Practice Tools

PTO Allows Online Filing

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has announced that it will now receive electronic applications for certain biotechnology patent filings.

The new Electronic Filing System was launched on Sept. 29, with the filing of a gene sequence listing for a pending biotechnology application, via the Internet, says the government.

"Our customers are filing applications for some of the world's most sophisticated advertising and technology, and they expect state-of-the-art service from the agency," says Q. Todd Dickinson, acting commissioner of patents and trademarks.

The PTO has permitted electronic filing and tracking for trademark customers for about a year, Dickinson notes. However, unlike trademark applications, patent applications are confidential, which present a challenge for the PTO, he says.

The agency is using ePAVE, a computer application developed by the PTO, which utilizes Public Key Infrastructure to digitally sign and encrypt information, Dickinson reports.

The PTO expects to permit electronic filing of most patent applications next year, he says.

For more information ENTER no. 200 after Clicking Here.

CaseWizard for Patents

DecisionQuest Inc., headquartered in Los Angeles, has announced the availability of CaseWizard for Patents, a new software tool created to help lawyers evaluate patent cases. The program is used to predict the strength of a case, and how it might fare before a jury, says the trial consulting/ communications company.

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SECURITIES

Books on Demand

Compliance International Inc., headquartered in Fairfield, N.J., has announced its new online service, books on demand.

The daily news service for the financial services industry provides notices from federal regulators, including the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Internal Revenue Service, says CII.

It also offers notices from major stock exchanges, CII reports.

Subscribers can choose areas of interest, and reports are delivered via e-mail each morning, with updates during the day when warranted, it says.

For more information ENTER no. 202 after Clicking Here.

CRIMINAL LAW

U.S. Attorneys' Manual

LEXIS-NEXIS has released its online U.S. Attorneys' Manual, a collection of policies for U.S. Attorneys and department prosecutors. It provides internal Department of Justice policies and guidelines, reports the Dayton, Ohio-based company.

For more information ENTER no. 203 after Clicking Here.

Enforcement Reporter

LEXIS-NEXIS has inaugurated The International Enforcement Law Reporter, an online monthly newsletter that tracks and summarizes key developments in international criminal law and policy. Topics include money laundering; drug trafficking; tax; extradition; asset forfeiture; human rights; cybercrime; intellectual property; and more.

For more information ENTER no. 204 after Clicking Here.

INTERNET

Law & Regulation

Pike & Fischer, Inc., a subsidiary of The Bureau of National Affairs Inc., has announced the inauguration of Internet Law & Regulation, a reference service that offers statutes, regulations and decisions needed for doing business on the Internet.

The collection includes full text decisions from federal, state, local and non-U.S. courts and agencies, says P&F, based in Silver Spring, Md. Topics include Internet commerce, privacy, jurisdiction, securities, encryption/cryptography, intellectual property, freedom of speech, and more, it says.

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NEW MEDIA

New Media Lawyer

Charles Christian has announced the inauguration of New Media Lawyer, a U.K.-based e-mail newsletter dedicated to the new media legal market.

The new publication focuses not just on law, but the industry surrounding it, including lawyers, litigation, deals and online legal services, says Christian, who serves as the publication's editor and publisher.

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LITIGATION

Class Actions Help

AOP Solutions and Rudolph, Palitz LLC has announced that its services are available to help with settlement administration of large class action suits.

AOP Solutions, headquartered in Buffalo, N.Y., is a private firm specializing in the application of document management and imaging technology with class action litigation and law firm business processes, it says.

Rudoph, Palitz LLC is an accounting firm offering financial and business consulting, with more than 25 years experience in class action litigation cases, it reports.

For more information ENTER no. 207 after Clicking Here.

Automotive Recall

LEXIS-NEXIS has announced a new online Automotive Recall Database, which offers information about safety defects recognized by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration with the issuance of a recall.

The database includes information about the auto make, model, model year, manufacturer, NHTSA campaign number and recall details, says the company.

For more information ENTER no. 208 after Clicking Here.

CORPORATE

Representation Software

BlumbergExcelsior of New York has announced the release of Corporate Representation Service Software. The application includes the Client Manager database program, enabling legal professionals to prepare annual updates for corporations and other entities, it notes.

Features include audit questionnaires for the annual legal check-up; minutes of annual meetings; cover letters; reminders; corporate summary sheet; and bill for services.

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TAX

Research NetWork

CCH Inc., of Riverwoods, Ill., has upgraded its CCH Internet Tax Research NetWork. Improvements include faster user login, greater customization, more powerful news options, and the ability to search multiple libraries simultaneously, reports the company. Login Express allows users to double-click directly to the NetWork, using a desktop icon.

CCH also introduced CCH TaxEssentials, an Internet-based service that offers analysis and explanation of federal tax topics, special coverage of tax planning, a collection of primary source materials, practice tools, as well as weekly news and links to other resources.

For more information ENTER no. 210 after Clicking Here.

Fixed Assets

BNA Software, of Washington, D.C., has upgraded its BNA Fixed Assets Next Dimension software and the more powerful Enterprise Edition. The upgrades now permit importing from Best's "FAS Series," as well as from any program that can produce a CSV (comma separated values) file.

The software also allows importing from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' AICPA Depreciation program, and other software, reports BNA.

A new "Comprehensive Report" combines depreciation expense, depreciation basis and net book value reports into a single report, and the Enterprise Edition can handle company consolidations and like-kind exchanges, it says.

For more information ENTER no. 211 after Clicking Here.

CITATION SERVICE

WestCiteLink 2.1

West Group, of Eagan, Minn. says its new WestCiteLink 2.1 upgrade soups up its ability to link legal citations between Web and word-processed documents with the full text of cases on Westlaw.

The link service finds cites in Microsoft Word and Corel WordPerfect documents, as well as Web pages viewed in Microsoft's Internet Explorer, and HTML files. It also creates hyperlinks to the full text documents on the Internet, via westlaw.com, or WestDoc, it says.

WestCiteLink 2.1 allows legal professionals to enhance Web/Intranet sites by creating hypertext links for all legal citations found in the HTML files, and uses a single command to process multiple HTML files via Internet Explorer.

WestCiteLink 2.1 also enables researchers to identify citations in footnotes and endnotes, and to create internal hyperlinks from cases listed in the Table of Authors to references in the word processed document, says West.

For more information ENTER no. 212 after Clicking Here.