Intellectual Property

  • September 18, 2024

    SF Says Oakland Airport Name Change Is 'Copycat Branding'

    San Francisco officials are urging a California federal court to block Oakland's attempt to incorporate "San Francisco Bay" into its airport name, accusing Oakland of "adopting a copycat brand" to attract more travelers.

  • September 18, 2024

    ITC Looking At Advanced Bionics Implant Patent Claims

    The U.S. International Trade Commission said it will look into allegations from Switzerland's Advanced Bionics that Austria's Med-El has been infringing cochlear implant hearing aid technology.

  • September 18, 2024

    Conn. Investment Adviser Stole Secrets, Ex-Employer Says

    An employee of a Connecticut investment advisory firm started a competing company and solicited his employer's clients before suddenly resigning and taking trade secrets to his new business, according to a new lawsuit in state court.

  • September 18, 2024

    NCAA Must Give Up Control To Reach Suitable NIL Settlement

    The date set by a California federal judge for the NCAA and the athletes suing it over name, image and likeness compensation to iron out issues with their proposed $2.78 billion settlement is fast approaching, and according to experts, a rational solution that would satisfy the two sides and the law might not exist.

  • September 18, 2024

    No Excess Coverage For Atos' Trade Secrets Suit, Judge Says

    A Liberty Mutual unit doesn't owe coverage to a subsidiary of French information technology giant Atos for an underlying trade secrets suit, a New York federal court ruled, saying the company failed to provide timely notice of the claim as required by its $10 million errors and omissions policy.

  • September 18, 2024

    Texas Firm, Marketing Biz Settle 'Click To Call' Ad Scheme Suit

    A Houston-based personal injury firm has reached a settlement with an Oklahoma-based marketing company it accused in a federal lawsuit of diverting clients and business to competitors through misleading advertisements in a click-to-call scheme.

  • September 18, 2024

    Calif. Gov. Signs Suite Of Bills Combating AI Deepfakes

    California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday signed five first-in-the-nation artificial intelligence-related bills giving actors more protections over their digital likenesses and reining in the use of AI-generated deepfakes during elections.

  • September 18, 2024

    Breitling Can't Get $1.4M Fee In Jeweler's 'Red Gold' TM Suit

    A Connecticut federal judge has rejected a request for $1.48 million in attorney fees by Swiss watchmaker Breitling SA and its American arm after they beat trademark infringement claims brought by a California jeweler, ruling that the claims may have been unsuccessful but that they were "not frivolous."

  • September 18, 2024

    Another IP Team Joins Barclay Damon From DC Boutique

    Three intellectual property attorneys from the D.C.-based boutique firm Gardella Grace PA have moved their practices to Barclay Damon LLP, making them the second IP group to move to Barclay Damon from a boutique in the last five months, according to a Tuesday announcement.

  • September 17, 2024

    Bible Tabs Maker Says Chinese Co. Sold Amazon Dupes

    The maker of Bible index tabs has sued a Chinese company allegedly selling knock-offs on Amazon that copy the brand's "expressive, ornamental and distinctive floral designs."

  • September 17, 2024

    JM Smucker Says Rival Is Spreading Uncrustable Lies

    A Los Angeles-based online snack retailer is smearing the image of J.M. Smucker Co.'s signature Uncrustables sandwiches through defamatory social media posts and false claims that its own products are nutritionally superior, the jam giant alleged Monday in an Ohio federal court complaint.

  • September 17, 2024

    2nd Circ. Lets American Girl Doll Counterfeit Case Proceed

    The Second Circuit on Tuesday held that doll manufacturer American Girl LLC could move ahead with its New York federal suit accusing a China-based company of selling counterfeit versions of its dolls, finding that American Girl showed the defendant transacted business in the state.

  • September 17, 2024

    Ford Barred From Using InterMotive Mark After $13M Verdict

    A Michigan federal judge permanently barred Ford Motor Co. from using the name of a California tech company's vehicle control module, following last year's jury award of more than $13 million to the tech maker for infringement by Ford.

