Robert A Schwinger

July 15, 2019 | New York Law Journal

In his Blockchain Law column, Robert A. Schwinger writes: When parties interact in transactions conducted via blockchain technology, they may find themselves in relationships to one another that the law has not yet had the opportunity to clearly define. Courts, commentators, governmental officials, litigants and legislatures are now exploring which participants in various kinds of blockchain-based activities might be subject to liabilities for injuries or wrongs allegedly arising from those activities.

By Robert A. Schwinger

12 minute read

May 24, 2019 | New York Law Journal

In his Blockchain Law column, Robert A. Schwinger addresses the question of where crypto fits in among all the terms the law uses to describe concepts that relate, however closely or loosely, to money. As cryptocurrency use becomes increasingly common in commercial activity, courts have found themselves having to grapple with how to characterize this new form of asset.

By Robert A. Schwinger

13 minute read

March 18, 2019 | New York Law Journal

In his Blockchain Law column, Robert Schwinger explains how, when it comes to virtual currencies, digital tokens and other blockchain assets, our legal and political systems are still in the earliest stages of grappling with which regulations and structures would be best suited for encouraging financial technology innovation on the one hand, while providing certainty and serving the public interest on the other.

By Robert A. Schwinger

10 minute read

January 18, 2019 | New York Law Journal

In his Blockchain Law column, Robert A. Schwinger discusses a wave of new enforcement actions brought by the SEC targeting blockchain-based digital token ventures under a variety of provisions in the securities laws. These proceedings show the breadth of the approaches the SEC is taking toward enforcement in this area, perhaps most notably in one case where it appears a “smart contract” blockchain application may have proved to be a bit too smart for its own good.

By Robert A. Schwinger

10 minute read

November 20, 2018 | New York Law Journal

In his Blockchain Law column, Robert A. Schwinger writes: As commercial activity increasingly intertwines with applications of blockchain technology with participants around the world, courts have had to grapple with the personal jurisdiction implications of such arrangements. Will participants in these blockchain applications based outside the United States find themselves subject to U.S. jurisdiction when disputes arise, based on how they have conducted their activities?

By Robert A. Schwinger

9 minute read

September 26, 2011 | National Law Journal

No good purpose is served by construing ATS so that it ends up governing which business structures are used to conduct foreign operations.

By Robert A. Schwinger and Thomas E. Butler

7 minute read

August 08, 2007 | National Law Journal

Two doctrines from the early days of antitrust -- the 1911 per se prohibition against minimum resale price maintenance and the 1922 exemption of professional baseball from antitrust laws -- have been the subject of fierce analytic criticism for many years. Chadbourne & Parke partner Robert Schwinger ponders whether the Supreme Court's recent Leegin decision, which overturned the per se rule, has swept away the last remaining shred of support for retaining professional baseball's antitrust exemption.

By Robert A. Schwinger

11 minute read

July 27, 2010 | New York Law Journal

Robert A. Schwinger, a partner at Chadbourne & Parke, writes that increased numbers of bankruptcies and securities debacles in recent years, where the primary wrongdoers lack the resources to remedy all those who claimed to be injured, have led to increased efforts to hold more secondary parties - such as accountants, bankers and lawyers - responsible.

By Robert A. Schwinger

11 minute read

August 18, 2008 | New York Law Journal

Robert A. Schwinger, a partner at Chadbourne & Parke, writes that hopes that the Supreme Court might rein in a potentially expansive use of mail- and wire-fraud-based civil RICO claims by imposing strict reliance requirements were dashed by the Court's June 9 ruling in Bridge v. Phoenix Bond & Indemnity Co. As in earlier cases, the Court admonished that if its interpretation of the statutory text "leads to the undue proliferation of RICO suits, the correction must lie with Congress," because "[i]t is not for the judiciary to eliminate the private action in situations where Congress has provided it."

By Robert A. Schwinger

11 minute read

August 08, 2007 | Law.com

Two doctrines from the early days of antitrust -- the 1911 per se prohibition against minimum resale price maintenance and the 1922 exemption of professional baseball from antitrust laws -- have been the subject of fierce analytic criticism for many years. Chadbourne & Parke partner Robert Schwinger ponders whether the Supreme Court's recent Leegin decision, which overturned the per se rule, has swept away the last remaining shred of support for retaining professional baseball's antitrust exemption.

By Robert A. Schwinger

11 minute read