Intellectual Property

  • August 22, 2024

    7th Circ. Says Hidden IP Fight Doomed Insurance Coverage Bid

    The Seventh Circuit has agreed an insurer could rescind its policies covering a garbage services company because that company failed to disclose an already brewing trademark dispute, concluding the company's argument that it didn't need to disclose the feud was "not supported by the record or common sense."

  • August 21, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Won't Rethink IP Safe Harbor Case

    The Federal Circuit on Wednesday declined to review its decision affirming the dismissal of Edwards Lifesciences' infringement suit against Meril Life Sciences after Edwards urged the full court to narrow its interpretation of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration safe harbor that essentially allows patent infringement during drug development.

  • August 21, 2024

    RTX Wants Trade Secrets Trial Closed To 'Non-US Persons'

    Defense contractor RTX is fighting with a manufacturer over whether a trade secrets trial next week over the design of a mechanical bearing used in the U.S. military's "StormBreaker" bomb should be closed off to all "non-U.S. persons."

  • August 21, 2024

    USPTO Argues Not All New Rules Call For Public Comments

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office told the U.S. Supreme Court that forcing the agency to solicit public comments before instituting a new home address requirement for registering trademarks would be too much work.

  • August 21, 2024

    Full 3rd Circ. Won't Hear Distillery Investor's RICO Case

    An investor in a Pennsylvania craft distillery who accused his former business partner and a bevy of associates of racketeering, fraud and trade secret violations has failed to persuade a Third Circuit panel or the full court to take another look at his arguments about reviving the dismissed case.

  • August 21, 2024

    11th Circ. Affirms Toss Of Banana Wall Art Copyright Suit

    The Eleventh Circuit affirmed an Italian artist's win over a pro-se copyright lawsuit from California-based artist Joe Morford concerning art pieces the two made that both incorporate duct-taped fruits, holding they were not "strikingly similar."

  • August 21, 2024

    Telecom Will Pay $1M For Carrying Biden Deepfake Robocalls

    Lingo Telecom will pay the FCC $1 million for not properly validating the caller ID information of a Democratic consultant who used a deepfake of President Joe Biden's voice to make robocalls urging voters not to participate in the New Hampshire primary, the commission announced Wednesday.

  • August 21, 2024

    AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile Accused Of Blocking Wi-Fi Calling

    A patent-holding company said Wednesday it has filed a lawsuit accusing AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and Deutsche Telekom of blocking the emergence of a market for Wi-Fi calling by tying the service to voice and text offerings.

  • August 21, 2024

    USPTO Beats Atty's FOIA Suit Over Ethics Probe

    A California trademark lawyer who says he has been facing a disciplinary matter at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office over whether his associates let their assistants sign for them on trademark applications could not use a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit to get more information from the agency about the origins of that accusation.

  • August 21, 2024

    Photographer Sues Music Fest For Using Image Of Bull Riders

    A Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, country music festival and an advertising firm it hired used a photographer's photo of two women riding a mechanical bull to market the festival without permission, according to a new copyright infringement suit brought in North Carolina federal court on Wednesday.

  • August 21, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Says Apple Can't Ship Haptic Tech IP Case To Calif.

    Apple on Wednesday lost its appeal to move a lawsuit accusing it of infringing another company's haptic feedback device patents from the Western District of Texas to California, with the Federal Circuit holding that U.S. District Judge Alan Albright's denial of the transfer showed no clear abuse of discretion.

  • August 21, 2024

    Photographer, De La Hoya Co. End Lennox Lewis Pic Bout

    A photographer who sued a promotion business owned by boxer Oscar de la Hoya for using a picture of Lennox Lewis without his permission has reached a settlement, according to a letter sent to the New York federal judge overseeing the case.

  • August 21, 2024

    Shein Says Temu Engaged In Coordinated IP Theft

    Fashion firm Shein hit the companies behind e-commerce platform Temu with an intellectual property suit alleging Temu trains suppliers to specifically infringe Shein's copyrights and trademarks and misappropriate its trade secrets to help secure "an unearned and illicit foothold" in the U.S. market."

  • August 20, 2024

    Amazon Stuck With $525M IP Loss, Plus $148M In Interest

    An Illinois federal judge on Tuesday refused to disturb a jury's $525 million verdict in favor of software company Kove IO Inc. in a dispute with Amazon over cloud data storage patents, rejecting Amazon's argument that there wasn't enough evidence and holding that Kove is entitled to roughly $147.7 million in prejudgment interest.

