Intellectual Property

  • April 17, 2025

    Patent Office Plans Rulemaking For New PTAB Denial Process

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office intends to go through the notice-and-comment rulemaking process for its new procedures allowing its director to decide whether petitions challenging patents at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board should be denied for discretionary reasons, a panel of judges and agency personnel said at a webinar on Thursday.

  • April 17, 2025

    ITC Blocks Chinese Co.'s Plastics Tech Over Patent Dispute

    The U.S. International Trade Commission issued a limited order barring a Chinese company from importing parts used in molding machines that make plastic bottles, following an infringement case from a Canadian rival — though the trade agency split in its decision not to issue a cease-and-desist order targeting imported parts that already made it into the U.S. 

  • April 17, 2025

    Music Rights Orgs. Trade Barbs In Copyright Office Inquiry

    The organizations responsible for getting musical artists their royalty payments sparred with each other in comments to the U.S. Copyright Office, with one legacy organization accusing newer entrants of insufficient transparency, and one of those competitors in turn alleging "anticompetitive practices" by the established players.

  • April 17, 2025

    Program To Speed Up Climate Change Patent Exams Axed

    Federal patent officials have officially pulled the plug on a program that sped up examination of patent applications for inventions that are intended to mitigate climate change, after suspending it earlier this year.

  • April 17, 2025

    Copyright Office Opines On Harper Lee 7th Circ. Appeal

    The U.S. Copyright Office is lending its opinion in a dispute over who has the rights to authorize stage adaptions of Harper Lee's iconic book "To Kill A Mockingbird," saying in an amicus brief to the Seventh Circuit that the company that once had the rights for the play cannot prevent others from creating new adaptions after the late author terminated those rights.

  • April 17, 2025

    Hyundai Can Seek Atty Fees On Withdrawn Ad Patents

    A California federal judge on Thursday declared Hyundai the prevailing party in litigation brought against it by StratosAudio Inc. after the Federal Circuit declared StratosAudio's advertising patents invalid, and said the automaker could file a motion seeking attorney fees on two other patents voluntarily withdrawn from the case.

  • April 17, 2025

    AstraZeneca Unit Hit With Antitrust Suit Over Soliris

    Not-for-profit insurance company EmblemHealth Inc. has hit an AstraZeneca unit with a proposed class action claiming the subsidiary defrauded the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to delay generic competition of its blood disorder product Soliris.

  • April 17, 2025

    Stites & Harbison Adds 4th Cantor Colburn IP Atty In Conn.

    A little over six months after Stites & Harbison PLLC launched its new outpost in Connecticut with a three-attorney team from Cantor Colburn LLP, a fourth lawyer has made the jump to join Stites & Harbison's intellectual property and technology service group in Hartford, the firm has said.

  • April 17, 2025

    'Moonshine' Fudge Maker Must Pay Fees For Failed IP Claims

    The maker of "Chocolate Moonshine" fudge may have won a trade secrets case against his ex-wife and her new chocolate company, but he must pay the defendants more than $174,000 in attorney fees and costs for his unsuccessful trademark and copyright infringement claims.

  • April 17, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Won't Revive Network Tech Patent Suit

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday upheld a lower court's finding that Seattle-based technology company F5 did not infringe a patent owned by WSOU Investments LLC covering a network traffic distribution technology.

  • April 17, 2025

    Music Royalties Co. Hipgnosis Revives UK Fight With Manilow

    British music royalties firm Hipgnosis can forge ahead with its unpaid royalties case against singer Barry Manilow in the U.K., after an appellate panel on Thursday overturned a pause imposed because of parallel proceedings in Los Angeles.

  • April 17, 2025

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    The past week in London has seen the producers of West End show "Elf the Musical" face a contract dispute, Korean biotech company ToolGen Inc. bring a fresh patents claim against pharma giant Vertex, and ousted car tycoon Peter Waddell bring a claim against the private equity firm that backed his business. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • April 16, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Won't Touch Meta's PTAB Win Against Xerox

    A Federal Circuit panel on Wednesday quickly and without comment rejected a bid from Xerox Corp. to overturn a Patent Trial and Appeal Board decision in favor of Meta Platforms Inc. that found claims in a message distribution patent are invalid.

