the long-arm of the law over the Internet

Wednesday, June 23, 2010 by Chris Stephen
Your friendly neighborhood technology counsel here:  A couple of recent state court decisions are going to start personal injury attorneys frothing at the mouth, and might render some sleepless nights for defense attorneys.  Both Ohio and Florida recently issued opinions in which they applied their state's respective long-arm statutes to garner personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state resident for tortious conduct that transpired over the Internet. 

First, you need to know what a long-arm...Read More »

PURE Eatery Delivers Fresh Honest Food

Tuesday, June 22, 2010 by Janet Monroe
Pure Eatery Fresh Honest FoodToday is an exciting day for Indianapolis with the establishment of a brand new local eatery called "Pure" located in Fountain Square at 1043 Virginia Avenue. 

Working with the business owners through Indiana entrepreneurial law, I checked in to see what the place had to offer this afternoon.  I couldn't be more excited about the fresh flavors and the funky atmosphere.  With original artwork and high ceilings, it has a Chicago vibe with a menu focused on fresh honest food.  Perfect.

Today I chose... Read More »

Funding Law – Investor Impatience

Friday, June 18, 2010 by David Castor
I read around 2 new business plans per week – about 100 per year.  Some private equity investors I know read upwards of 10 per week – or about 500 per year.  When you are reviewing that many of anything, you get impatient.  That is why I encourage business owners writing plans for private equity investors or angel investor groups to be succinct. 

Get to the point.  What does your company do?  What pain are you solving in the market?  How will you do that at a profit?

Business summaries should...Read More »

Radical Innovation - Searching for the new frontier

Wednesday, June 16, 2010 by Chris Stephen
I'm going to cheat a little on this.  I read a great blog post by Jeff Ready over at the McStartup blog (www.mcstartup.com).  The blog post is all about the importance of radical innovation.  I have a place in my heart for radical innovation because I believe that in the legal community, we are the radical innovators.  ACH strives after its goal to be an information technology law firm, a venture capital law firm and a business law firm, but we go about it in a way that is radical to many...Read More »

Who are Alerding Castor Hewitt LLP

Friday, June 11, 2010 by Chris Stephen
Every once in awhile, I have the inkling to make a blog post that is not about developments in privacy litigation or technology litigation or cloud computing law or foreclosures or any of the other endless stream of ideas and legal thoughts that pass across my desk.  This is one of those times.  Because, while I think it is important for our readers to know that Mexico passed a new data privacy law or that litigation related to CAN SPAM is likely a rising field, I think it is equally important...Read More »

China Issues its First E-Commerce Regulation

Thursday, June 10, 2010 by Chris Stephen
China has enacted the "Interim Administrative Measures on Internet-based Transactions of Goods and Related Services" that will take effect on July 1, 2010.  This regulations should have a significant impact on e-commerce in China.  One can only assume that it will also impact Software Service Level Agreements, SaaS law, and cloud computing law.  The regulations appear to be focused on Business - to-Consumer issues and consumer-to-consumer activities, but the actual language of the regulation is...Read More »

Indianapolis Attorney—Preliminary Injunctions And Probate Litigation

Wednesday, June 9, 2010 by Scott Kreider

Your Indianapolis Attorney at Alerding Castor Hewitt here with another litigation post for the business and technology world, this time regarding preliminary injunctions.  What is a preliminary injunction?  In simple terms, it is an equitable remedy that you can seek asking a court to order someone else to stop doing something or cease threatening to do something that is causing or is likely to cause you irreparable harm.  It is another weapon in the litigation arsenal, one to restore the status...

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Mexico Passes New Data Protection and Privacy Law

Tuesday, June 8, 2010 by Chris Stephen
Your friendly neighborhood technology counsel here:  So, Mexico recently passed a new data protection law.  On April 27, 2010, Mexico passed the Federal Law for the Protection of Personal data, which is likely to be signed into law by the President in the near future.  This law not only allows for a mind-boggling $1.5 million penalty for violation, but it also applies to the private sector. Private and public entities will need to protect themselves from privacy litigation. 

This law is much akin...Read More »