Let’s take a look at this week in legal news.
Obama v Congress, TBD
The most significant legal news of the week seems to be President Obama’s nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to replace Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Now the confirmation standoff begins between the Democratic president and the resistant Republican legislators.
FBI v Apple, postponed
After weeks of deadlock, the FBI disclosed that they may have a way to unlock the phone of the San Bernadino shooter via a third-party, potentially ending the legal standoff with Apple. Thus far, Apple has resisted breaking their own encryption to aid in the federal investigation. Just last week, the FBI threatened to seize the source code if Apple did not comply. The answer to whether the federal government can compel a technology company to compromise the security of their clients may have to wait for a future case.
Hulk Hogan lays the smackdown on Gawker
Apologies in advance for saying four words you hoped to never hear together – Hulk Hogan sex tape. A jury awarded the former pro-wrestler $140 million in his lawsuit against the Gawker website for publishing his sex tape in October 2012. Fingers crossed for an additional payout to those who had to actually watch the tape.
Future unemployed law school grads put their skills to work
Unemployed law school graduates are putting their hard-earned J.D.s to work – legal song parodies.
Klingon©
Klingon is copyrighted – who knew?! Klingon and pointy Vulcan ears are at the heart of a lawsuit between Paramount and a fan-funded Star Trek film. In a very roundabout way, Google and Oracle had this dispute first. Know Klingon / want to know more? Read on. Or, as a Klingon might say – nuq loS?