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Intellectual Property
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July 23, 2024
Samsung Loses Bid To Throw Out $303M Patent Verdict
A Texas federal judge shot down Samsung's attempt to throw out a $303 million verdict over infringement of server memory patents, saying the South Korean electronics giant's arguments that Netlist's comments prejudiced it during trial fell short in a July 12 opinion that was unsealed Tuesday.
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July 23, 2024
Sonos Tells Fed. Circ. 100K Patents At Risk If Google Prevails
Wireless audio brand Sonos has warned the Federal Circuit that a federal judge's decision to scrap its jury win in a $32.5 million patent case against Google means that "about 100,000 patents are vulnerable."
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July 23, 2024
On Limiting ITC's Power, House Republican Is 'Appalled'
Proposals that would restrict how companies can use the U.S. International Trade Commission to go after device manufacturers met a frosty reception from at least one patent-owning Republican on Tuesday, who said he was "appalled" by one idea, and likened another suggestion to communism.
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July 23, 2024
Fed. Circ. Gives Netflix 2nd Chance To Challenge Broadcom IP
The Patent Trial and Appeal Board must reconsider Netflix's petitions challenging the validity of a Broadcom unit's software performance monitoring patent, the Federal Circuit held Tuesday, finding flaws in the board's refusal to invalidate claims.
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July 23, 2024
The Biggest Trademark Rulings Of 2024: A Midyear Report
The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a California attorney's arguments that registering "Trump Too Small" as a trademark constituted speech protected by the First Amendment, and a split Ninth Circuit concluded district courts have the power to cancel trademark applications during litigation. Here's a look at some of the most notable trademark decisions so far this year.
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July 23, 2024
Full Fed. Circ. Won't Undo TD Ameritrade's One-Word IP Win
The full Federal Circuit on Monday denied a patent owner's en banc rehearing petition challenging a one-word ruling in favor of stockbroker TD Ameritrade in a high-stakes patent fight and effectively rejected an amicus party's legal challenge to the court's rule allowing one-word affirmance decisions.
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July 23, 2024
Litigation Funder Says Apple Doc Request Is 'Mere Suspicion'
Apple Inc. is trying to make an "end run" around a California trial court by demanding that Omni Bridgeway LLC turn over documents explaining its financial interest in patent litigation against Apple based on "mere suspicion," the litigation funder has told a Delaware federal judge.
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July 23, 2024
Senate Dems Roll Out Bill To Codify Chevron Deference
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., led a group of Democratic senators Tuesday in introducing a bill to codify the now-defunct doctrine of Chevron deference after it was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court last month.
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July 23, 2024
Firm Says Rival's Trademark Merely 'Common Spanish Phrase'
A Houston-based immigration law firm wants claims trimmed in a suit brought by a rival Washington state firm claiming unfair competition and trademark violation, also filing a counterclaim for declaratory judgment that calls the supposed trademark a "common Spanish phrase."
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July 22, 2024
Elon Musk's X Corp. Accused Of TM Infringement, Again
Public relations firm Multiply on Monday accused Elon Musk's social media platform of ripping off its stylized "X" logo to create a substantially similar design, despite knowing Multiply already has a registered trademark, according to an infringement lawsuit in California federal court.
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July 22, 2024
Neo Wireless Deceived Patent Officials, Auto Giants Say
Automakers accused of infringing Neo Wireless LLC's technology have urged a Michigan federal judge to keep alive their defense that Neo committed misconduct, arguing that the wireless company withheld information about a competitor's project that would have rendered the patents at issue obvious.
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July 22, 2024
USPTO Wins Dismissal Of Danish Co.'s PTSD Drug Lawsuit
A Virginia federal judge has ruled that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office appropriately rejected drugmaker Lundbeck's request for three additional months of patent exclusivity for a PTSD drug, saying the agency could dock those days due to the impermissible gray shading of some text in the company's patent application.
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July 22, 2024
VidStream Can't Block X Features That Allegedly Infringe IP
VidStream can't block X Corp. from deploying features that allegedly infringe its patent over a system for receiving and distributing user-generated video, a Texas federal judge said Monday, finding that VidStream is unable to show the alleged infringement can't be remedied through monetary damages and therefore fails to show it will be irreparably harmed.
