The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case later this week that some are touting as pivotal in the business of sports.

American Needle Inc. v. the NFL, a supposed David vs. Goliath-type case that could help define the NFL's antitrust status, is on the docket for Jan. 13.

It dates back to 2004, when American Needle, an Illinois-based hat maker, brought an antitrust case against NFL, claiming the league was using its monopoly power to muscle it out of its fair share of revenue for caps it made bearing NFL logos. The NFL won the case at the trial and appellate levels, but American Needle appealed all the way to the Supreme Court.

For now, the only way Californians can watch the trial over the constitutionality of the state's ban on same-sex marriage is to take a trip to the federal courthouse on Golden Gate Avenue in San Francisco.

Just an hour before the trial got under way Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court halted for at least two days the judge's plans to allow video of the proceedings to be uploaded on a delayed basis on YouTube.

The 8-1 decision also prevented live simulcasts from being broadcast at the federal appeals court building at Seventh and Mission streets and at courthouses in Seattle, Pasadena, Portland, Ore., and Brooklyn, N.Y.

The court said it wanted until at least Wednesday to consider arguments by backers of Proposition 8, the November 2008 ballot measure outlawing same-sex marriage, that camera coverage could result in threats or even violence against witnesses favoring the measure.

An appellate court tossed a $20 million award against a former jet company that secretly videotaped Michael Jackson and his attorneys during a 2003 flight.

The 2nd District Court of Appeal ruled Monday that the award was excessive and that Jeffrey Borer, former owner of the now-defunct XtraJet\, shouldn't have to pay it to attorneys Mark Geragos and Pat Harris, The Associated Press reported.

The three-judge panel sent the case back to the trial judge who ruled in favor of the attorneys in March.
Geragos, Harris and Jackson sued for invasion of privacy after being secretly videotaped when Jackson surrendered on charges of molestation.

The FCC and Comcast got their day in court Friday afternoon on the net neutrality issue. A three-judge federal appeals court followed a line of questioning that seemed to favor Comcast, but a decision may not come for months.

The issue is whether Comcast violated FCC rules in blocking Bit Torrent traffic and, also, the broader issue of whether the FCC has the authority to restrict Comcast and other carriers supplying broadband. A back story in the complex issue is highlighted by carriers' complaints that consumers' growing usage of broadband is clogging networks.

"This case underscores the importance of the FCC's ongoing rulemaking to preserve the free and open Internet," said FCC chairman Julius Genachowski in a statement. "I remain confident the commission possesses the legal authority it needs and look forward to reviewing the court's decision when it issues."

Comcast attorney Helgi Walker said the FCC's effort to challenge the cable firm was "a policy statement" and, as such, was not enough for the FCC to reprimand Comcast for seeking to control the flow of Internet traffic over its network. She told the judges: "You can free us of this black mark on our record."

If the decision goes against the FCC, it will still have the option of going to Congress to seek new legislation to deal with the net neutrality issue.

The Supreme Court on Monday morning temporarily blocked a federal judge in San Francisco from showing on YouTube proceedings from a trial that will determine whether a ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional.

The court's decision is not the final word; the stay sought by same-sex marriage opponents expires Wednesday. The court said that will permit justices "further consideration." The trial is scheduled to start Monday.

Justice Stephen G. Breyer was the only justice to object.

"I agree with the court that further consideration is warranted, and I am pleased that the stay is time-limited," Breyer wrote. But he said the court's standards for issuing a stay were not met because there is not a likelihood of "irreparable harm" if the proceedings were available on the Internet.

Two bay area couples are asking Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn R. Walker to rule that same-sex marriage is a right embedded in the Constitution and that it was violated last year when California voters passed Proposition 8, a ballot measure confining matrimony to members of the opposite sex.

Microsoft on Friday mounted a last-ditch effort to get a U.S. Federal Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider its ruling in a long-running patent infringement case involving its Word software.
Last month, the court denied Microsoft's appeal of an injunction in the case involving Toronto-based firm i4i, which last year won a $200 million court case against Microsoft pertaining to technology built into Word 2007 and Office 2007 that's used to customize XML code. That figure has since grown to $290 million in interest and fines levied by judge on the grounds of "intentional infringement."

The i4i patent describes a way to manipulate the architecture and content of a document, particularly for data representation and transformation, by removing dependency on document-encoding technology.

After last month's ruling, Microsoft said it would remove the disputed feature from new copies of Word 2007 and Office 2007 and have them ready for sale in time for the court ordered Jan. 11 deadline. Nonetheless, Microsoft has insisted all along that it's not guilty of infringement and is taking one last stab at getting the judge to see things its way.

Tops Friendly Markets said Friday it is buying all 79 stores run by bankrupt rival Penn Traffic Co. for $85 million in cash, a move that would deepen its roots in New York and Pennsylvania and extend its reach into other Northeastern states.

Tops, a 76-store chain based in suburban Buffalo, said its bid has been accepted by Syracuse-based Penn Traffic and recommended to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., for approval. A judge met with lawyers for two hours Friday to discuss the proposed deal, then adjourned the hearing until Monday.

"The court proceeding went as expected, and our goal to see a bid chosen that will save the greatest number of stores and jobs is on track," said Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y.

Along with its cash offer, Tops said it would eliminate about $100 million in unsecured claims against Penn Traffic's estate. That includes a $72 million claim for withdrawal liability from the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, which represents all of Tops' work force and about 85 percent of Penn Traffic's.