Stephen M Kramarsky

March 30, 2009 | Legaltech News

The "hot news" tort arises out of the misappropriation and use for commercial gain of facts gathered by a competitor. But when the courts apply it, especially in new media contexts such as the Internet, they must be particularly careful of any possible unintended consequences.

By Stephen M. Kramarsky

13 minute read

January 15, 2004 | Law.com

What happens when a law designed to protect copyrighted materials from piracy is used to control aftermarket competition? Two courts and the Copyright Office have recently addressed this issue, each reaching a different conclusion. The issue is important, potentially affecting every industry that has an aftermarket -- from toner cartridges to auto parts. The wrong answer could seriously harm competition in these markets.

By Stephen M. Kramarsky

11 minute read

July 15, 2008 | Law.com

One way for employers to avoid keeping their documents out of the hands of competitors is to assert statutory claims arising from the unauthorized access to the computer system. Although there is a federal law providing civil penalties and injunctive relief for unauthorized computer access there is not a specific analogous New York state statute. There is, however, an analogous New Jersey statute, and recently a New York court considered its extraterritorial application in New York cases.

By Stephen M. Kramarsky

13 minute read

September 28, 2004 | New York Law Journal

Stephen M. Kramarsky, a member of Dewey Pegno & Kramarsky, writes that attempts by companies to use the Digital Millennium Copyright Act to squash aftermarket competition has developed into a disturbing trend. Two federal district courts have looked at the issue and come to opposing conclusions. The Copyright Office has taken a third position, and last month the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit weighed in ...

By Stephen M. Kramarsky

11 minute read

July 21, 2011 | Corporate Counsel

Over the past 18 months, the federal courts in New York have devoted more than 175 pages of opinions to the pursuit of what the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals poetically called a "ghostly presence" that haunts intellectual property law "some seventy-five years after its death."

By Stephen M. Kramarsky

11 minute read

January 19, 2011 | Legaltech News

A case involving a photographer who posted images of the Haiti earthquake to Twitter service Twitpic only to find others claiming rights to the images opens up IP issues. How far is an image allowed to go once posted? It can be retweeted, but what rights has the copyright owner retained?

By Stephen M. Kramarsky

12 minute read

July 27, 2010 | New York Law Journal

Stephen M. Kramarsky, a member of Dewey Pegno & Kramarsky, writes that courts are often called on to answer the question of "where" an activity takes place when it occurs over the Internet. Different courts across the country and even within New York have come up with entirely different answers to this critical question, and now the Second Circuit has asked the state Court of Appeals to answer it once and for all.

By Stephen M. Kramarsky

11 minute read

September 16, 2008 | New York Law Journal

Stephen M. Kramarsky, a member of Dewey Pegno & Kramarsky, writes that the Southern District's recent reluctance to extend the forfeiture exception beyond the real estate context is understandable and defensible. However, a strong argument can be made that if there is to be an equitable exception for forfeiture in the real estate context, there is no reason why it should not apply to software development because the costs structure is essentially the same.

By Stephen M. Kramarsky

12 minute read

July 29, 2010 | Law.com

Cases alleging unauthorized file sharing over the internet add complexity to analyzing personal jurisdiction, says attorney Stephen M. Kramarsky. The technology used to distribute content efficiently makes it difficult to determine the location of an action for copyright infringement.

By Stephen M. Kramarsky

11 minute read

March 18, 2008 | New York Law Journal

Stephen M. Kramarsky, a member of Dewey Pegno & Kramarsky, writes that the Second Circuit will soon address directly whether the sale of trademarked company names as advertising keywords constitutes trademark infringement. While every decision from a court within the Second Circuit has held that it is not infringement, that holding is directly contrary to the decisions of essentially every other federal court on virtually identical facts.

By Stephen M. Kramarsky

10 minute read