Intellectual Property

  • September 06, 2024

    T.I. Tells Jury 'Anyone With Eyes' Can See MGA's IP Theft

    Grammy-winning hip hop artist T.I. on Friday told jurors weighing his intellectual property suit against toymaker MGA Enterntainment that anyone could see the similarities between the company's O.M.G. doll line and the OMG Girlz pop group that the rapper co-owns, but he's not sure the company CEO knew of any alleged idea theft.

  • September 06, 2024

    7th Circ. Skeptical Of Bid To Revive Fraud Claims Against Firm

    The Seventh Circuit seemed inclined Friday not to disturb lower court rulings that sank a litigation funder's fraud and damages claims against a law firm that abruptly dropped the business to represent a former employee who left to open a competing venture.

  • September 06, 2024

    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 06, 2024

    Actelion Must Face Tracleer Antitrust Suit With Class Certified

    A Maryland federal judge refused Friday to toss an antitrust suit accusing Actelion Pharmaceuticals of illegally denying generics companies the samples they needed to produce generic versions of its hypertension drug Tracleer, while separately certifying a class composed of "hundreds" of insurers and self-funded employers.

  • September 06, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Revives ParkerVision Patent Suit Against Qualcomm

    The Federal Circuit on Friday revived a ParkerVision Inc. lawsuit against Qualcomm Inc. over wireless communications patents, ruling that a Florida judge wrongly relied on earlier decisions to grant summary judgment to Qualcomm and exclude ParkerVision's experts.

  • September 06, 2024

    Crypto Project Finds Shkreli's Wu-Tang Claims 'Dubious'

    The crypto project suing Martin Shkreli for allegedly harming the value of a one-of-a-kind Wu-Tang Clan album on Friday urged a federal judge to ensure Shkreli "fully" complies with an order directing him to surrender all copies of the album after the project found his recent submission lacking.

  • September 06, 2024

    Marc Jacobs Brushes Off Eyeshadow TM Suit

    A Korean skin care company that alleged an eyeshadow line from Marc Jacobs infringed its trademark for an anti-aging eye cream has lost its case, with a California federal judge finding the Eye-Conic cosmetics from Marc Jacobs Beauty would not likely be confused with Amarte's Eyeconic eye cream.

  • September 06, 2024

    Attys Urge Justices To Shield Corporate Veil In TM Case

    More briefs landed Friday in the "Dewberry" trademark case currently before the U.S. Supreme Court — this time, from two groups of intellectual property lawyers who are concerned about the use of the Lanham Act to "pierce the corporate veil."

  • September 06, 2024

    NJ Medical Co. Claims Ex-Employees Conspired To Form Rival

    A New Jersey medical communications agency said Friday that four of its former employees and the onetime U.S. president of biopharmaceutical company PharmaEssentia used its confidential information in a scheme to form a rival firm and steal millions of dollars of work from it.

  • September 06, 2024

    Ingersoll Rand Blocks Rival From Hiring Ex-Exec In NDA Fight

    A Colorado state court has preliminarily blocked the former chief executive of a company acquired by industrial products giant Ingersoll Rand Inc. from working for rival Avantor, finding Ingersoll Rand will likely win its claims that the executive specifically agreed not to work for Avantor as a condition of the acquisition.

  • September 06, 2024

    Music Publishers Argue Their AI Copyright Case Is Different

    Music publishing companies suing an artificial intelligence company over using song lyrics say that their copyright lawsuit is different from some other copyright suits against AI developers.

  • September 06, 2024

    ITC Judge Partially Clears Voltage Of Infringing Solar Patent

    North Carolina solar provider Voltage LLC's imports of a "trunk bus" power transmission system infringe a patent owned by Tennessee-based competitor Shoals Technologies Group Inc., but a revised design of the product does not, an administrative law judge of the U.S. International Trade Commission has found.

  • September 06, 2024

    Off The Bench: NCAA Flops, NBA Trial, Sunday Ticket Appeal

    In this week's Off The Bench, the $2.78 billion deal to settle a vast class action targeting the NCAA's name, image and likeness compensation rules hits a snag, the NBA and Warner Bros. aim for an April trial in their media rights fight, and NFL Sunday Ticket subscribers look to reinstate their $4.7 billion antitrust victory over the league.