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July 22, 2024
LegalForce Says Legal Finance Group Is Infringing Its Logo
LegalForce RAPC Worldwide PC has filed a federal trademark infringement suit against Law Finance Group Inc. in the San Francisco Bay Area, accusing it of violating the firm's "LF" trademark in providing legal services.
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July 22, 2024
Jury Delivers $138M Verdict In Bitcoin Mining Consultant Suit
A California federal jury unanimously found bitcoin mining firm Marathon Digital Holdings Inc. liable for nearly $139 million in damages over allegedly breaching a consultant's contract when it cut him out of the deal he brought to the firm.
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July 22, 2024
Fed. Circ. Axes Claim In UNM Network Patent, Questions Others
The Federal Circuit ruled Monday that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board wrongly upheld part of a University of New Mexico wireless communications patent challenged by network equipment maker Zyxel, and ordered the board to reconsider amended claims it had allowed.
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July 22, 2024
9th Circ. Backs Moving Video Game IP Suit To South Korea
The Ninth Circuit on Monday said a federal judge correctly dismissed a copyright and trade secrets complaint from a South Korean video game developer against a rival because their country is a more convenient venue, rejecting plaintiff Nexon Korea Corp.'s arguments that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act should have prevented that from happening.
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July 22, 2024
Scanner Maker Tells 4th Circ. Contract Ends Honeywell Suit
Laser technology company Opto Electronics urged the Fourth Circuit to overturn a jury finding that it was liable for ripping off Honeywell International over royalties for barcode scanners, arguing that a contract between the companies foreclosed the result as a matter of law.
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July 22, 2024
Midyear Report: Surveying Vast NCAA Litigation Landscape
While the NCAA has never been a stranger to high-stakes litigation, the past six months have seen a deluge of courtroom intrigue as college athletes flex their legal muscle amid a quickly shifting consensus on the organization's overall business model.
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July 22, 2024
Litigation Funder Sues Wyoming Co. With Same Name
Litigation funding company Parabellum Capital LLC has filed a trademark lawsuit in Colorado federal court against a Wyoming company called Parabellum Capital Inc., but the Wyoming company appears to be backing down.
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July 22, 2024
Olympic Committee Hits Logan Paul's Drink Co. With TM Suit
The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee has sued a sports beverage company co-founded by social media influencer and wrestler Logan Paul, Prime Hydration, alleging that it is infringing on Olympic trademarks with an ad campaign featuring NBA star and Team USA member Kevin Durant.
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July 22, 2024
1st Circ. Doubts Calif. Law Governs DraftKings Job Fight
A former DraftKings executive seeking to undo his noncompete contract appeared to make little headway with the First Circuit on Monday as he argued that Massachusetts law should take a backseat in the dispute to California's more worker-friendly statute.
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July 19, 2024
Platform Sciences Hit With $19M Omnitracs Patent Verdict
A California federal jury on Friday determined that Qualcomm spin-off Omnitracs is entitled to $19.3 million in lost profits and a $140,000 royalty after a former executive's new company willfully infringed one of its fleet management software patents, but cleared it of infringing two other patents.
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July 19, 2024
House IP Committee Heads Unveil Drug Pricing Bill
Reps. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and Hank Johnson, D-Ga., respectively the chair and top Democrat of the House intellectual property subcommittee, on Friday introduced a new bill that would change patent law to increase competition in the prescription drug market in order to lower patient costs.
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July 19, 2024
14 NBA Teams Hit With Copyright Suits Over Songs In Videos
Fourteen NBA teams have been hit with complaints by several music companies that accuse the basketball franchises of using copyrighted songs in promotional videos without permission, according to lawsuits in Manhattan federal court.
Expert Analysis
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Circumstantial Evidence Requires A Pointillist Approach
Because complex cases with sophisticated defendants are unlikely to reveal much, if any, direct evidence, attorneys must aggregate many pieces of circumstantial evidence into a cohesive narrative — much like the painting technique of pointillism, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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How China's IP Proposal Could Affect US Brands' TM Strategy
Proposed amendments to China's Trademark Law aimed at improving the application and enforcement processes could make some common U.S. brand protection strategies moot, and may require brand owners to more carefully explain marks' use or nonuse, say attorneys at Neal Gerber.
