Intellectual Property

  • September 10, 2024

    Distillery Tries To Lasso Booze Trademark, Suit Says

    Dynasty Spirits told a Colorado federal court Monday that Lasso Whiskey is infringing on its Lasso Motel trademark.

  • September 10, 2024

    British Artists Call For IP Overhaul Amid AI Concerns

    More than 4,000 arts professionals have signed a joint letter urging the government to ensure that artists have control over whether copyrighted works are used for training artificial intelligence, highlighting the "significant challenges" faced by creatives in Britain.

  • September 10, 2024

    Ugg Maker Ends IP Boot Suit Against Costco

    Deckers Outdoor Corp. has dropped its suit in California federal court accusing Costco Wholesale Corp. of infringing a design patent and trade dress for Ugg "Classic Ultra Mini" boots with the retailer's Kirkland-branded footwear.

  • September 10, 2024

    Photographer Aims To Squash Pest Control Co. Use Of Ant Pic

    A biologist and photographer sued a Houston-area pest control company in Texas federal court for copyright infringement alleging the company stole his ant picture to promote their services online.

  • September 10, 2024

    Amazon Must Trim 'Halo' TM For EU Market

    Amazon Technologies could not convince the EU's intellectual property office to let it register trademarks for "halo" unscathed, with the office backing a Californian health technology company's bid to trim key protections for medical monitoring devices and health assessment services.

  • September 10, 2024

    T-Mobile Can't Change 4th Circ. Loss In 'Simply Prepaid' Fight

    T-Mobile failed Tuesday to undercut a Fourth Circuit decision that revived a Virginia-based cellphone company's infringement claims over the phrase "Simply Prepaid," with a panel of judges declining to grant the telecommunications giant's request for a second look.

  • September 10, 2024

    House Reps. Float Bill To Limit Patent Invalidations

    A bipartisan bill that would reset patent eligibility standards has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives, over a year after a similar Senate bill was put forward that drew opposition from much of the tech and retail industry.

  • September 10, 2024

    Cult Gaia Importer Beats Champagne Bid To Bar Dress Sales

    A Dutch importer of Cult Gaia dresses has seen off a bid from a body representing the Champagne region's interests to bar it from selling "champagne" colored dresses after a court ruled it was clear it had no connection to the sparkling wine.

  • September 10, 2024

    Philips Balks At Dentons' Request To Exit IP Case

    Dutch health technology conglomerate Philips Medical Systems Nederland BV is balking at Dentons US LLP's request to withdraw as counsel for Transtate Equipment Co. Inc. in a wide-ranging copyright and unfair competition case, insinuating that the move is a stalling tactic to avoid a final judgment.

  • September 10, 2024

    Phone Maker Vivo Joins Via LA's Audio Patent Licensing Pool

    Via Licensing Alliance said Tuesday it has inked a deal with Chinese smartphone maker Vivo to join its patent pool for standardized audio coding technology.

  • September 10, 2024

    Ex-Michigan Football Stars Hit NCAA With $50M NIL Suit

    A group of former University of Michigan football players are seeking more than $50 million in damages through a proposed class action filed Tuesday that alleges a decades-long scheme by the NCAA and Big Ten Network to unlawfully exploit athlete names, images and likenesses for commercial gain.

  • September 10, 2024

    Cypriot Cheesemakers Lose Challenge To 'Grilloumi' TM

    A group of Cypriot halloumi producers has lost its attempt to overturn a decision that allowed a Swedish cheesemaker to register its "Grilloumi" and "Grilloumaki" trademarks in the U.K., as a London court ruled the marks are sufficiently different.

  • September 10, 2024

    Car Parts Maker Defends Heat-Resistant Steel Patent At EPO

    A Chinese car parts manufacturer can keep its European patent for a heat-resistant steel alloy because its combination of elements is sufficiently inventive over previous formulae, an appeals panel has ruled.

  • September 10, 2024

    Apple Illegally Obtained €13B In State Aid, Top EU Court Rules

    The European Union's highest court ruled on Tuesday that Ireland illegally granted Apple state aid in past tax rulings, requiring the U.S. technology giant to repay €13 billion ($14.3 billion) in back taxes as well as interest.

