Regulations & Compliance

iPhone Manufacturer Faces Labor Complaints

September 12, 2012 10:25 am | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

The company that manufactures Apple's iPhones has responded to an accusation that vocational students are forced to work in its Chinese factories by saying Wednesday its agreement with their schools allows them to leave. China Labor Watch, a Hong Kong group, said this week that Foxconn, which employs some 1.2 million people in China, employed students aged 16 to 18 in its factories.

Price Fixing and Other Horizontal Agreements

September 12, 2012 8:07 am | by Roberta F. Howell, Partner, Foley & Lardner LLP | Articles | Comments

Horizontal price-fixing occurs when two or more competitors conspire to set prices, price levels, or price-related terms for their goods or services. With very limited exceptions, price-fixing is per se illegal, regardless of its reasonableness or actual effect on competition. As a result, price-fixing is serious business.

Pricing Issues And Federal Antitrust Law

September 11, 2012 8:07 am | by Roberta F. Howell, Partner, Foley & Lardner LLP | Articles | Comments

Mention antitrust law to a small business (or even medium business) owner and expect to see eyes glaze over. But antitrust law is an area of law where ignorance is definitely not bliss. Antitrust laws are the “traffic laws for business”. Just like the rules of the road, antitrust law tells business what is lawful competition (“green lights”), what is unlawful competition (“red lights”), and what falls in between (“yellow lights”).

Navy Cited By OSHA For Mishandling Toxic Materials

September 7, 2012 2:17 pm | by Julie Watson, Associated Press | News | Comments

The Navy has been cited for safety violations that exposed hundreds of employees at an aircraft hangar in Coronado to toxic materials such as lead, cadmium and beryllium, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced Thursday.

S. Korean Antitrust Watchdog Probes Samsung

September 7, 2012 10:03 am | by Youkyung Lee, AP Technology Writer | News | Comments

South Korea's antitrust watchdog said Thursday it has launched an investigation into whether Samsung Electronics Co. is abusing its dominant position in the wireless market to disadvantage Apple Inc. The investigation could add a headache for Samsung in its global legal battle with Apple.

China Regrets EU's Antidumping Probe On Solar Panels

September 6, 2012 12:00 pm | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

China expressed regret on Thursday over a European Union decision to launch an antidumping investigation on Chinese-made solar panels which EU manufacturers say are sold below market prices. While expressing China's dissatisfaction with the EU decision, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said the two sides should resolve the issue through talks without taking "protectionist" measures.

Ex-Porsche CFO Rejects Credit Fraud Charges

September 5, 2012 2:06 pm | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

Porsche's ex-finance chief has rejected fraud charges arising from arranging credit to help the German sports car maker's doomed attempt to take over Volkswagen AG in 2009. News agency dapd reported that Holger Haerter told the Stuttgart state court as the trial opened on Wednesday that he was "stunned" by the accusation.

Samsung In Hot Seat Over Abusing Chinese Workers

September 5, 2012 10:29 am | by Youkyung Lee, AP Technology Writer | News | Comments

Fresh off a billion-dollar loss in a patent fight with rival smartphone maker Apple, embattled Samsung Electronics Co. now finds itself accused by a labor rights group of mistreating workers in China and illegally using child labor. The New York based-China Labor Watch said its investigation into workplace conditions at eight factories in China showed some employees were working more than 100 hours per month of overtime.

MN Boat Plant Settles Sex Discrimination Claim

September 5, 2012 10:25 am | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

Brunswick Corp. and Lund Boat Co. have agreed to pay $295,000 to settle a sex discrimination claim at a Lund boat plant in Minnesota. The agency had alleged Lund and its Lake Forest, Ill.-based parent company, Brunswick, systematically discriminated against more than 200 women who applied for entry-level jobs at the New York Mills plant.

Getting On Track With Traceability

September 5, 2012 8:06 am | Articles | Comments

With a growing focus on food safety, it is increasingly important for food manufacturers to be able to trace products effectively in the event of a recall. RedPrairie recently released a new survey uncovering traceability and recall trends and suggesting actions processors can take to stay on top of regulatory requirements.

Apple Wants More Samsung Products Added To Suit

September 4, 2012 2:08 pm | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

Fresh off its court victory over Samsung Electronics Co., iPhone maker Apple Inc. is asking a federal court to add four more of its rival's products to the list of patent-infringing products. Apple filed documents in San Jose federal district court on Friday asking a judge to end Samsung's release of "copycat products," and urged the court to pull Samsung products released after its lawsuit was filed in April.

Samsung To Audit All Of Its Suppliers In China

September 4, 2012 10:23 am | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

Samsung said it plans to examine all of its Chinese suppliers for possible violations of labor policies. Samsung Electronics Co. said it will carry out audits of 105 Chinese companies that are its exclusive suppliers this month. The move comes after Samsung's audit of a supplier, HEG Electronics, in response to an allegation it used child labor.

