On 5 April, Attorney Scott Raymond Maucere, was admitted on motion to practice before the Court of International Trade and the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.  Mr. Maucere, managing member of southeast boutique law firm Maucere Law Group LLC, was sworn in before the two courts in special session at the historic US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit complex, which includes the landmark Dolly Madison House on Lafayette Square.

The Court of International Trade hears cases involving customs disputes, tariffs and duties, and other trade litigation.  The CIT sits in New York City.  The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit also has a very limited jurisdiction, and hears appeals from the CIT, as well as appeals on trademark  and other issues.  The CAFC sits in Washington, DC.

Both courts have jurisdiction related to Mr. Maucere’s international practice.  Says Maucere: “Admission to these courts allows me to engage in international trade litigation, which expands the level of services that I can provide my clients without having to go to Chicago or New York.  There’s not many firms in the region that can offer that.”

Information regarding the CIT and the CAFC can be found at http://www.cit.uscourts.gov/ and http://www.cafc.uscourts.gov/.

To find out how Mr. Maucere can help you with your international trade matters, please contact him at srm@maucerelawgroup.com or at +1 423.855.1755.

Even assuming that her data and analysis is accurate, bear in mind that her arguments only apply to the averages.  Wage discrimination can and does still occur in some situations, against either gender.  Remember also that the alleged wage gap, true or not, is perceived by many, and a smart employer will want to ensure that the perceptions of differences are avoided just as well as the employer avoids actual differences.

Although a review of this sort of complex and controversial legislation would normally take many months, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, in Atlanta, Georgia, has agreed to fast-track it to hearings on June 8, 2011.  The court will determine not only whether the individual mandate is constitutional, but also whether the rest of the law can be enforced without it. 

Judge Vinson is not the only judge to make a ruling on the Health care Reform law.  Judges in Virginia and Michigan have ruled that it is constitutional, and a different judge in Virginia has ruled it unconstitutional on similar grounds as the Florida court.

According to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, the Arlington, Virginia based retailers’ group is running a series of ads intending to call out what it deems to be the basic unfairness of allowing a large retailer like Amazon to sell goods without sales taxes. 

Amazon is able to routinely sell products without regards for state sales tax based on the 1992 U.S. Supreme Court decision Quill Corp. v. North Dakota, which held that a state cannot compel sales taxes on sales from a retailer which doesn’t have a physical presence within the state.  Because Amazon is opening up a distribution center here in the Chattanooga area, it will soon have that physical presence which would allow the state to impose these taxes, should the state choose to impose them.  Tennessee is one of the nine states that have no income taxes, and most of its budget comes from sales taxes.

Amazon.com, who recently announced plans to build a distribution center in Chattanooga, Tennessee, has recently patented a process which would allow gift recipients to “flag” loved ones whose gift choices tend to be less than ideal.  Under this process, the potential recipient would be allowed to automatically exchange the gift, without receiving it first, for a gift certificate, rather than go through the hassle of returning the unwanted trinket. 

Now, don’t think that Amazon developed this process entirely out of good will towards their suffering gift recipients, to allow them to avoid the time and postage associated with returns.  Retailers spend a great deal of time and effort, which translates to money, in restocking returned merchandise.  (Hence the popularity of re-stocking fees at some retailers, despite the frustrations they cause customers.)  With this process, Amazon will benefit because it never has to restock the item, because it will never have truely been purchased in the first place.  One could even argue that the gift-giver benefits, in that he or she will be assured that his or her loved one gets a gift that is wanted, rather than one which must be “dealt with.” 

But not everyone is thrilled about the economic win-win.  Gizmodo calls it “terrible” and throws in a few “Scrooge” references; Anna Post, great granddaughter of etiquette maven Emily Post, states that it “totally misses the spirit of gift-giving.” 

It’s a unique idea, and it should save Amazon some needless expenses.  But sometimes, retailers must understand that what makes economic sense doesn’t always make practical sense to their customers.  It remains to be seen whether this will work in Amazon’s favor.

More information can be found here.

Slate magazine has a facinating article about the use of placebos in medicine as a valid treatment of symptoms.  The use of placebos is prohibited by the American Medical Association, but only if the patient doesn’t consent.  Pediatrician Adrian Sandler, in treating children with ADHD, found away around this by giving half of the normal dose of the standard drug along with the placebo, and advising the patients and their parents that this regimine “had the potential” to control their symptoms. 

He tested the idea in 99 children, randomly assigned to one of three treatments. The first group continued to take their regular dose of medication, another took half their optimal dose, and the third was instructed to take a half dose of their meds plus a placebo pill that was described as a “dose extender.” Before the study began, researchers explained to the parents and the kids, aged 6 to 12, that the dose extender contained no active ingredient. After eight weeks, the symptoms of ADHD had grown more severe in kids who took only a half dose, but they remained stable in the groups that received either the full dose or the half dose plus placebo.

In medicine, it is crucial to have a patient’s informed consent to any treatment.  Here, the doctor got the consent, but the way that he framed it was designed to ilicite a particular response from the patient.  The question remains whether the fact that this treatment appears to work outweighs the potential deception that goes along with it.

Interesting idea for a very necessary product.

http://www.chattanoogachamber.com/newsandvideo/101220_Amazon.asp