  • April 16, 2025

    Pa. Poultry Farm's Slaughter Methods Deemed Trade Secrets

    The Pennsylvania Superior Court has ruled that an animal rights group cannot force a Lebanon County poultry farm to disclose its chicken slaughtering practices, with the court ruling that the materials sought were confidential trade secrets.

  • April 16, 2025

    Ye Says DJ Khalil Is Fishing For Profits In 'Donda' IP Lawsuit

    The artist formerly known as Kanye West denied derailing discovery in a lawsuit alleging he stole music from DJ Khalil and three other artists for two tracks on his blockbuster "Donda" album, telling a California federal judge Tuesday that the $50,000 sanctions bid is just a "profit-driven fishing expedition."

  • April 16, 2025

    Texas Ranch Neighbor Agrees Not To Use 'Mesa Vista' Name

    The owner of a property neighboring the late T. Boone Pickens' luxurious Mesa Vista Ranch hunting estate in the Texas Panhandle has agreed to stop using the name after being sued by the ranch's new owner.

  • April 16, 2025

    AlmondNet Sues Amazon Again After $136M Ad IP Victory

    AlmondNet Inc. is aiming to expand on the $136 million it already won against Amazon for patent infringement with a new suit in Texas federal court accusing the technology giant of infringing another patent tied to directing television advertisements.

  • April 16, 2025

    AT&T Gets $450M 'Twinning' Patent Suit Tossed Again

    A New York federal judge has held that it is only fitting that she rule twice on a motion to dismiss a $450 million patent lawsuit against AT&T over so-called twinning phone technology, deciding yet again that the patent is not inventive enough to be worth anything.

  • April 16, 2025

    New USPTO Group To Target Fraud In Patent Applications

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced new efforts Wednesday to combat fraudulent patent application activity, such as false signatures on filings and attempts to claim undeserved fee discounts, saying the moves will protect the integrity of the patent system.

  • April 16, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Won't Revive MIT Patent In Electric Vehicle Fight

    The Federal Circuit on Wednesday refused to revive a technology company's patent covering a wireless charging system created by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, backing a Patent Trial and Appeal Board finding that the challenged claims were too obvious to warrant patent protection.

  • April 16, 2025

    9th Circ. Won't Revive Ex-Beach Boy Guitarist's Royalty Fight

    The Ninth Circuit refused to reinstate a former Beach Boys guitarist's suit that sought to revoke his royalty agreements with Universal Music Group since they were based on physical record sales and didn't contemplate the evolution of digital streaming, ruling Wednesday the contracts only paid for physical record sale royalties.

  • April 16, 2025

    Greek IT Co.'s Suit Over Leaked Patent Info Gets Tossed

    A New York federal judge has tossed a Greece-based technology company's suit alleging Ladas & Parry LLP sent proprietary information to a third party while the company had an attorney-client agreement with the firm.

  • April 16, 2025

    Bradley Arant Lands 12-Member Morris Manning IP Team

    Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP has hired a 12-person intellectual property team from Morris Manning & Martin LLP for its Atlanta office.

  • April 16, 2025

    Sterlington Adds Ex-Loeb & Loeb PTAB Trials Head In Calif.

    International law firm Sterlington PLLC has added a partner who has guided clients in more than 140 proceedings before the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board, strengthening its intellectual property practice with the former chair of Loeb & Loeb's PTAB trials practice, the firm announced Wednesday.

  • April 16, 2025

    Texas Law Firm Hits Rival With Web Search Keywords Suit

    Texas personal injury firm Thomas J. Henry Law has claimed in a lawsuit filed in Texas federal court that a Lone Star State competitor is unlawfully capitalizing on his reputation by misdirecting web searches through the purchase of certain search keywords.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Improv Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Improv keeps me grounded and connected to what matters most, including in my legal career where it has helped me to maintain a balance between being analytical, precise and professional, and creative, authentic and open-minded, says Justine Gottshall at InfoLawGroup.