  • September 06, 2024

    NC Restoration Co. Wants Out Of Rival's Noncompete Fight

    The new owner of a property restoration company caught in the crosshairs of a fight between its founders and their former employer has asked for a quick exit from the dispute, saying it can't be held liable for the founders' actions when the parties' real beef is with each other.

  • September 06, 2024

    No Redo On Eminem Licensing Ruling Over Spotify Plays

    A Tennessee federal judge refused to rethink her decision in favor of Spotify on its third-party claims against the collection agent for Eminem's music publisher over a licensing dispute, stating Friday that the agent's arguments have been addressed already.

  • September 06, 2024

    Software Co. Targets Validity Of Data Tracker Patents

    A software company pressed a North Carolina federal court to throw out a rival's patent infringement claims concerning software that allows businesses to track a website user's browsing without third-party cookies, arguing the patents are invalid.

  • September 06, 2024

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

    This past week in London has seen Rockfire Capital sue its former director, Liam Kavanagh, after he was accused of cheating cash-strapped Thurrock Council out of £150 million ($197 million), FedEx launch a claim against an Israeli supply chain business, and a legal dispute between steel magnate Sanjeev Gupta and a former colleague. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • September 06, 2024

    Fox Rothschild Lands Entertainment Atty From Netflix In NY

    An attorney who most recently worked for streaming giant Netflix is bringing his lifelong love of film and past working as a writer and producer to Fox Rothschild LLP.

  • September 06, 2024

    Glioblastoma Org. Wants End To Rival's Use Of 'GBM'

    The Glioblastoma Foundation has hit a competing nonprofit with a suit alleging that the group's use of the initials "GBM" in its name has ripped off its trademark and sown confusion among donors who can't tell the two organizations apart.

  • September 06, 2024

    Platform Science Fights $19.3M Software Patent Verdict

    Platform Science Inc. has urged a California federal judge to erase a jury's verdict that it owes $19.3 million to Qualcomm spinoff Omnitracs LLC for infringing its fleet management software patent, arguing that the verdict is improper and that the court should overturn it or order a new trial.

  • September 06, 2024

    Judge Newman's Suspension Extended For Another Year

    Federal Circuit Judge Pauline Newman was barred Friday from hearing cases for at least another year due to her refusal to participate in an investigation into her health, with the appeals court's other judges deciding unanimously to extend a suspension that began last year.

  • September 05, 2024

    Nvidia, Microsoft Face Patent, Cartel Allegations In Texas Suit

    A new lawsuit accuses Nvidia of holding "monopoly power" over the market on graphics processing in the artificial intelligence space and alleges the tech company is colluding with Microsoft and a prominent patent risk management company to squeeze out a small startup that claims to have developed the "fundamental intellectual property" behind that technology.

  • September 05, 2024

    MGA's O.M.G. Dolls Imitated Girl Group's Looks, Member Says

    Toy company MGA Entertainment Inc.'s line of O.M.G. dolls imitated the signature looks of a pop group created by rapper T.I. called OMG Girlz, a member of the singing group testified Thursday in a California federal court retrial of a long-running intellectual property fight.

  • September 05, 2024

    NCAA's $2.78B NIL Deal Misses 1st Shot At Initial OK

    A California federal judge declined Thursday to preliminarily approve a $2.78 billion deal to settle an antitrust class action targeting the NCAA's name, image and likeness compensation rules, saying counsel must "go back to the drawing board" on some of the deal's terms.

  • September 05, 2024

    TM Ruling Creates Way To Pierce Corporate Veil, Justices Told

    A conservative legal group says that a Fourth Circuit ruling the justices have agreed to review over a $43 million trademark award in a fight between two businesses that use the name "Dewberry" provides a new way to pierce the corporate veil that "veers far from acceptable legal principles."

Expert Analysis

  • USPTO Must Anticipate 'Black-Box Problem' For AI Inventions

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    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's recent guidance allows patents for inventions created with artificial intelligence, but inventors need to address the so-called black-box problem to ensure others can recreate the invention, thus meeting the enablement requirement, say Mark Basanta and Georg Reitboeck at Haug Partners.

