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Welcome to the MoFo Tech Blog

MoFo Tech brings together legal insights and in-depth analyses on trends and complex issues shaping the global technology industry, covering fields such as blockchain and distributed ledger, cloud and SaaS technologies, driverless cars, drones, FinTech, computer hardware and software, the IoT, semiconductors, and telecommunications.

April 04, 2017 - Privacy + Data Security
Biometric Information as Personal Information In A Brave New World of Regulatory Compliance
By: Marian A. Waldmann Agarwal
As computing power and technology have improved, a new way to identify individuals by their innate physical, or “biometric,” information has entered the market and appears on the cusp of becoming more widely adopted. A core question is: what biometric information needs to be
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April 02, 2017 - Intellectual Property, Financings
The Most Common Intellectual Property Mistakes of Startups
By: Timothy J. Harris
According to Tim Harris, a partner in Morrison & Foerster’s Emerging Companies + Venture Capital Group, many startups open themselves up to intellectual property disputes by failing to: Secure title to the IP upon which their startups are based; Obtain valid invention assignment agreements
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March 24, 2017 - Privacy + Data Security
Can Border Agents Search Your Phone?
By: Miriam H. Wugmeister and J. Alexander Lawrence
There have been numerous reports from individuals entering the U.S. of border agents searching their phones and laptop computers. Many of those individuals are U.S. citizens. Although these events have been in the news recently and appear to be on the rise, this practice
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March 23, 2017 - Privacy + Data Security
New York Cybersecurity Regulations: What Do They Mean, and When Do They Mean It By?
By: Nathan D. Taylor
The New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) has released guidance for covered financial institutions regarding its cybersecurity rule (the “Cybersecurity Rule” or “Rule”) that took effect on March 1, 2017. While the guidance appears intended to assist covered financial institutions time approaches
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March 20, 2017 - Litigation, Fintech
Court Finds CFPB Case Against Payment Processor Lacking
A federal district court in North Dakota on March 17, 2017, dismissed a complaint against the payment processing company Intercept Corporation and its senior executives, holding that the evidence provided by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) did not show any signs of Intercept’s
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March 20, 2017 - Blockchain
Delaware Paves the Way for the Use of Blockchain Technology
By: Spencer D. Klein
In March 2017, the Corporate Counsel of the Corporation Law Section of the Delaware State Bar Association introduced a 43-page draft bill that would amend the Delaware General Corporation Law (DGCL) to, among other things, facilitate Delaware corporations’ use of blockchain technology to keep
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March 11, 2017 - Litigation
House Passes Bill Proposing Sweeping Changes to Class Action Litigation
By: Claudia M. Vetesi
The House of Representatives has passed legislation – called The Fairness in Class Action Litigation Act of 2017 (the “Act” or “H.R. 985”) to fundamentally change all stages of class action litigation. For example, the provisions require stricter “typicality” requirements for class members, the
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March 10, 2017 - Mergers + Acquisitions
New Rules on Merger Control, Market Dominance, Damages Claims, and Cartel Fines
By: Andreas Grünwald, Jens Hackl and Julia Schwalm
On March 9, 2017, the German Federal Parliament passed the ninth amendment to the Act against Restraints of Competition (ARC) ( Gesetz gegen Wettbewerbsbeschränkungen ). The amendment is expected to come into force in Q2/2017 and will substantially change German competition law. The reform
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March 07, 2017 - Litigation
The Madden Saga Continues: On Remand, Madden Survives Summary Judgment and District Court Certifies Class
Saliha Madden (“Madden”) claims that Midland Funding LLC (“Midland”) illegally charged Madden and other similarly situated New York debtors a usurious rate of interest on certain defaulted credit card obligations that Midland had purchased from a national bank. After a previous summary judgement for
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March 06, 2017 - Regulatory, Fintech
UK Regulations: Urgent Action Required from Loan-Based Crowdfunding Platforms
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a “Dear CEO” letter on February 28, 2017 requiring urgent action from firms operating loan-based crowdfunding platforms that facilitate loans to lending businesses. UK-based crowdfunding platforms and some of their borrowers that fail to act may be
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