Latest news with #MayerBrown
Reuters
3 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Samsung owes $112 mln for infringing Maxell patents, US jury says
May 29 (Reuters) - A federal jury in Texas has determined that Samsung Electronics ( opens new tab owes electronics maker Maxell (6810.T), opens new tab nearly $112 million after finding that the Korean tech giant's devices violate Maxell's patent rights. The jury in Texarkana, Texas, said in its verdict on Wednesday, opens new tab that Samsung's Galaxy smartphones, tablets and other devices infringe three of Japan-based Maxell's patents related to networking, information processing and other technologies. Attorneys and spokespeople for the companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the verdict on Thursday. The award adds to a string of recent nine-figure patent infringement verdicts against Samsung in East Texas federal court, including a $279 million verdict in a separate dispute over wireless technology last month. Maxell sued Samsung for patent infringement in 2023 over a wide range of its electronics. The complaint said that Samsung previously obtained a license to Maxell's patents that Samsung failed to renew. Samsung denied Maxell's infringement allegations and argued that the patents were invalid. Maxell requested nearly $130 million in damages, according to a court filing. The case is Maxell Ltd v. Samsung Electronics Co, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, No. 5:23-cv-00092. For Maxell: Jamie Beaber, Alan Grimaldi, Kfir Levy, James Fussell and Robert Pluta of Mayer Brown For Samsung: Brian Erickson, Sean Cunningham, Erin Gibson, Mark Fowler and Michael Jay of DLA Piper
South China Morning Post
5 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Crypto industry optimistic about stablecoins in Hong Kong but faces high compliance costs
In the days after Hong Kong passed a bill to regulate stablecoins on May 21, people in the industry celebrated the government's forward-looking stance on the cryptocurrency assets, but its stringent requirements – similar to how it regulated other virtual assets – could be a double-edged sword in the near term. 'Regular independent audits and strict disclosure obligations further bolster confidence in the sector, although in the short run it may increase operational costs and limit market entry, particularly for smaller or emerging stablecoin issuers,' said Amita Haylock, technology partner at Mayer Brown law firm. As the 2023 law on virtual asset trading platforms (VATPs) did for other cryptocurrencies, the new stablecoin ordinance – governing assets pegged to fiat currencies such as the US dollar (USD) and Hong Kong dollar (HKD) – imposes strict rules with high compliance costs on companies that require a licence to do business in the city. Stablecoin licences are governed by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), unlike other virtual assets, which fall under the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). The VATP law has been criticised by some industry insiders as too onerous and hindering business activity in the city , hurting Hong Kong's efforts to become a crypto hub. Yet also like the VATP law, the stablecoin bill is seen as offering regulatory clarity that could spur more innovation in the future. An illustration featuring US President Donald Trump outside a cryptocurrency exchange in Hong Kong. Photo: Reuters 'I think the most important benefit is that it provides virtual asset businesses legal certainty,' Haylock said. 'Over time … the clarity provided in the stablecoins ordinance would encourage larger financial institutions to build token-based products in Hong Kong.'
Reuters
06-02-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Panama Canal Authority hires US law firm amid Trump threats
Feb 6 (Reuters) - (Billable Hours is Reuters' weekly report on lawyers and money. Please send tips or suggestions to opens new tab) U.S. law firm Vinson & Elkins has received nearly $7 million in fees since late November for work on behalf of the authority that controls the Panama Canal, as President Donald Trump has threatened to re-take control of the world's second busiest waterway. The law firm and 10 of its lawyers said in new filings, opens new tab under the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) that they are providing "legal and strategic advice" to Autoridad del Canal de Panama as it relates to the U.S. government. The work includes advising the canal authority and potentially engaging with U.S. officials in connection with "congressional inquiries, legislative actions, executive decisions, treaties, laws, and U.S. policy," the firm said in the filings, which were dated Jan. 31. Among the Vinson lawyers involved is G. Zachary Terwilliger, who served as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia during the first Republican Trump administration. A spokesperson for Vinson and the Panama Canal Authority did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The government of Panama separately hired two lobbying and consulting firms last month, BGR Group and VantageKnight. They did not respond to requests for comment. FARA requires U.S. law firms, lobbyists and others to disclose some types of work for foreign clients. Vinson, a Houston-founded firm with about 700 lawyers, said in its filings that Terwilliger and the other partners involved are billing the Panama Canal Authority between $1,050 and $1,500 an hour. The firm said it has spent $3.8 million in connection with its work, including more than $780,000 on "professional fees relating to non-registerable legal services" from U.S. law firm Mayer Brown. A Mayer Brown spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Trump in a December 22 speech accused Panama of charging excessive rates and said he would not let the canal fall into the "wrong hands," warning of potential Chinese influence on the passage. The canal, which accounts for 2.5% of global seaborne trade, returned to full Panamanian control in 1999 after the United States largely built it and administered the surrounding territory for decades. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday warned Panama's President Jose Raul Mulino that Washington will "take measures necessary" if Panama does not immediately try to end what Trump sees as China's influence and control over the Panama Canal. Mulino on Thursday accused the United States of spreading "lies and falsehoods" after the U.S. State Department claimed U.S. government vessels would be able to travel the Panama Canal without paying. -- Plaintiffs' lawyers behind a pending $2.8 billion class action antitrust settlement with Blue Cross Blue Shield have asked for more than $754 million in legal fees and expenses for their work on the 13-year-old case. The lawyers, led by the Whatley Kallas law firm, are seeking, opens new tab $657.1 million in fees, and at least $97 million in expenses. Whatley Kallas said its request for 23.47% of the settlement amount is in line with fees awarded to a different group of lawyers, led by Boies Schiller Flexner and Hausfeld LLP, for their work on a similar settlement from Blue Cross worth $2.7 billion in 2020. -- Lawyers who brought antitrust claims against meat-packing giant JBS said they are planning to request up to one-third of a pending $83.5 million settlement as their legal fee. Lawyers at Scott + Scott Attorneys at Law and Cafferty Clobes Meriwether & Sprengel said, opens new tab they have worked tens of thousands of hours on the litigation, which accused JBS of conspiring with other meat-packing companies to artificially inflate prices by curbing supply in the U.S. beef market. JBS said in a statement that the claims were "frivolous and without merit" but that settling was in the best interest of the company. Law and lobbying disclosures show earnings for Pam Bondi, RFK and top firms