  • Irish Businesses Should Act Now To Prepare For EU AI Act

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    Artificial intelligence is increasingly transforming the Irish job market, and proactive engagement with the forthcoming European Union AI Act, a significant shift in the regulatory landscape for Irish businesses, will be essential for Irish businesses to responsibly harness AI’s advantages and to maintain legal compliance, say lawyers at Pinsent Masons.

  • How To Grow Marketing, Biz Dev Teams In A Tight Market

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    Faced with fierce competition and rising operating costs, firms are feeling the pressure to build a well-oiled marketing and business development team that supports strategic priorities, but they’ll need to be flexible and creative given a tight talent market, says Ben Curle at Ambition.

  • Considerations For Federal Right Of Publicity As AI Advances

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    Amid rapid advances in generative artificial intelligence technology, Congress should consider how a federal right of publicity would interact with the existing patchwork of state name, image and likeness laws, as well as other issues like scope, harm recognized and available relief, says Ross Bagley at Pryor Cashman.

  • What Patent Litigators Should Know About CHIPS Act Grants

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    With the U.S. Department of Commerce now actively awarding grants under the CHIPS and Science Act, recipients should ensure they understand the implications of promises to construct new semiconductor manufacturing facilities, especially in jurisdictions with active patent litigation dockets, say Gabriel Culver and Peter Hillegas at Norton Rose.

  • Patent Lessons From 5 Federal Circuit Reversals In June

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    A look at June cases where the Federal Circuit reversed or vacated decisions by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board or a federal district court highlights a potential path for branded drugmakers to sue generic-drug makers for off-label uses, potential downsides of violating a pretrial order offering testimony, and more, say Denise De Mory and Li Guo at Bunsow De Mory.

  • Series

    Rock Climbing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Rock climbing requires problem-solving, focus, risk management and resilience, skills that are also invaluable assets in my role as a finance lawyer, says Mei Zhang at Haynes and Boone.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Dance The Legal Standard Two-Step

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    From rookie brief writers to Chief Justice John Roberts, lawyers should master the legal standard two-step — framing the governing standard at the outset, and clarifying why they meet that standard — which has benefits for both the drafter and reader, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Alice Step 2 Trends Show Courts' Extrinsic Evidence Reliance

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    A look at recent trends in how district courts are applying Step 2 of the Alice framework shows that courts have increasingly relied on extrinsic evidence to help determine whether a claimed invention is "well-understood, routine, and conventional," says Jonathan Tuminaro at Sterne Kessler.

  • Recent Settlement Shows 'China Initiative' Has Life After Death

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    Though the U.S. Department of Justice shuttered its controversial China Initiative two years ago, its recent False Claims Act settlement with the Cleveland Clinic Foundation demonstrates that prosecutors are more than willing to civilly pursue research institutions whose employees were previously targeted, say attorneys at Benesch.

  • How Orange Book Antitrust Scrutiny Is Intensifying

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    Pharmaceutical patent holders should be reviewing Orange Book listing practices, as the Federal Trade Commission takes a more aggressive antitrust approach with actions such as the Teva listing probe, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration calls attention to potentially improper listings, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • Trending At The PTAB: 1 Year Of Denials Of Institution

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    An analysis of Patent Trial and Appeal Board denials of institutions between May 2023 and May of this year highlights the board’s common reasons for denial, which can provide insight to both petitioners and patent owners in future proceedings, say Kevin Rodkey and Victor Palace at Finnegan.

  • Questions Linger About DTSA's Scope After Motorola Ruling

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    The Seventh Circuit’s recent ruling in Motorola v. Hytera, which held that the Defend Trade Secrets Act applies extraterritorially, does not address whether an act that furthers misappropriation must be committed by the defendant in order to satisfy the law's extraterritoriality requirement, say Ilissa Samplin and Grace Hart at Gibson Dunn.

  • Opinion

    Conception Is The Proper Test For AI-Assisted Inventions

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    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office should adopt the conception standard for reviewing AI-assisted inventions, and require the disclosure of artificial intelligence prompts and responses because they are material to patentability, which would then simplify the patent examiner’s invention decision, says Thomas Hamlin at Robins Kaplan.

  • What High Court TM Rulings Tell Us About Free Speech

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    Recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings show tension between free speech and trademark law, highlighting that while political mockery is protected, established brands may be forced to adapt to evolving cultural values, says William Scott Goldman at Goldman Law Group.

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