Intellectual Property

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Takeaways From Fair Use Rejection Of Free E-Book Library

The Second Circuit's decision shutting down a fair use argument by Internet Archive over its system of scanning physical books and converting them into e-books to lend for free is a resounding victory for book publishers that argued their market was in danger of being supplanted.
September 20, 2024
RV Co. Wins $5.5M Enhanced TM Damages, $1.3M Atty Fees

Forest River can collect enhanced damages after a jury determined inTech Trailers infringed its mountain design trademarks on recreational vehicles, an Indiana federal judge ruled Thursday, increasing the award from $2 million to more than $5.5 million to make sure inTech does not profit from its infringement.
September 20, 2024
JBS Unit Owns Abandoned 'Pollo Picú' TM, 1st Circ. Says

JBS USA unit To-Ricos Ltd. has the right to use the "Pollo Picú" trademark in its sale of poultry products, the First Circuit ruled Thursday, finding that the poultry company established that the mark had been abandoned by the previous trademark owner.
September 20, 2024
House To Weigh Patent Bill Aimed At Cutting Drug Prices

The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to consider a bill soon that has already cleared the Senate and could streamline patent litigation by curbing the number of patents that makers of biologic drugs can assert over biosimilar drugs.
September 20, 2024
Hyundai Says Startup Can't Sue In Calif. Over Trade Secrets

South Korea-based Hyundai urged a California federal judge on Friday to toss a lawsuit alleging it stole a North Carolina startup's electric vehicle battery material technology, saying a contract inked by a Silicon Valley Hyundai office doesn't give the district court in California jurisdiction over the matter.
September 20, 2024
ITC Has Been Launching Fewer Section 337 Investigations

Intellectual property activity at the U.S. International Trade Commission has "decreased somewhat," the agency said in a report Friday.
September 20, 2024
Baby Biz Can't Get Fees After Beating Shampoo Pitcher IP Suit

A Louisiana federal judge said a 7-year-old fight over baby products "was a hard-fought patent case," rejecting efforts from a Louisiana company to obtain nearly $2 million in legal fees from a Kansas inventor of a pitcher for rinsing out shampoo.
September 20, 2024
T.I.'s Fight With MGA Over Pop Group IP Goes To Jury Again

An attorney for hip hop moguls T.I. and Tiny Harris told a California federal jury during closing arguments Friday that "common sense" should lead them to find that MGA Entertainment's line of O.M.G. dolls infringed the trade dress and misappropriated the name, likeness and identity of the OMG Girlz pop group.
September 20, 2024
Alnylam Seeks To End Inventorship Suit Tied To COVID Vax

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, which alleges that COVID-19 vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna infringe its patents, has moved in Delaware federal court to dismiss a suit by former collaborator Acuitas Therapeutics Inc. seeking to have its scientists added as inventors on the patents.
September 20, 2024
Justices Asked To Clarify IP Eligibility In Animation App Case

App developer Plotagraph has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Federal Circuit decision that found its patents that allow users to create the illusion of movement within digital photos or videos were invalid because they were abstract under the high court's Alice decision.
September 20, 2024
Getting Around ITC Was 'Sneaky,' Judge Tells Caterpillar

A Delaware court has held that Caterpillar owes about $19.5 million in a patent case, citing in part the company's "sneaky" decision to domesticate manufacturing after a setback in a related infringement case at the U.S. International Trade Commission, while also finding that Caterpillar is subject to a rare injunction blocking the sale of some of its road construction machines.
September 20, 2024
Northwestern Scores $6.6M Verdict On 'Cobot' Patents

A Delaware federal jury has awarded $6.6 million to Northwestern University after finding that Universal Robots infringed claims in three patents on collaborative robot, or "cobot," systems.
September 20, 2024
Conservative Pundit Seeks To Block Calif. AI Election Laws

A content creator who created a viral AI-generated video shared by billionaire Elon Musk that lampoons Vice President Kamala Harris' mannerisms has sued the state and asked a California federal judge to block recently enacted state laws cracking down on election-related deepfakes, arguing the new laws infringe influencers' constitutional rights.
September 20, 2024
Lawmakers Ask USPTO To Fix Patent Calculation Problem

Federal patent officials need to change standards that could let drug companies hold on to patent rights beyond the time frame they are entitled to, according to federal lawmakers.
September 20, 2024
Jewelry Co. Says Target Stole Design Of Blood Drip Necklace

