Intellectual Property

  • March 21, 2025

    Lululemon Secures PTAB Decision Axing Nike Shoe Patent

    Lululemon persuaded a panel of administrative judges on Friday to wipe out all of the claims in a Nike footwear manufacturing patent, which Nike had already dropped from its New York suit against the athletic apparel retailer by the time that case went to trial earlier this month.

  • March 21, 2025

    Judge Incredulous At Defense Raised In OpenAI TM Fight

    A California federal judge doubted Friday certain defenses in OpenAI's trademark battle against a man who runs a website called "open.ai," telling the man's counsel repeatedly during a hearing it's "incredible" that he's claiming the court can't legally order him to transfer the domain if he doesn't own the mark.

  • March 21, 2025

    Novartis Urges Court To Make FDA Block Entresto Generic

    Novartis says the U.S. Food & Drug Administration has made a drug marketing exclusivity window "meaningless" and wants a D.C. federal judge to block a rival from selling a generic drug that would compete with its blockbuster heart medication Entresto.

  • March 21, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Revives Blood Pump Patent Suit Against J&J Unit

    The Federal Circuit on Friday reinstated a blood pump patent suit by a unit of Swedish medical device company Getinge AB against a Johnson & Johnson MedTech subsidiary, faulting a Massachusetts federal judge's claim construction that led the parties to stipulate that there was no infringement.

  • March 21, 2025

    BMW Gets PTAB To Knock Out Processor Patent

    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has found that BMW was able to show that all the claims it challenged in a patent for processor technology as invalid as obvious.

  • March 21, 2025

    Gibson Gets Infringement Finding Plus $1 In Guitar TM Retrial

    A Texas federal jury on Friday found that a Florida-based guitar maker infringed Gibson Brands Inc.'s trademarks on shapes of some of its famous guitars like the Flying V and Explorer but handed Gibson $1 after finding that it delayed bringing its claims.

  • March 21, 2025

    PTAB Judges Told To Get Ready For Layoffs

    Administrative judges with the Patent Trial and Appeal Board should prepare themselves for layoffs, according to an email from Chief Administrative Patent Judge Scott Boalick that was shared with Law360.

  • March 21, 2025

    Crocs Defends News Release In Bid To Beat Defamation Suit

    Footwear maker Crocs Inc. told a Colorado federal judge Friday that a 2022 news release in which it said Crocs secured "a judgment of infringement" against a rival company was at least substantially true, contending that's enough to defeat the rival's summary judgment bid in a defamation suit.

  • March 21, 2025

    Cigna Wants Fees After Being Cleared In Payment IP Row

    Cigna has urged a Texas federal court to award it legal fees in a case where it was cleared of infringing a card payment patent, saying the patent owner was trying to get the court to rule that a Federal Circuit ruling on the same patent in another case was wrong. 

  • March 21, 2025

    Off The Bench: Celts Sold, Tennis 'Cartel,' DraftKings In Deep

    In this week's Off The Bench, two BigLaw titans help steer the record sale of a prestigious NBA franchise, tennis pros heap damning antitrust allegations on the sport's leadership, and DraftKings remains mired in a dispute over its use of baseball players' likenesses to promote their gambling offers.

  • March 21, 2025

    Football Player Hits NCAA With Latest Antitrust Eligibility Suit

    The NCAA is facing yet another antitrust challenge to its eligibility rules, this time from a college football player who says the organization unfairly denied him a waiver that would have allowed him to play at Rutgers University next season.

  • March 21, 2025

    4th Circ. Revives TM Fight Over 'Westmont' Retirement Homes

    A Virginia federal court incorrectly concluded that there could be no likelihood of confusion between two companies that operate retirement communities with the name "Westmont" because they are on opposite sides of the U.S., the Fourth Circuit said in remanding the case and ordering a more comprehensive analysis on potential consumer confusion.