  • September 17, 2024

    Flowers For Miley? Not Without Bruno Mars, Suit Says

    Singer Miley Cyrus is accused of lifting extensively from Bruno Mars' popular song "When I Was Your Man" to create her hit "Flowers," according to a copyright suit in California federal court that also targets Sony, Apple, Disney and several others.

  • September 17, 2024

    Brooklyn Feds Unveil Whistleblower Nonprosecution Plan

    The Brooklyn U.S. Attorney's Office on Tuesday announced an initiative to reward corporate whistleblowers with nonprosecution deals amid a broader effort by federal prosecutors to encourage voluntary disclosure of criminal activity.

  • September 17, 2024

    Tech Co. Takes Shot At Brooklyn Nets Over 'Netaverse' Use

    The Brooklyn Nets have damaged the reputation of hardware and software technology company Phinge Corp. by unlawfully using the phrase "netaverse," which Phinge has been using since 2022, for the team's virtual reality services, according to a new trademark infringement lawsuit lodged in California federal court.

  • September 17, 2024

    GC Base Salaries At Big Companies On The Rise

    General counsel base salaries at companies making $5 billion or more in revenue has increased from last year, while their total compensation has decreased, according to a report released Tuesday by the Association of Corporate Counsel and Empsight International LLC.

  • September 17, 2024

    Google Taps In-House Atty For Head Of General Litigation

    Google has promoted a longtime in-house attorney to be its head of general litigation, tapping a 13-year veteran of the tech giant who originally studied architectural engineering before going to law school. 

  • September 17, 2024

    Meta Deletes Photo Tagging IP At Fed. Circ.

    The Federal Circuit on Tuesday handed Meta Platforms Inc. a win in an infringement case, upholding the invalidation of a patent-holding company's patent on digitally tagging images and dismissing related patents on appeal after they failed to survive at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.

  • September 17, 2024

    Addleshaw Goddard Expands IP Team With Five Stobbs Hires

    Addleshaw Goddard LLP has hired a five-lawyer team from an intellectual property boutique led by a veteran IP litigator from the high-profile Colin the Caterpillar case as it strives to grow a market-leading team.

  • September 17, 2024

    Toshiba Sheet-Counting Patent Gets Revoked On Appeal

    Toshiba has lost a patent over a sheet-inspecting machine that can count and reject banknotes, after European officials ruled that it was obvious in light of previous patents.

  • September 17, 2024

    Competitiveness Outranks Climate In New EU Commission

    European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen shifted her focus from climate change to boosting competitiveness as she proposed her team of commissioners for the next five-year mandate Tuesday, handing out key jobs covering everything from competition enforcement to trade policy.

  • September 17, 2024

    Nokia's UPC Clash With Rival Paused Amid German Case

    Nokia cannot press ahead with its bid to revoke an Israeli company's connectivity patent at the Unified Patent Court until its "almost identical" German case concludes, an appeals panel ruled Tuesday.

  • September 17, 2024

    Dutch Bike Maker Proves Rival's 'Fat Bike' Infringes Its Design

    A bicycle company has persuaded a Dutch court to prevent its rival from selling its "fat bikes" in the European Union, proving that the wide-tired mount infringes its design rights over a similar bicycle.

  • September 17, 2024

    EasyGroup Hits Bathroom Retailer For "Easy Bathrooms" TM

    Airline and hotel giant EasyGroup is suing a supplier of bathroom equipment for infringing its trademark by using an "Easy Bathrooms" logo reading, saying the company is unlawfully benefiting from its reputation.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    After Chevron: Rethinking Agency Deference In IP Cases

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent overturning of Chevron deference could make it simpler to challenge the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s proposed rule on terminal disclaimers and U.S. International Trade Commission interpretations, says William Milliken at Sterne Kessler.