A New York jewelry company accused Target of copying the design of one of its Halloween-themed necklaces for the second time, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday in New Jersey federal court.
September 20, 2024
Off The Bench: Favre Flops, Dolan Escapes, Betting Cos. Sued

In this week's Off The Bench, retired quarterback Brett Favre can't revive a defamation suit against fellow NFL Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe, New York Knicks owner James Dolan is spared from federal sex-trafficking claims, and two sports-betting giants face new suits over their use of MLB player images.
September 20, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

The past week in London has seen crypto exchange Binance face a new claim from the co-founder of SO Legal, a U.S. immersive art company take on a Bristol venue for copyright violations and Blake Morgan LLP hit with a pension schemes claim by The Trust for Welsh Archeology. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
September 19, 2024
Mistrial Avoided In MGA's 3rd Round With T.I. In IP Saga

A California federal judge declined to order a mistrial Thursday in the intellectual property dispute between MGA Entertainment and hip-hop moguls Clifford "T.I." Harris and Tameka "Tiny" Harris, but he issued a curative instruction to jurors after MGA objected to statements made by an attorney for the Harrises.
September 19, 2024
Michigan Judge Clears BMW Of Infringing Navigation Patent

A Michigan federal judge has put an end to infringement allegations in Detroit in the final case of a decadelong legal saga over a patent on a way of navigating cars, finding that BMW cars don't do what's covered in the patent.
September 19, 2024
Bills On Patent Eligibility, PTAB Limits Near Senate Markup

Legislation aiming to reduce decisions finding inventions ineligible for patenting and restrict invalidity challenges at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board will likely be considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee next week, a sponsor of the measures said Thursday.
September 19, 2024
AndroGel Antitrust Case On Hold Amid Settlement Talk

A Pennsylvania federal judge has agreed to pause a class action against Abbott and other drugmakers over allegedly sham patent cases, saying a settlement between the two sides may be in the works.
September 19, 2024
New Patent Legal Group Launches To Assist Inventors

Patent experts, including a former Federal Circuit chief judge, former federal officials and current legal scholars, say a new advocacy organization they have formed will back smaller inventors against larger companies in patent fights.
September 19, 2024
Nintendo, Pokémon Say 'Palworld' Maker Infringed Patents

Nintendo and The Pokémon Co. announced Thursday that they filed a patent infringement suit in Japan against the video game company behind "Palworld," an open world adventure game featuring fluffy creatures wielding rocket launchers and assault rifles.
September 19, 2024
Publishers Back Music Companies' Bid To Restore $1B Win

Organizations that represent music publishers and songwriters urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to review a Fourth Circuit ruling that scrapped a $1 billion jury verdict against Cox Communications Inc. for ignoring online piracy, saying the three-judge appeal panel's conclusion "effectively immunizes internet service providers" from vicarious liability.
September 19, 2024
Norwich Asks Justices To Allow Sale Of Generic Diarrhea Drug

A New York drugmaker has told the U.S. Supreme Court that the courts have gone too far in preventing the release of a generic version of a blockbuster diarrhea drug, after a lower court found there was a way of using the drug that would infringe certain patents.
September 19, 2024
Judge Gives Dow Jones Win In Article Thievery Case

A Texas federal judge has handed a win to publisher Dow Jones & Co. in a copyright infringement suit accusing an investment manager of wrongfully copying and distributing thousands of news articles from The Wall Street Journal.

Editor's Picks

Fed. Circ.'s Fight With Newman: A Year In Review

One year has passed since it came to light that the Federal Circuit's judges were investigating whether their colleague, U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman, was mentally competent to remain on the court. In that time, Judge Newman has garnered support from many in the patent community, but has faced a series of setbacks in her legal challenges.
Why IP Attys Are Watching This $2B Trade Secrets Battle

A case of alleged corporate espionage involving two software companies that resulted in a $2 billion verdict has all the hallmarks of a legal thriller, and attorneys are watching the appeal closely to see how it could impact trade secrets litigation.
Trials After PTAB Invalidity Rulings Present Tricky Issues

A recent case illustrates that Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions finding patents invalid do not necessarily preclude a district court from holding an infringement trial on the same patents, though attorneys say such a scenario could raise some challenging issues.