  • March 21, 2025

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

    This past week in London has seen a sub-postmaster sue the Post Office and Fujitsu, Russian insurer Ingosstrakh hit the Financial Times with a defamation claim, and Britvic-owned Robinsons Soft Drinks file a passing off claim against Aldi. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • March 21, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Backs Actavis' $12M Patent Suit Cost Deduction

    Drugmaker Actavis can take a $12 million tax deduction for money it spent fending off lawsuits while securing approval to sell generic birth control and other drugs, the Federal Circuit ruled Friday, affirming the U.S. Court of Federal Claims' decision that the costs were deductible as ordinary business expenses.

  • March 20, 2025

    Gilstrap Won't Enhance $192M Verdict Against Samsung

    U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap decided Thursday that tripling a $192 million willful patent infringement verdict against Samsung "is not warranted," finalizing a judgment against the smartphone maker over wireless charging devices used with Galaxy phones.

  • March 20, 2025

    NJ Military Co. Says Ex-Director Took Trade Secrets To Rival

    A New Jersey company that produces lubricants for military artillery sued a former employee Wednesday, claiming he took the company's proprietary information and set up a rival company making a nearly identical product.

  • March 20, 2025

    Sanyo Owes $1 In Touchscreen Tech Case, Judge Finds

    An electronics manufacturer on Thursday was awarded $1 in damages by a Michigan federal judge after it prevailed on its claim that Sanyo North America Corp. wrongly used its touchscreen technology to develop a vehicle console for General Motors.

  • March 20, 2025

    Industry Groups Criticize Withdrawal Of PTAB Denial Memo

    Groups representing major industries have written to the White House expressing "grave concern" about the patent office's withdrawal of a guidance memo limiting when patent challenges can be denied, and large tech companies told a court the office's move bolsters their case against such denials.

  • March 20, 2025

    Faegre Drinker Faces Sanctions Bid In Trump IP Song Suit

    Isaac Hayes' estate urged a Georgia federal judge Thursday to sanction a conservative political group and its Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath counsel in a copyright lawsuit over President Donald Trump's playing of Hayes' "Hold On, I'm Comin'" hit song at rallies, arguing they filed a "frivolous" dismissal bid.

  • March 20, 2025

    PTAB Labels Different Constructions Ruling As Informative

    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board on Thursday designated as informative a December decision shooting down Cambridge Mobile Telematics Inc.'s challenge to a car crash detection patent, saying it provides guidance on an issue involving claim construction arguments by challengers.

  • March 20, 2025

    Mariah Carey Gifted Legal Win In 'Christmas' Song IP Suit

    A California federal judge on Wednesday tossed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Mariah Carey and others over her song "All I Want For Christmas Is You" and sanctioned the two songwriters who sued for filing a summary judgment motion with "frivolous legal arguments" and "irrelevant and unsupported statements of fact."

  • March 20, 2025

    Samsung's Phone Screen Patent Case Dies At ITC

    Samsung has failed to convince the U.S. International Trade Commission to second-guess an administrative law judge who decided last year that the smartphone giant could not bring a patent case at the agency against a major Chinese rival that makes replacement screens for smartphones.

  • March 20, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Backs PTAB Decision That Upheld Lighting IP Claim

    The Federal Circuit has backed a Patent Trial and Appeal Board finding that ELCO Lighting did not show that one claim of a DMF Inc. LED lighting system patent is invalid, calling one of ELCO's arguments "meritless."

  • March 20, 2025

    Chinese Pool Firms Banned From US Sales Until Judgment Is Paid

    A North Carolina federal judge barred multiple Chinese companies and their owner from importing and selling pool equipment in the United States until they pay off a prior $17.8 million judgment after finding them in contempt for "actively frustrating" collection efforts by moving money around despite restraining orders.

  • March 20, 2025

    Robinson Bradshaw Adds Ex-FBI Deputy Chief Of Staff

    Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA has hired a former FBI deputy chief of staff, whose new role will focus on representing clients in complex internal investigations similar to those he led in a previous position at the Justice Department, the firm announced.

Expert Analysis

  • Key Territory-Split Licensing Lessons For Life Sciences Cos.

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    Territory-split deals can allow life sciences companies to maximize products' potential across a range of geographic areas, but these deals also present unique challenges requiring highly bespoke structures that can make or break the value of an asset, say attorneys at Covington.