  • September 09, 2024

    White Stripes Sue Trump For Using Hit 'Seven Nation Army'

    Disbanded rock duo White Stripes on Monday sued former President Donald Trump in New York federal court for using the iconic introductory riff of its Grammy-winning song "Seven Nation Army" on a social media clip without permission, and despite its members publicly denouncing the hit's use during Trump's 2016 presidential run.

  • September 09, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Undoes Alice Ax Of Camera Patents In GoPro Case

    The Federal Circuit on Monday reversed a decision invalidating two video camera patents that GoPro Inc. is accused of infringing, ruling that the patents cover technological improvements, and not only an abstract idea, as a California federal judge had ruled.

  • September 09, 2024

    Judge Again Says Yearbook Site Can't Force Arbitration

    A Washington federal judge has said the company behind Classmates.com can't force a privacy rights suit into arbitration, in a ruling that determined the plaintiff's attorney opted out of a terms-of-service provision.

  • September 09, 2024

    NC Dance Teachers Fend Off Injunction Bid In Trademark Feud

    A North Carolina charter school can't prevent two former teachers from soliciting students for their dance team using the name "Inspire" amid claims of trademark infringement and false advertising, a federal judge ruled Monday.

  • September 09, 2024

    Brighthouse Hits Rival With TM Suit Over 'Shield' Mark

    Annuity and life insurance provider Brighthouse Financial on Friday accused competitor American Equity Investment Life Insurance Co. of trademark infringement, claiming in a North Carolina federal court that American Equity is using Brighthouse's decade-old "shield" mark to sell similar, overlapping or nearly identical annuity products and services.

  • September 09, 2024

    Purdue Sees Another OxyContin Patent Axed

    A Delaware federal court decided on Monday that yet another patent issued to bankrupt OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma is invalid, a year and a half after a similar ruling was issued in another case about the company's efforts to assert different patents to stop the same prospective Indian manufacturer of generic painkillers.

  • September 09, 2024

    Qorvo Gets Nearly $12M In Fees After $39M Trade Secrets Win

    A federal judge said Monday that wireless company Qorvo Inc. was entitled to more than $11.7 million in legal fees after a jury earlier this year awarded the business $38.6 million in a trade secrets case against Akoustis Technologies Inc.

  • September 09, 2024

    Denver Court Knocks Out 'Breathable' Fabric Patent Claims

    After almost a decade of litigation over "breathable" waterproof fabric in Colorado federal court, a judge in Denver has decided that some of the claims describing a patent failed to hold up to legal scrutiny. 

  • September 09, 2024

    FTC Backs Teva Orange Book Delisting At Fed. Circ.

    The Federal Trade Commission is continuing to back Amneal's efforts to have Teva's inhaler patents delisted from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Orange Book, telling the Federal Circuit that a lower court was right in determining that Teva's patents do not satisfy the registry's requirements.

  • September 09, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Backs PTAB Ruling In Food Wrapping Feud

    The Federal Circuit has refused to revive claims in a trio of Converter Manufacturing LLC food wrapping patents, handing a win to patent challenger Tekni-Plex Inc. in the legal dispute.

  • September 09, 2024

    Wi-Fi Router Trade Dispute Paused While Makers Finalize Deal

    The U.S. International Trade Commission has stayed all deadlines in an intellectual property dispute between Netgear and TP-Link over TP-Link's Wi-Fi router imports as the pair finalizes a settlement resolving the case.

Expert Analysis

  • Opinion

    Flawed Fintiv Rule Should Be Deemed Overreach In Tech Suit

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    A pending federal lawsuit over the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's unilateral changes to key elements of the America Invents Act, Apple v. Vidal, could shift the balance of power between Congress and federal agencies, as it could justify future instances of unelected officials unilaterally changing laws, say Patrick Leahy and Bob Goodlatte.

  • How Associates Can Build A Professional Image

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    As hybrid work arrangements become the norm in the legal industry, early-career attorneys must be proactive in building and maintaining a professional presence in both physical and digital settings, ensuring that their image aligns with their long-term career goals, say Lana Manganiello at Equinox Strategy Partners and Estelle Winsett at Estelle Winsett Professional Image Consulting.