  • August 20, 2024

    OnePlus Gets Do-Over For 'Excessive' $10M Pantech Verdict

    Chinese phone company OnePlus can have a new trial on damages after it was hit with a $10 million infringement verdict in Pantech Corp.'s patent dispute over technology used to comply with 5G wireless standards, a Texas federal judge ruled, saying, "There is no question this verdict is excessive."

  • August 20, 2024

    Vans, MSCHF Settle 'Wavy Baby' Sneaker TM Suit

    Vans told a New York federal judge Tuesday that it resolved its trademark suit lodged over artist collective MSCHF's Wavy Baby sneaker, urging the court to approve an agreed-upon permanent injunction barring the collective from using Vans' side stripe mark and other elements of its decades-old Old Skool shoes.

  • August 20, 2024

    PTAB Keeps Online Ad Display Patent Intact

    A panel of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board on Monday in a final written decision upheld a patent covering a purportedly novel way of loading advertisements on websites.

  • August 20, 2024

    Realtek Suit Is Just 'Litigation Over Litigation,' IP Biz Says

    Litigation business Future Link says the latest version of an antitrust lawsuit in California federal court from Taiwanese chipmaker Realtek over claims of a conspiracy with a different Taiwanese chipmaker to fund purported "patent troll" lawsuits is just more "litigation over litigation."

  • August 20, 2024

    Cox, Music Publishers Ask Justices To Review Copyright Row

    Cox Communications and music publishers led by Sony Music Entertainment have petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Fourth Circuit ruling — with music companies asking for clarity on the scope of liability for internet service providers for online piracy and Cox asking whether it can be responsible for copyright infringement for merely providing an internet connection.

  • August 20, 2024

    Advanced Bionics Sues Med-El At ITC Over Implant Patents

    Switzerland's Advanced Bionics has brought claims against Austria's Med-El at the U.S. International Trade Commission, alleging the rival maker of cochlear implants is infringing two patents on hearing aid technology and seeking an exclusion order banning Med-El's products from being imported into the U.S.

  • August 20, 2024

    Trade Judge Says Ban On Chocolate Mix Was Flouted

    A judge at the U.S. International Trade Commission has found that four grocers violated an import ban by selling imported chocolate malt drink mix that infringed a Cadbury Bournvita mark, according to an announcement from the agency.

  • August 20, 2024

    SharkNinja Urges Mass. Court To Reject Dyson Patent Claims

    SharkNinja is asking a federal judge in Massachusetts to deem it has not infringed five patents held by rival vacuum-maker Dyson, three months after Dyson brought a patent infringement claim against SharkNinja in Texas over the same patents.

  • August 20, 2024

    PleasrDAO Wants Shkreli To Hand Over Wu-Tang Clan Album

    The cryptocurrency project that now owns a one-of-a-kind Wu-Tang Clan album has urged a New York federal judge to order Martin Shkreli to hand over any copies he made of the album while he possessed it since the album's value "depends almost entirely on its uniqueness, and the secrecy that surrounds it."

  • August 20, 2024

    Anthropic Hit With Another Copyright Suit Over LLM Training

    Anthropic PBC was hit with a proposed class action Monday in California federal court from a group of journalists and authors alleging the artificial intelligence giant is exploiting their copyrighted materials to train its large language model, Claude, without permission or a license, and has become enormously successful at their expense.

  • August 20, 2024

    Walt Disney, Marvel Freed From Shirtmaker's IP Row In NC

    The Walt Disney Co., Marvel Entertainment and a Marvel affiliate have been freed, for now, from a shirtmaker's trademark infringement lawsuit after a North Carolina federal judge ruled that the entertainment giants don't have enough ties to the Tar Heel State.

Expert Analysis

  • Opinion

    Chevron Reversal May Protect IP Rights Under Bayh-Dole

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of Chevron deference may block the Biden administration's nearly finalized guidance reinterpreting the Bayh-Dole Act, protecting intellectual property rights and preventing harm to innovation and economic activity, says Brian O'Shaughnessy at Dinsmore & Shohl.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Hyperlinked Documents

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    Recent rulings show that counsel should engage in early discussions with clients regarding the potential of hyperlinked documents in electronically stored information, which will allow for more deliberate negotiation of any agreements regarding the scope of discovery, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Loper Bright Limits Federal Agencies' Ability To Alter Course

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to dismantle Chevron deference also effectively overrules its 2005 decision in National Cable & Telecommunications Association v. Brand X, greatly diminishing agencies' ability to change regulatory course from one administration to the next, says Steven Gordon at Holland & Knight.