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Exploring Patent Trends In Aerospace Electrification
As blue-chip companies lead the charge to power large-scale commercial airplanes with electricity, and startups advance the trend on a regional scale, patent applications directed at improving energy storage and electric motor efficiency are on the rise, say attorneys at Finnegan.
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3 Tech Sourcing Best Practices That Are Relevant For AI
It might be tempting to think that sourcing artificial intelligence tools requires a completely new set of skills, but the best practices that lead to a good deal are much the same as traditional technology procurement, says Mia Rendar at Pillsbury.
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The Pros And Cons Of NIST's Proposed March-In Framework
Recent comments for and against the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s proposed guidance on march-in rights — which permit the government to seize federally funded patents — highlight how the framework may promote competition, but could also pose a risk to contractors and universities, say Nick Lee and Paul Ragusa at Baker Botts.
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Why Fed. Circ. Should Resolve District Split On Patent Statute
A split exists among district courts in their analysis of when marking cannot be done on a patented article due to its character, and the Federal Circuit should consider clarifying the analysis of Section 287(a), a consequential statute with important implications for patent damages, say Nicholas Nowak and Jamie Dohopolski at Sterne Kessler.
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Practicing Law With Parkinson's Disease
This Parkinson’s Awareness Month, Adam Siegler at Greenberg Traurig discusses his experience working as a lawyer with Parkinson’s disease, sharing both lessons on how to cope with a diagnosis and advice for supporting colleagues who live with the disease.
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When Trade Secret Protection And Nat'l Security Converge
The Trump administration's anti-espionage program focused on China is over, but federal enforcement efforts to protect trade secrets and U.S. national security continue, and companies doing business in high-risk jurisdictions need to maintain their compliance programs to avoid the risk of being caught in the crosshairs of an investigation, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.
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Why Incorporating By Reference Is Rarely Good Practice
The Federal Circuit’s recent ruling in Promptu Systems v. Comcast serves as a reminder that while incorporating by reference may seem efficient, it is generally prohibited by courts and can lead to sanctions when used to bypass a word count limit, says Cullen Seltzer at Sands Anderson.
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Series
Playing Hockey Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Nearly a lifetime of playing hockey taught me the importance of avoiding burnout in all aspects of life, and the game ultimately ended up providing me with the balance I needed to maintain success in my legal career, says John Riccione at Taft.
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Considerations For Evaluating IP Risks In Cannabis M&A
Due to the patchwork of state cannabis laws in the U.S., investors and businesses acquiring intellectual property must assess whether a trademark portfolio possesses any vulnerabilities, such as marks that are considered attractive to children or third-party claims of trademark infringement, say Mary Shapiro and Nicole Katsin at Evoke Law.
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9th Circ. TM Ruling Expands Courts' Role In Application Cases
The Ninth Circuit’s recent ruling in BBK Tobacco v. Central Coast Agriculture is the first time a federal appeals court has explicitly authorized district courts to adjudicate pending trademark applications, marking a potentially significant expansion of federal courts' power, says Saul Cohen at Kelly IP.
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For Lawyers, Pessimism Should Be A Job Skill, Not A Life Skill
A pessimistic mindset allows attorneys to be effective advocates for their clients, but it can come with serious costs for their personal well-being, so it’s crucial to exercise strategies that produce flexible optimism and connect lawyers with their core values, says Krista Larson at Stinson.
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UK Amazon Ruling Spotlights TM Rights In International Sales
Highlighting the conflict between the territorial nature of trademark rights and the borderless nature of the internet, the U.K. Supreme Court's recent decision — that Amazon's U.S. website could infringe EU and U.K. rights by targeting local buyers — offers guidance on navigating trademark rights in relation to online sales, say Emmy Hunt, Mark Kramer and Jordan Mitchell at Potter Clarkson.
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CORRECTED: Endoscope Patent Case Offers Guidance On Right To Repair
An Alabama federal court's decision in Karl Storz v. IMS reaffirmed that product owners have broad rights to repair or modify their property as they see fit, highlighting the parameters of the right to repair in the context of patent infringement, say Dustin Weeks and Dabney Carr at Troutman Pepper. Correction: Due to an editing error, a previous version of this article and headline attributed the Karl Storz ruling to the wrong court. The error has been corrected.