California FCA Strengthened to Parallel the Federal Act
Client Alert | less than 1 min read | 10.23.12
On September 27, Governor Brown signed into law amendments to the California False Claims Act predominantly designed to strengthen the CFCA and conform it to the federal FCA. The new law, which takes effect on January 1, 2013, increases incentives to bring lawsuits against state and local contractors by broadening anti-retaliation provisions, raising the amount of civil penalties recoverable, facilitating whistleblower suits, and extending liability for retention of an overpayment.
Insights
Client Alert | 2 min read | 11.14.25
Claim construction is a key stage of most patent litigations, where the court must decide the meaning of any disputed terms in the patent claims. Generally, claim terms are given their plain and ordinary meaning except under two circumstances: (1) when the patentee acts as its own lexicographer and sets out a definition for the term; and (2) when the patentee disavows the full scope of the term either in the specification or during prosecution. Thorner v. Sony Comput. Ent. Am. LLC, 669 F.3d 1362, 1365 (Fed. Cir. 2012). The Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Aortic Innovations LLC v. Edwards Lifesciences Corp. highlights that patentees can act as their own lexicographers through consistent, interchangeable usage of terms across the specification, effectively defining terms by implication.
Client Alert | 6 min read | 11.14.25
Microplastics Update: Regulatory and Litigation Developments in 2025
Client Alert | 6 min read | 11.13.25
