Intellectual Property

  • August 16, 2024

    Cisco Gets Another Shot At Sinking Network Security Patent

    The Federal Circuit on Friday told the Patent Trial and Appeal Board to take another look at a ruling upholding language in a network security technology patent at the heart of Cisco Systems Inc.'s fight with a litigation outfit.

  • August 16, 2024

    2nd Circ. Faults 'Sophisticated Plaintiff' Logic In Axing IP Case

    The Second Circuit on Friday said a Manhattan federal judge wrongly dismissed a photography studio's copyright complaint as time-barred by concluding that a "sophisticated plaintiff" such as the studio could not avail itself of the discovery rule, a judicial doctrine holding that copyright claims accrue when an alleged infringement is discovered.

  • August 16, 2024

    Farmers Insurance Hits Former Agents With Trade Secrets Suit

    Farmers Insurance on Friday filed a lawsuit in Colorado federal court accusing two of its former agents of walking away from the company with trade secrets to divert customers to their own agency with a third former Farmers agent.

  • August 16, 2024

    Apple Needs To Wait Its Turn In ITC, Masimo Tells Fed. Circ.

    Apple wants to speed up its appeal over a U.S. International Trade Commission patent ruling that forced the company to disable an Apple Watch feature that measures the oxygen in blood, but both its courthouse rival and the agency itself say there's no compelling reason to cut in line.

  • August 16, 2024

    Mich. Judge Won't Raise $350K Award Against Ford To $15M

    A Michigan federal judge refused to increase a California tech company's $350,000 jury award to $15 million in a dispute over Ford Motor Co.'s misuse of an interface module, finding that the parties' agreement to Ford's sales numbers at trial barred him from changing the jury's decision.

  • August 16, 2024

    Anthropic Says IP Suit Doesn't Show AI Users Infringed Lyrics

    Artificial intelligence company Anthropic has asked a California federal court to toss the bulk of a copyright suit from several music publishers that allege their song lyrics were ripped off to train Anthropic's chatbot Claude, arguing among other things that the plaintiffs have not shown any infringing acts by Claude users.

  • August 16, 2024

    $117M Interest Ruled 'Not A Windfall' On $262M Patent Verdict

    A California federal judge approved $117 million in prejudgment interest for an Austrian inventor's company on top of the $262 million royalty verdict in its favor against hard drive maker Western Digital Technologies Inc., ruling that the interest "does not amount to a windfall or a punitive award."

  • August 16, 2024

    Attys Eye $10.5M In Fees From Pegasystems Securities Deal

    Attorneys for lead plaintiffs in a shareholder class action against Pegasystems are seeking $10.5 million in attorney fees from the $35 million settlement that ended claims that the software company failed to properly disclose a rival's trade secret litigation that led to a since-vacated $2 billion verdict.

  • August 16, 2024

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

    This past week in London has seen Barry Manilow sued by music rights company Hipgnosis, a struck-off immigration lawyer take on the Solicitor's Disciplinary Tribunal and the former CEO of a collapsed bridging loan firm start proceedings against the FCA. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • August 16, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Urged Not To Rehear $20M Google Royalty Ruling

    EcoFactor Inc. urged the Federal Circuit to reject Google LLC's bid for a full court rehearing of its split panel decision to uphold a $20 million patent infringement damages award in EcoFactor's favor, arguing that Google is looking to create a "rigid rule" that will only enable more patent infringement.

  • August 15, 2024

    Eminem Publisher Chided By Judge In Losing Spotify IP Fight

    A Tennessee federal judge on Thursday granted summary judgment to Spotify in a copyright infringement lawsuit brought by Eminem's music publisher, with the judge chiding the music publisher for using a "wait-and-sue strategy" to increase the potential damages owed by the music-streaming behemoth.

  • August 15, 2024

    Baker Botts, Sumner Schick $14M Fee Hit As 'Unreasonable'

    Baker Botts LLP and Sumner Schick LLP's request for $14.3 million in attorney fees plus $1.8 million in costs following their client Computer Sciences Corp.'s $168.4 million trade secrets verdict against Tata Consultancy Services is "facially unreasonable," the consulting firm told a Texas federal judge Wednesday.

  • August 15, 2024

    Philips' Fitness Tracker Patent Suit Is Back On Course

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday breathed new life into a patent suit by electronics giant Philips targeting fitness trackers made by Garmin.