  • How BigLaw Executive Orders May Affect Smaller Firms

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    Because of the types of cases they take on, solo practitioners, small law firms and public interest attorneys may find themselves more dramatically affected by the collective impact of recent government action involving the legal industry than even the BigLaw firms named in the executive orders, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Opinion

    Lawsuits Shouldn't Be Shadow Assets For Foreign Capital

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    Third-party litigation financing amplifies inefficiencies from litigation and facilitates national exposure to foreign influence in the U.S. justice system, so full disclosure of financing arrangements should be required as a matter of institutional integrity, says Roland Eisenhuth at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

  • How To Accelerate Your Post-Attorney Career Transition

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    Professionals seeking to transition to nonattorney careers may encounter skepticism as nontraditional candidates, but there are opportunities for thought leadership and to leverage speaking and writing to accelerate a post-attorney career transition, say Janet Falk at Falk Communications and Evgeny Efremkin at Toronto Metropolitan University.

  • 5 Key Licensing Considerations For AI Innovations

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    As businesses increasingly integrate artificial intelligence technology into their operations, they must prepare to address complex intellectual property challenges and questions surrounding licensing AI-based innovations, which require careful consideration of ownership, usage rights and regulatory compliance, says Lestin Kenton at Sterne Kessler.

  • A Higher Bar For Expert Witnesses In Drug Patent Litigation

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    With recent decisions emphasizing courts' growing insistence on robust methodologies in pharmaceutical patent disputes, litigators must be strategic in how they utilize expert testimony and adapt to venue-specific expectations, says Jeremy Scholem at WIT Legal.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Be An Indispensable Associate

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    While law school teaches you to research, write and think critically, it often overlooks the professional skills you will need to make yourself an essential team player when transitioning from a summer to full-time associate, say attorneys at Stinson.

  • Protecting Brand Identity In An AI-Driven Marketplace

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    A lawsuit recently filed in New York federal court marks a critical moment in the intersection of artificial intelligence and trademark law, underscoring the importance of — and challenges surrounding — IP owners' ability to protect their brands as AI-generated content continues to grow, says Wendy Heilbut at Heilbut LLC.

  • Series

    Birding Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Observing and documenting birds in their natural habitats fosters patience, sharpens observational skills and provides moments of pure wonder — qualities that foster personal growth and enrich my legal career, says Allison Raley at Arnall Golden.

  • Justices May Clarify What IP Competitors In Litigation Can Say

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    If the U.S. Supreme Court agrees to weigh in on Atturo Tire v. Toyo Tire, it may be able to provide guidance on the murky questions surrounding what companies enforcing their intellectual property against competitors are allowed to say in public, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.

  • How To Ensure Confidentiality When Using AI In Discovery

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    In light of a recent case in the Southern District of New York involving the dissemination of AI-generated content containing confidential information, there are steps that law firms and lawyers should take to protect client and third-party data during litigation, say attorneys at Steptoe.

  • An Update On IPR Issue Preclusion In District Court Litigation

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    Two recent Federal Circuit rulings have resolved a district court split regarding issue preclusion based on Patent Trial and Appeal Board outcomes, potentially counseling petitioners in favor of challenging not only all the claims of an asserted patent, but also related patents that have not yet been raised in district court, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From DOJ Leadership To BigLaw

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    The move from government service to private practice can feel like changing one’s identity, but as someone who has left the U.S. Department of Justice twice, I’ve learned that a successful transition requires patience, effort and the realization that the rewards of practicing law don’t come from one particular position, says Richard Donoghue at Pillsbury.

  • In-House Expert Testimony Is Tricky, But Worth Considering

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    Litigation counsel often reject the notion of designating in-house personnel to provide expert opinion testimony at trial, but dismissing them outright can result in a significant missed opportunity, say David Ben-Meir at Ben-Meir Law and Martin Pitha at Lillis Pitha.

  • Fed. Circ. Ruling Reaffirms Listing Elements Separately Is Key

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    The Federal Circuit's decision last month in Regeneron v. Mylan reaffirms a critical principle in patent law: When a claim lists elements separately, the clear implication is that they are distinct elements, say attorneys at Taft.

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