  • Determining Who Owns Content Created By Generative AI

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    Adobe's recent terms-of-service update and ensuing clarification regarding its AI-training practices highlights the unanswered legal questions regarding ownership of content created using artificial intelligence, says John Poulos at Norton Rose.

  • Skip Versus File: The Patent Dilemma That Costs Millions

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    In the nearly 30 years since the inception of the provisional application, many have weighed the question of whether or not to file the provisional, and data shows that doing so may allow inventors more time to refine their ideas and potentially gain an extra year of protection, says Stanko Vuleta at Highlands Advisory.

  • Orange Book Warnings Highlight FTC's Drug Price Focus

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    In light of heightened regulatory scrutiny surrounding drug pricing and the Federal Trade Commission's activity in the recent Teva v. Amneal case, branded drug manufacturers should expect the FTC's campaign against allegedly improper Orange Book listings to continue, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Firms Must Rethink How They Train New Lawyers In AI Age

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    As law firms begin to use generative artificial intelligence to complete lower-level legal tasks, they’ll need to consider new ways to train summer associates and early-career attorneys, keeping in mind the five stages of skill acquisition, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Always Be Closing

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    When a lawyer presents their case with the right propulsive structure throughout trial, there is little need for further argument after the close of evidence — and in fact, rehashing it all may test jurors’ patience — so attorneys should consider other strategies for closing arguments, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Tracking China's Push To Invalidate Foreign Patents

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    China’s increasing use of courts and administrative panels to nullify patents in strategically important industries, such as technology, pharmaceuticals and rare-earth minerals, raises serious concerns about the intellectual property rights of foreign businesses operating there, say Rajat Rana and Manuel Valderrama at Selendy Gay.

  • 3 Ways To Fight Alice Rejections Of Blockchain Patents

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    With blockchain-related patent application filings on the rise, Thomas Isaacson at Polsinelli offers strategies for responding to U.S. Patent and Trademark Office determinations that the blockchain network is just a generic computer and patent-ineligible under the U.S. Supreme Court's 2014 Alice v. CLS Bank decision.

  • F1 Driver AI Case Sheds Light On Winning Tactics In IP Suits

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    A German court recently awarded damages to former F1 driver Michael Schumacher's family in an artificial intelligence dispute over the unlicensed use of his image, illustrating how athletes are using the law to protect their brands, and setting a precedent in other AI-generated image rights cases, William Bowyer at Lawrence Stephens.

  • 8th Circ. Insurance Ruling Spotlights Related-Claims Defenses

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    The Eighth Circuit’s recent Dexon v. Travelers ruling — that the insurer must provide a defense despite the policy’s related-acts provision — provides guidance for how policyholders can overcome related-acts defenses, say Geoffrey Fehling and Jae Lynn Huckaba at Hunton.

  • Counterfeits At The Olympics Pose IP Challenges

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    With the 2024 Olympic Games quickly approaching, the proliferation of counterfeit Olympic merchandise poses a difficult challenge to the protection of intellectual property rights and the preservation of the Olympic brand's integrity, says Kimiya Shams at Devialet.

  • Series

    Playing Chess Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    There are many ways that chess skills translate directly into lawyer skills, but for me, the bigger career lessons go beyond the direct parallels — playing chess has shown me the value of seeing gradual improvement in and focusing deep concentration on a nonwork endeavor, says attorney Steven Fink.

  • Patent Lessons From 7 Federal Circuit Reversals In May

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    A look at recent cases where the Federal Circuit reversed or vacated decisions by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board or a federal district court provide guidance on how to succeed on appeal by clarifying the obviousness analysis of design patents, the finality of a judgment, and more, say Denise De Mory and Li Guo at Bunsow De Mory.

  • Litigation Inspiration: Attys Can Be Heroic Like Olympians

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    Although litigation won’t earn anyone an Olympic medal in Paris this summer, it can be worthy of the same lasting honor if attorneys exercise focused restraint — seeking both their clients’ interests and those of the court — instead of merely pursuing every advantage short of sanctionable conduct, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

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