  • August 15, 2024

    Hytera Says Diligent Radio Retool Should Head Off Contempt

    Hytera Communications Corp. Ltd. says it should not be held in contempt for allegedly failing to pay Motorola Solutions royalties on mobile radios it redesigned after getting slapped with a trade secret theft verdict, arguing that evidence proves that Hytera redesigned its products "module by module, line by line."

  • August 15, 2024

    Nvidia Illegally Scraped Videos To Train AI, YouTuber Says

    Artifical intelligence technology titan Nvidia Corp. has been collecting millions of YouTube videos without creators' permission and using them to train its deep-learning AI software, according to a proposed class action filed Wednesday in California federal court.

  • August 15, 2024

    Trump's Use Of Isaac Hayes Song Sparks IP Political Tension

    Donald Trump’s habit of closing his speeches with the song "Hold On (I’m Coming)” has angered the family of the late legendary soul singer Isaac Hayes, the latest election-year example of political candidates upsetting artists or their families who don’t want their music associated with a particular campaign.

  • August 15, 2024

    Yearbook Site Has 'Tortured View' Of Suit Waiver, Judge Says

    A Washington federal judge criticized the company behind Classmates.com on Thursday for arguing someone could've waived their right to sue the company for using their photo without ever visiting the website, calling it a "tortured view" of the Terms of Services language.

  • August 15, 2024

    You Can Drive 100 Miles, Albright Tells Texas Instruments

    Dallas-based Texas Instruments Inc. failed Thursday to persuade U.S. District Judge Alan Albright of the Western District of Texas to let a patent lawsuit leave his jurisdiction, in part because of the "less than 100 miles" between Waco and the federal courthouse in Dallas.

  • August 15, 2024

    'What Is An NFT?': 9th Circ. Mulls Novel Bored Ape TM Fight

    A Ninth Circuit judge considering whether a trial court correctly found artists owe millions for ripping off trademarks on the Bored Ape Yacht Club nonfungible token collection questioned Thursday whether the NFT market is comparable to typical consumer markets, rhetorically asking, "What are we even talking about? What is an NFT?"

  • August 15, 2024

    Juul License Doesn't Negate R.J. Reynolds' Royalties, Altria Says

    The parent company of Philip Morris is pushing back on what it described as a delayed bid by R.J. Reynolds Vapor Co. to skirt paying royalties on a pod-style vape, telling a North Carolina federal court that an "after-the-fact sublicense" with Juul isn't enough to undo the ongoing payments.

  • August 15, 2024

    Ex-Mushroomhead Singer Sues Bandmate Over Royalties

    The co-founder of metal band Mushroomhead has filed a copyright infringement and breach of contract suit in Ohio federal court accusing his fellow co-founder of failing to pay him royalties and income from tours and merchandise sales, and failing to rightfully attribute his ownership of many of the band's original musical works.

  • August 15, 2024

    No Dismissal Yet In Dispute Over Education Law Firm TM

    A Philadelphia-based education law firm's suit seeking to cancel registration for its competitor's trademark "The Education Lawyers" must continue because open questions remain, a Pennsylvania federal judge said.

  • August 15, 2024

    Texas Trio Willfully Stole Lewis Brisbois Name, Judge Says

    A Texas mediation service that named itself after BigLaw behemoth Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP and told the firm to "come and take it" has infringed Lewis Brisbois' trademark and must pay its attorney fees from the bitter suit, which racked up over 300 docket entries in under two years, a Texas federal judge has ruled.

  • August 15, 2024

    Pharma Co. TM Dispute Doesn't Belong In Florida, Judge Says

    A trademark lawsuit between two drug companies with similar names does not belong in a Florida federal court, a judge in West Palm Beach has ruled.

  • August 15, 2024

    Partners Stole Dairy Product Co.'s Trade Secrets, Suit Says

    A dairy farm products company has filed a lawsuit in Massachusetts federal court claiming its manufacturing and distribution partners used its trade secrets to develop and sell a competing line of infection prevention offerings.

Expert Analysis

  • Attys Beware 2 Commonly Overlooked NIL Contract Issues

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    As name, image and likeness deals dominate high school and collegiate sports, preserving a client's NCAA eligibility should be a top priority, so lawyers should understand the potentially damaging contract provisions they may encounter when reviewing an agreement, says Paula Nagarajan at Arnall Golden.