Expert Analysis

Exploring Practical Employer Alternatives To Noncompetes

With the Federal Trade Commission likely to appeal a federal court’s recent rejection of its noncompete ban, and more states limiting the enforceability of these agreements, employers should consider back-to-basics methods for protecting their business interests and safeguarding sensitive information, says Brendan Horgan at FordHarrison.
It's No Longer Enough For Firms To Be Trusted Advisers

Amid fierce competition for business, the transactional “trusted adviser” paradigm from which most firms operate is no longer sufficient — they should instead aim to become trusted partners with their most valuable clients, says Stuart Maister at Strategic Narrative.
Breaking Down Director Review Timing At The PTAB

Attorneys at Fish & Richardson examine the complexities of director review of a Patent Trial and Appeal Board ruling, including timelines for requests and decisions, and how these factors influence related district court cases.
Calif. Bill, NTIA Report Illustrate Open-Model AI Safety Debate

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s balanced recommendations for preventing misuse of open artificial intelligence models, contrasted with a more aggressive California bill, demonstrate an evolving regulatory debate about balancing democratic access to this powerful new technology against potential risks to the public, say Stuart Meyer and Fredrick Tsang at Fenwick.
Behind 3rd Circ. Ruling On College Athletes' FLSA Eligibility

The Third Circuit's decision that college athletes are not precluded from bringing a claim under the Fair Labor Standards Act raises key questions about the practical consequences of treating collegiate athletes as employees, such as Title IX equal pay claims and potential eligibility for all employment benefits, say attorneys at Debevoise.
Patent Lessons From 4 Federal Circuit Reversals In July

The Federal Circuit’s July reversal of four cases, all of which were Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions, highlights lessons for patent practitioners regarding the scope of estoppel provisions, potential issues with obtaining certain substitute claims, and more, say Denise De Mory and Li Guo at Bunsow De Mory.
Video Game Release Highlights TM Pitfalls Of App Store

The upcoming release of poker video game Balatro in Apple's App Store underscores the tradeoff of keyword advertising and trademark protection for indie developers who, unlike corporate counterparts, lack resources but seek to maximize the reach of their game, say Parmida Enkeshafi and Simon Pulman at Pryor Cashman.
5 Credibility Lessons Trial Attys Can Learn From Harris' Run

In launching a late-stage campaign for president, Vice President Kamala Harris must seize upon fresh attention from voters to establish, or reestablish, credibility — a challenge that parallels and provides takeaways for trial attorneys, says Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies.
Patent Owner Estoppel Questions In The Wake Of SoftView

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's seldom-litigated Rule 42.73(d)(3) on Patent Trial and Appeal Board estoppel was recently brought to the forefront in the Federal Circuit's SoftView v. Apple decision, highlighting uncertainties in this aspect of patent practice, say David Haars and Richard Crudo at Sterne Kessler.
Copyright Termination Opinion Departs From Long-Held Views

In Vetter v. Resnik, a federal court recently held for the first time that termination rights under Section 304 of the Copyright Act recapture domestic and foreign rights where the original grant was for "worldwide" rights — misinterpreting a basic principle of international copyright treaties, say Rebecca Benyamin and Eric J. Schwartz at Mitchell Silberberg.
3 Patent Considerations For America's New Quantum Hub

Recent developments signal an incredibly bright future for Chicago as the new home of quantum computing, and it is crucial that these innovators — whose technology has the potential to transform many industries — prioritize intellectual property strategy, says Andrew Velzen at McDonnell Boehnen.
Fed. Circ. Ruling Creates New Rule For Certification Marks

The Federal Circuit's decision last month in Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac v. Cologne & Cognac Entertainment is significant in that it establishes a new standard for assessing evidence of third-party uses of a certification mark in deciding whether the mark is famous, say Samantha Katze and Lisa Rosaya at Manatt.
A Preview Of AI Priorities Under The Next President

For the first time in a presidential election, both of the leading candidates and their parties have been vocal about artificial intelligence policy, offering clues on the future of regulation as AI continues to advance and congressional action continues to stall, say attorneys at Mintz.
11 Patent Cases To Watch At Fed. Circ. And High Court

As we head into fall, there are 11 patent cases to monitor, touching on a range of issues that could affect patent strategy, such as biotech innovation, administrative rulemaking and patent eligibility, say Edward Lanquist and Wesley Barbee at Baker Donelson.
Why India May Become A Major Patent Litigation Forum

India is reinventing itself with the goal of becoming a global hot spot for patent litigation, with recent developments at the Delhi High Court creating incentives for plaintiffs to assert patent rights in India, say Ranganath Sudarshan at Covington and IP litigator Udit Sood.