  • A Look At 2024 NIL Rights And Economies In College Sports

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    Permutations in the arena of name, image and likeness affecting collegiate athletics have continued unabated this year, and practitioners and industry representatives should anticipate significant activity at schools and continuing legal changes at the state level, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

  • Legislation Most Likely To Pass In Lame Duck Session

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    As Congress begins its five-week post-election lame duck session, attorneys at Greenberg Traurig break down the legislative priorities and which proposals can be expected to pass.

  • Copyright Questions Surround AI Music Platform Suits

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    If recent lawsuits filed by the Recording Industry Association of America against two artificial intelligence music platform developers — who maintain that use of copyrighted works to train AI models constitutes fair use — go to trial, this novel issue will make for potentially precedent-setting decisions, says intellectual property lawyer Eric Lane.

  • Patent Marking Steps After Fed. Circ. Opens Lanham Act Door

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    Following the Federal Circuit’s recent ruling in Crocs v. Effervescent, which seemingly revives private actors’ ability to bring false patent marking claims under the Lanham Act, marketing and legal teams should be careful to avoid advertisement language that implies nonexistent patent rights, says Jeffrey Ratinoff at Spencer Fane.

  • Litigation Strategies In View Of New Double Patenting Rulings

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    Recent Federal Circuit decisions, including in Allergan v. MSN, raise several issues that patent owners should understand and consider addressing proactively regarding obviousness-type double patenting, at least in their prosecution strategies, say attorneys at Dentons.

  • Promoting Diversity In The Selection Of ADR Neutrals

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Choosing neutrals from diverse backgrounds is an important step in promoting inclusion in the legal profession, and it can enhance the legitimacy and public perception of alternative dispute resolution proceedings, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Series

    Playing Ultimate Makes Us Better Lawyers

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    In addition to being fun, ultimate Frisbee has improved our legal careers by emphasizing the importance of professionalism, teamwork, perseverance, enthusiasm and vulnerability, say Arunabha Bhoumik and Adam Bernstein at Regeneron. 

  • Tracking The Slow Movement Of AI Copyright Cases

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    The tech community may be expecting a prompt resolution on whether products generated by artificial intelligence are a fair use of copyrighted works, but legal history shows that a response to this question — at the heart of over 30 pending cases — will take years, say attorneys at White & Case.

  • The EU Design System Changes US Cos. Need To Know About

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    With a number of major reforms to the European Union's design protection system set to take effect in the first half of 2025, U.S. companies need to stay informed about specific details to maintain effective intellectual property management in the EU market, say lawyers at Finnegan.

  • Curious Case Of FTC's Amicus Brief In Teva Fed. Circ. Appeal

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    Attorneys at BCLP explore the Federal Trade Commission's backing of Amneal's Orange Book-delisting efforts on Teva ahead of a key Federal Circuit hearing in a case between the two pharmaceutical companies, and wonder if the FTC amicus brief indicates a future trend, especially in the next administration.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Metadata

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    Several recent rulings reflect the competing considerations that arise when parties dispute the form of production for electronically stored information, underscoring that counsel must carefully consider how to produce and request reasonably usable data, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • When 'Patented' Goes Beyond Inventorship In False Ad Cases

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    The Federal Circuit's recent false advertising holding in Crocs v. Effervescent is significant because it offers a nuanced yet realistic understanding of what false claims about a product's status as "patented" can mean, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • The Fed. Circ. In October: Aetna And License-Term Review

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision that Aetna's credit card licensing agreement with AlexSam did not give the insurer immunity from patent infringement claims serves to warn licensees to read their contracts carefully, say attorneys at Knobbe Martens.

  • Opinion

    PREVAIL Bill Is Another Misguided Attempt To Restrict PTAB

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    The decade-long campaign against the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Patent Trial and Appeal Board — currently focused on the PREVAIL Act that's slated for markup in the Senate — is not really about procedural issues, and it is not aimed at securing more accurate patentability decisions, says Clear IP's Joseph Matal, former acting director at the USPTO.

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