  • FTC Focus: Exploring The Meaning Of Orange Book Letters

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    The Federal Trade Commission recently announced an expansion of its campaign to promote competition by targeting pharmaceutical manufacturers' improper Orange Book patent listings, but there is a question of whether and how this helps generic entrants, say Colin Kass and David Munkittrick at Proskauer.

  • Trending At The PTAB: Real Party In Interest And IPR

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    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s recent Luminex v. Signify decision, finding a complaint seeking indemnification may be treated as a public demand sufficient to establish a real party-in-interest, shows that the board continues to apply a broad and expansive definition to that term, say Yicong (Eve) Du and Yieyie Yang at Finnegan.

  • Investors Can Aid In The Acceptance Of Psychedelic Medicine

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    Psychedelic medicine is ready to have its breakthrough moment, and although it still faces political, legal and communications challenges, private equity investors can play a significant role in changing the public perception on psychedelics from taboo to acceptance, say Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell, Charlie Panfil at the Daschle Group and Ethan Lutz at FTI Consulting.

  • 12 Keys To Successful Post-Trial Juror Interviews

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    Post-trial interviews offer attorneys an avenue to gain valuable insights into juror decision making and get feedback that can inform future litigation strategies, but certain best practices must be followed to get the most out of this research tool, say Alexa Hiley and Brianna Smith at IMS Legal.

  • Perspectives

    Trauma-Informed Legal Approaches For Pro Bono Attorneys

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    As National Trauma Awareness Month ends, pro bono attorneys should nevertheless continue to acknowledge the mental and physical effects of trauma, allowing them to better represent clients, and protect themselves from compassion fatigue and burnout, say Katherine Cronin at Stinson and Katharine Manning at Blackbird.

  • The Fed. Circ. In May: The Printed Matter Doctrine's Scope

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    The Federal Circuit’s recent ruling in Ioengine v. Ingenico, which addressed the scope of the printed matter doctrine as applied to transmitted data or program code, restores the doctrine’s status as a relatively narrow part of patent law, say Jeremiah Helm and Sean Murray at Knobbe Martens.

  • Fed. Circ. Scrapping Design Patent Tests Creates Uncertainty

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    The Federal Circuit last week discarded established tests for proving that design patents are invalid as obvious, leaving much unknown for design patent applicants, patentees and challengers, such as what constitutes analogous art and how secondary references will be considered and applied, say attorneys at Sterne Kessler.

  • Series

    Playing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My deep and passionate involvement in playing, writing and producing music equipped me with skills — like creativity, improvisation and problem-solving — that contribute to the success of my legal career, says attorney Kenneth Greene.

  • Lessons In High-Profile Jury Selection Amid NY Trump Trial

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    Richard Gabriel and Michelle Rey LaRocca at Decision Analysis consider how media exposure can affect a prospective juror in a high-profile case, the misunderstood nature of bias, and recommendations for jury selection in these unique situations as the Trump hush money trial continues in New York.

  • How AI Cos. Can Cope With Shifting Copyright Landscape

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    In the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence, recent legal disputes have focused on the utilization of copyrighted material to train algorithms, meaning companies should be aware of fair use implications and possible licensing solutions for AI users, say Michael Hobbs and Justin Tilghman at Troutman Pepper.

  • How Attys Can Avoid Pitfalls When Withdrawing From A Case

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    The Trump campaign's recent scuffle over its bid to replace its counsel in a pregnancy retaliation suit offers a chance to remind attorneys that many troubles inherent in withdrawing from a case can be mitigated or entirely avoided by communicating with clients openly and frequently, says Christopher Konneker at Orsinger Nelson.

  • Supply Chain Considerations For Companies Deploying AI

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    Many businesses will risk failure by embracing artificial intelligence without fully understanding the risks, and the value of a five-step AI supply chain analysis cannot be overstated, say Brooke Berg and Nathan Staffel at Nardello & Co.

  • How Real Estate Cos. Can Protect Their IP In The Metaverse

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    The rise of virtual and augmented reality creates new intellectual property challenges and opportunities for real estate owners, but certain steps, including conducting a diligence investigation to develop an understanding of current obligations, can help companies mitigate IP issues in the metaverse, says George Pavlik at Levenfeld Pearlstein.

  • Using A Children's Book Approach In Firm Marketing Content

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    From “The Giving Tree” to “Where the Wild Things Are,” most children’s books are easy to remember because they use simple words and numbers to tell stories with a human impact — a formula law firms should emulate in their marketing content to stay front of mind for potential clients, says Seema Desai Maglio at The Found Word.

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