  • How To Deploy AI In A Dangerous Threat Landscape

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    Businesses are feeling immense pressure to deploy generative artificial intelligence tools to accelerate profits and demonstrate their technological superiority to investors and consumers, and there are a few steps they can take when using AI tools to mitigate liability risks, say B. Stephanie Siegmann and Julianna Malogolowkin at Hinckley Allen.

  • Calif. Out-Of-State Noncompete Ban Faces Several Hurdles

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    California's attempt to bolster its noncompete law has encountered significant procedural and constitutional challenges, and litigating parties must carefully analyze not only the restrictive covenants contained in their agreements, but also the forum-selection and choice-of-law provisions, say Jennifer Redmond and Gal Gressel at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Defamation Suit Tests Lanham Act's Reach With Influencers

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    Recently filed in the Northern District of Texas, Prime Hydration v. Garcia, alleging defamation and Lanham Act violations based on the defendant's social media statements about the beverage brand, allows Texas courts and the Fifth Circuit to take the lead in interpreting the act as it applies to influencers, says attorney Susan Jorgensen.

  • Series

    Teaching Scuba Diving Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    As a master scuba instructor, I’ve learned how to prepare for the unexpected, overcome fears and practice patience, and each of these skills – among the many others I’ve developed – has profoundly enhanced my work as a lawyer, says Ron Raether at Troutman Pepper.

  • Navigating The Murky Waters Of Patent Infringement Damages

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    Recent cases show that there is no easy way to isolate an infringed patent’s value, and it would serve all sides well for courts to thoroughly examine expert opinions of this nature and provide consistent guidance for future cases, say Manny Caixeiro and Elizabeth Manno at Venable.

  • Lawyers Can Take Action To Honor The Voting Rights Act

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    As the Voting Rights Act reaches its 59th anniversary Tuesday, it must urgently be reinforced against recent efforts to dismantle voter protections, and lawyers can pitch in immediately by volunteering and taking on pro bono work to directly help safeguard the right to vote, says Anna Chu at We The Action.

  • 3rd Circ. Ruling Shows Benefits Of IP Licenses In Bankruptcy

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    The Third Circuit’s recent ruling in Mallinckrodt’s Chapter 11 filing, which held that Mallinckrodt could sever its obligations to pay Sanofi royalties on sales of an autoimmune disease drug, highlights the advantages of structuring transactions as nonexclusive licenses for developers of intellectual property, say Gregory Hesse and Kaleb Bailey at Hunton.

  • Opinion

    Unclear Intellectual Property Laws Are Stifling US Innovation

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    U.S. intellectual property law’s lack of predictability means far less job-creating investments for companies that need patent protection to compete, and Congress must step in with legislation like the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act to help address the problem, says Michael Gulliford at Soryn IP Capital Management.

  • The Fed. Circ. In June: More Liability For Generic-Drug Makers

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    The Federal Circuit’s June ruling in Amarin v. Hikma will likely result in more allegations of induced infringement by generic drugs postapproval, with more of those cases proceeding to at least the summary judgment stage instead of being cut off at the outset, say Jeremiah Helm and Sean Murray at Knobbe Martens.

  • Proposed NIL Deal Leaves NCAA Antitrust Liability Door Open

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    The proposed House v. NCAA settlement filed in California federal court creates the possibility of significant direct payments to student-athletes for the first time, but the resulting framework is unlikely to withstand future antitrust scrutiny because it still represents an agreement among competitors to limit labor cost, says Yaman Desai at Lynn Pinker.

  • Opinion

    Expert Witness Standards Must Consider Peer Review Crisis

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    For nearly two decades, the so-called replication crisis has upended how the scientific community views the reliability of peer-reviewed studies, and it’s time for courts to reevaluate whether peer review is a trustworthy proxy for expert witness reliability, say Jeffrey Gross and Robert LaCroix at Reid Collins.

  • USPTO Must Anticipate 'Black-Box Problem' For AI Inventions

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    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's recent guidance allows patents for inventions created with artificial intelligence, but inventors need to address the so-called black-box problem to ensure others can recreate the invention, thus meeting the enablement requirement, say Mark Basanta and Georg Reitboeck at Haug Partners.

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