DuPont Wins Injunction In Trade-Secrets Case

August 31, 2012 9:52 am | by Randall Chase, AP Business Writer | News | Comments

A federal judge in Virginia has issued an injunction against a South Korean company that lost a trade-secrets battle with the DuPont Co. At issue are high-strength synthetic fibers used in products such as Kevlar body armor. The judge on Thursday barred Kolon Industries from producing any para-aramid fibers for 20 years. He also issued a permanent injunction against Kolon's use of DuPont trade secrets.

EPA Asks For More Time To Study Taconite Plan

August 30, 2012 2:07 pm | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

Officials from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency heard a plea Wednesday for more time to study a federal plan for reducing emissions from taconite plants that create haze over Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Voyageurs National Park.

Motorola Trade Secrets Thief Gets 4-Year Term

August 29, 2012 2:10 pm | by Jason Keyser, Associated Press | News | Comments

A Chinese-born American convicted of stealing trade secrets from Motorola was sentenced Wednesday to 4 years in prison in a case that prosecutors hoped would send a message to those who might be tempted to siphon vital information from U.S. companies.

Apple's Victory Means Soul-Searching For Samsung

August 29, 2012 10:05 am | by Youkyung Lee, AP Technology Writer | News | Comments

A U.S. jury's $1 billion verdict against Samsung for what rival Apple claimed was the illegal copying of its iPhone and iPad designs signals a turning point for the South Korean electronics giant known for its prowess in adapting the innovations of others and nimbly executing production.

U.S. Expects Another Guilty Plea In Car-Parts Probe

August 28, 2012 2:34 pm | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

The federal government says a Japanese company has agreed to plead guilty in Detroit and pay a $1 million fine in a price-fixing investigation involving auto parts. The Justice Department said Tuesday that Nippon Seiki Co. Ltd. of Nagoka, Japan, conspired with other companies to fix prices of instrument panel clusters over a two-year period.

Court: Age Discrimination Unproven In Boeing Sale

August 28, 2012 10:25 am | by Roxana Hegeman, Associated Press | News | Comments

A federal appeals court ruled Monday that former employees of The Boeing Co. failed to demonstrate a pattern of age discrimination in the wake of the 2005 sale of its commercial aircraft business in Kansas and Oklahoma. Ninety former Boeing workers sued in December 2005 claiming they lost their jobs because of their age when the Chicago-based aerospace manufacturer sold operations.

Apple Lists 8 Samsung Products It Wants Banned

August 28, 2012 10:21 am | by Paul Elias, Associated Press | News | Comments

Apple on gave a federal judge a list of eight Samsung products it wants pulled from shelves and banned from the U.S. market, including popular Galaxy model smartphones. U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh asked for the list after a jury in San Jose last week slammed Samsung with a $1.05B verdict, finding that the South Korean technology giant had "willfully" copied Apple's iPhone and iPad in creating and marketing the products.

Lights Out: Are You Ready For Lighting Legislation?

August 28, 2012 8:09 am | Articles | Comments

The next phase of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) energy-efficiency lighting legislation went into effect on July 14, 2012 and requires all impacted lighting to be manufactured to be more energy-efficient. Most recently, the DOE has granted a deadline extension for some lighting categories until July 14, 2014, leaving some businesses uncertain on how to best move forward in adopting energy efficient lighting.

OSHA Cites Tyson For Nebraska Worker's Death

August 27, 2012 2:02 pm | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

Regulators have proposed more than $104,000 in penalties for Tyson Foods because of safety violations the regulators say were found at a Nebraska beef plant where a worker was fatally injured. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration says Springdale, Ark.-based Tyson was cited for seven violations at its Dakota City plant.

Samsung Ordered To Pay Apple $1.05B In Patent Case

August 27, 2012 10:07 am | by Paul Elias, Associated Press | News | Comments

After a year of scorched-earth litigation, a jury decided Friday that Samsung ripped off the innovative technology used by Apple to create its revolutionary iPhone and iPad. The jury ordered Samsung to pay Apple $1.05 billion in the latest skirmish of a global legal battle between the two tech giants. An appeal is expected.

Court Rules Samsung Didn't Copy iPhone

August 24, 2012 10:09 am | by Youkyung Lee, AP Technology Writer | News | Comments

South Korea's Samsung won a home court ruling in its global smartphone battle against Apple on Friday when judges in Seoul said the company didn't copy the look and feel of the U.S. company's iPhone, and that Apple infringed on Samsung's wireless technology.

2 SC Boeing Employees Appeal Case Against Union

August 22, 2012 1:53 pm | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

Two employees at South Carolina's Boeing Co. plant have appealed their complaint against the International Association of Machinists. The National Right to Work Foundation said Tuesday that Dennis Murray and Cynthia Ramaker had filed an appeal with the National Labor Relations Board.

Epic Patent Trial Over iPhone Technology Wraps Up

August 21, 2012 2:19 pm | by Paul Elias, Associated Press | News | Comments

After three weeks of listening to technology experts, patent professionals and company executives debate the complicated legal claims of Apple Corp. and Samsung Electronics Co., a jury of nine men and women are set to decide one of the biggest technology disputes in history.