Legal

When it comes to major technology project failures, the problems often begin in the project's initial stages, according to attorney Erik Phelps. That means negotiating detailed, iron-clad contracts that serve the interests of both technology adopter and vendor. These deals are not rocket science, but...

Final decisions on two stem cell patents by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office reinforce the patentability of University of Wisconsin-Madison professor Jamie Thomson's human embryonic stem cell discoveries. The patent office rulings mark the second time in two weeks that a patent examiner has...

The expensive task of e-discovery in litigation just got more prohibitive thanks to the recent ruling of a U.S. Magistrate Judge on electronic keyword searches. In this is first installment of a new legal column called Digital Lex, attorney Mark Foley looks at the ramifications...

The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, the licensing arm of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Intel Corp. in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin. The lawsuit claims that Intel's widely used Core 2 Duo processor...

Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services Secretary Kevin Hayden has told an Assembly committee that his department is working with Electronic Data Systems to change the practice of using Social Security numbers as personal identifiers. The decision follows the release of such private information...

The search for a higher quality HPV testing solution continues to be the focus of a patent infringement suit involving Madison's Third Wave Technologies and Digene Corp. Third Wave has lost the latest round of legal outcomes, but still claims an advantage in the wider...

The incentive stock option, commonly called an “ISO,” may carry a litany of requirements, and the dreaded ATM tax can rear its ugly head, but legal columnist Sverre Roang believes this option can be very beneficial for employees of early-stage and technology companies. In this...

As expected, Gov. Jim Doyle has signed into law Assembly Bill 207, better known as the cable competition bill. The new law creates a statewide video service franchise process through the Department of Financial Institutions, replacing the current process where municipalities grant cable franchises in...