  • Series

    Solving Puzzles Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Tackling daily puzzles — like Wordle, KenKen and Connections — has bolstered my intellectual property litigation practice by helping me to exercise different mental skills, acknowledge minor but important details, and build and reinforce good habits, says Roy Wepner at Kaplan Breyer.

  • Opinion

    'Trump Too Small' Ruling Overlooks TM Registration Issues

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision last month in Vidal v. Elster, which concluded that “Trump Too Small” cannot be a registered trademark as it violates a federal prohibition, fails to consider modern-day, real-world implications for trademark owners who are denied access to federal registration, say Tiffany Gehrke and Alexa Spitz at Marshall Gerstein.

  • Texas Ethics Opinion Flags Hazards Of Unauthorized Practice

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    The Texas Professional Ethics Committee's recently issued proposed opinion finding that in-house counsel providing legal services to the company's clients constitutes the unauthorized practice of law is a valuable clarification given that a UPL violation — a misdemeanor in most states — carries high stakes, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.

  • In Memoriam: The Modern Administrative State

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    On June 28, the modern administrative state, where courts deferred to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, died when the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its previous decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — but it is survived by many cases decided under the Chevron framework, say Joseph Schaeffer and Jessica Deyoe at Babst Calland.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Expect Limited Changes In USPTO Rulemaking

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling overturning Chevron deference will have limited consequences for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office given the USPTO's unique statutory features, but it is still an important decision for matters of statutory interpretation, especially those involving provisions of the America Invents Act, say Andrei Iancu and Cooper Godfrey at Sullivan & Cromwell.

  • Fed. Circ. Skinny Label Ruling Guides On Infringement Claims

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Amarin v. Hikma shows generic drug manufacturers must pay close attention to the statements in their abbreviated new drug application labels to put themselves in the best position in defending against an induced infringement claim, say Luke Shannon and Roshan Shrestha at Taft Stettinius.

  • How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts

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    As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.

  • USPTO Disclaimer Rule Would Complicate Patent Prosecution

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    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's proposed changes to terminal disclaimer practice could lead to a patent owner being unable to enforce a valid patent simply because it is indirectly tied to a patent in which a single claim is found anticipated or obvious in view of the prior art, say attorneys at Sterne Kessler.

  • Series

    Boxing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Boxing has influenced my legal work by enabling me to confidently hone the skills I've learned from the sport, like the ability to remain calm under pressure, evaluate an opponent's weaknesses and recognize when to seize an important opportunity, says Kirsten Soto at Clyde & Co.

  • Opinion

    Industry Self-Regulation Will Shine Post-Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's Loper decision will shape the contours of industry self-regulation in the years to come, providing opportunities for this often-misunderstood practice, says Eric Reicin at BBB National Programs.

  • When Patents As Loan Collateral Can Cost You Standing

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Intellectual Tech v. Zebra Technologies shines a light on loan default provisions' implications for patent infringement litigation, as a default may inadvertently strip a patent owner of constitutional standing to sue over a patent pledged as collateral, say Joseph Marinelli and Suet L. Lee at Irwin IP.

  • 3 Ways Agencies Will Keep Making Law After Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court clearly thinks it has done something big in overturning the Chevron precedent that had given deference to agencies' statutory interpretations, but regulated parties have to consider how agencies retain significant power to shape the law and its meaning, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Roundup

    After Chevron

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    Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Chevron deference standard in June, this Expert Analysis series has featured attorneys discussing the potential impact across 36 different rulemaking and litigation areas.

  • How Life Science Companies Are Approaching UPC Opt-Outs

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    A look at recent data shows that one year after its launch, the European Union's Unified Patent Court is still seeing a high rate of opt-outs, including from large U.S.-based life science companies wary of this unpredictable court — and there are reasons this strategy should largely remain the same, say Sanjay Murthy and Christopher Tuinenga at McAndrews Held.

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