Court reviews whether a partnership agreement was breached and the trial court's distribution of partnership profits.

LISA BRADFORD v. ABE STEPHENS (Tenn. Ct. App. September 28, 2011)

The appellant, the former business partner of the appellee, appeals the trial court's determination that the appellee did not breach their partnership agreement, as well as the trial court's distribution of partnership profits. Appellant also appeals the trial court's decision not to grant a jury trial.

We affirm the trial court's decision not to grant a jury trial as well as its determination that the appellee did not breach the partnership agreement. We adjust the amount of the court's awards to account for $5,000 of an $8,000 sale which the appellee kept rather than depositing it into the partnership account.

Opinion may be found at:
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/bradfordl_092811.pdf

Patent reform act signed into law

President Obama has signed H.R. 1249, the "Leahy-Smith America Invents Act," passed by the Senate the week before. The act presents the most comprehensive overhaul of the Patent Statute (35 U.S.C.) since it was enacted in 1952, including changing our system of awarding patents from those who invent first to those who file their application first.

Law.com has the full story.

Attorney General reviews whether the Retailers' Sales Tax imposes an unconstitutional tax on imports and exports

In this opinion, the Attorney General reviews the Retailers' Sales Tax Act in order to determine whether it violates the Import-Export Clause of the U.S. Constitution. After analyzing Commerce Clause jurisprudence, he determines that the "imposition of Tennessee;s sales and use taxes on out-of-state businesses with respect to items delivered or used in Tennessee is thus constitutionally permissible, provided that “substantial nexus” is established."

He concludes that the Retailers' Sales Tax Act imposes a privilege tax on the retail sale and use of tangible personal property in Tennessee, but that it does not impose a tax on imports from and exports to foreign countries in violation of the United States Constitution.

Read the full opinion here:
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/AG/2011/ag_11_67.pdf

Major patent overhaul passes U.S. Senate

The U.S. Senate passed the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act on Thursday, the first significant change in patent law since 1952. The legislation is designed to spur innovation and provide a boost to the job market. The law would change the nation's U.S. patent system from a first-to-invent system to a first-to-file system and would help provide adequate funding to the overwhelmed patent office by allowing it to set and keep its own fees. The final bill is controversial because it does not prohibit fee diversion -- the practice of using excess U.S. Patent and Trademark Office revenue for other government programs.

Read the full story on CNN.com

Patent office hits 8 million mark

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued patent number 8 million on Tuesday, August 16. It went to Second Sight Medical Products for an invention the company says enhances visual perception for a certain kind of blindness. The first patent, for a cog mechanism in locomotives, was issued in 1836 to Sen. John Ruggles, who was known as the father of the U.S. Patent office.

Read the full story on NPR's website.