Intellectual Property

  • June 07, 2024

    Pedicure Chair Co. Settles Patent Suits With Nail Salon, Seller

    A company that sells pedicure chairs has reached settlements in litigation accusing a North Carolina nail salon and a Texas spa furniture retailer of using and selling chairs that infringe its patent.

  • June 07, 2024

    High Court's 'Narrow' Jack Daniel's Opinion Having Big Impact

    When the U.S. Supreme Court decided a year ago that the maker of a squeaky dog toy that looks like a Jack Daniel’s whiskey bottle had no free speech protections against trademark infringement claims, the justices described their holding as narrow, but lawyers and academics are now suggesting the opinion is having broader implications.

  • June 07, 2024

    Sony Gets PTAB To Knock Out Video Chip Patent On Remand

    Following a Federal Circuit remand, patent board judges have changed their position on arguments from Sony to wipe out a patent covering ideas developed by a defunct Silicon Valley chipmaker that would eventually be asserted in a suit almost two decades later targeting a PlayStation video game streaming service.

  • June 07, 2024

    Purdue Keeps $32.5M Semiconductor Patent Trial Win

    U.S. District Judge Alan Albright entered final judgment Thursday affirming a Texas federal jury's finding that microchip maker STMicroelectronics owes the trustees of Purdue University $32.5 million for infringing a semiconductor patent, rejecting the chipmaker's argument that Purdue engaged in inequitable conduct by allegedly hiding prior art.

  • June 07, 2024

    Jury Tells Computer Co. Acer To Pay $10.3M Over Patent Suit

    A Texas federal jury found Thursday that SVV Technology Innovations Inc. is owed $10.3 million by Taiwan's Acer Inc. for infringing patents covering an optical film.

  • June 07, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Panel Doubts Bid To Nix Actavis' $12M Deduction

    A Federal Circuit panel seemed skeptical of the government's bid to overturn a decision allowing drugmaker Actavis to deduct $12 million it spent fending off lawsuits as it secured approval to sell generics, raising the question during oral arguments Friday whether the company was being uniquely targeted.

  • June 07, 2024

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

    The past week in London has seen British broadcaster GB News hit with a libel claim by climate activist Dale Vince, MGM take aim at an immersive events company over intellectual property rights to the James Bond franchise, and law firms Stephenson Harwood and Bowen-Morris & Partners tackle a contracts claim by investment adviser Yieldstreet. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • June 06, 2024

    Netflix Hit With $170M Suit Over 'Baby Reindeer's' 'Brutal Lies'

    Netflix built its popular stalker miniseries "Baby Reindeer" on "brutal lies" that have "ruined" the life of the Scottish lawyer who claims to have inspired the show — all because "it was a better story than the truth," according to a $170 million suit filed in California federal court Thursday.

  • June 06, 2024

    Google Gets Tweaked AI Data-Scraping Complaint Axed

    A California federal judge on Thursday agreed to dismiss — for now — a proposed class action claiming Google steals private and copyrighted information to train its artificial intelligence chatbot, pointing to a recent ruling siding with Microsoft Corp. and OpenAI in a similar case.

  • June 06, 2024

    USPTO Rejects Apple's Bids To Reexamine Masimo Patents

    Apple has failed to convince examiners at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that there are any new reasons to cancel claims in a pair of patents cited in a U.S. International Trade Commission ruling that blocks the tech giant from importing Apple Watches with a blood oxygen sensor.

  • June 06, 2024

    Drugmakers Escape Cancer Drug Antitrust Claims For Now

    A New Jersey federal judge granted drugmakers Celgene and Bristol-Myers Squibb an out from consolidated antitrust litigation accusing them of delaying generic competition to their blockbuster cancer treatments, saying the conduct alleged by a group of insurer plaintiffs fails to amount to anti-competitive conduct.

  • June 06, 2024

    Wash. Judge Suggests Insurer Dragged Out IP Dispute

    A Washington federal judge appeared unconvinced Thursday by a dental health insurer's argument that it acted honestly in pushing forward with trade secret claims even after the accused ex-employee returned her company-issued laptop that purportedly held sensitive information.

  • June 06, 2024

    In 13-Year Trademark Fight, Chicago Judge Says No More

    A Chicago federal judge brought to a close a trademark fight between two vaping companies surrounding the phrase "21st Century Smoking" that has stretched on for over a decade and led to millions of dollars in sanctions over thousands of deleted emails and long-hidden documents.

  • June 06, 2024

    8th Circ. Affirms Cigna Noncompete Applies To CVS Hire

    The Eighth Circuit has backed a lower court finding that blocked a healthcare industry executive from making a move to CVS, handing a win to Cigna in a case over trade secrets.

  • June 06, 2024

    Judge Trims Claims From Resume-Builder IP Suit

    A California federal judge partially granted a win to Rocket Resume in Bold Ltd.'s copyright infringement suit, agreeing that Bold had not met its burden to prove an important portion of the case.

  • June 06, 2024

    Getty Images Removed From Barry Sanders Statue Suit

    The number of defendants in the copyright fight over a photo used to create the statue of legendary running back Barry Sanders has continued to dwindle, after the photographer dismissed Getty Images Inc. from the suit while he continues to pursue claims against the Detroit Lions and others.

  • June 06, 2024

    Garage Address Not Enough To Keep IP Suit In Texas, Biz Says

    A Chicago-based business software review platform has argued it can't be forced to face a patent infringement suit in Texas because a patent-holding company claimed it has a location in Austin, saying a "quick Google search" would have revealed the address is a parking garage.

  • June 06, 2024

    Judge OKs $42M Stent IP Verdict, Discards Willfulness Finding

    A Delaware federal judge has said Boston Scientific was not entitled to a new trial in a case where it was told to pay $42 million for stent systems patent infringement, but threw out a finding of willful infringement.

  • June 06, 2024

    AI Co. UiPath's $70M Award Over Chinese Code Theft OK'd

    A New York federal judge has affirmed an unopposed $70 million arbitration award in favor of U.S. artificial intelligence software and robotic process automation company UiPath against a China-based competitor over allegedly stolen source code.

  • June 06, 2024

    UK, US Team Up On Standard-Essential Patents

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and U.K. Intellectual Property Office each announced a five-year agreement Thursday to collaborate on policy for standard-essential patents.

  • June 06, 2024

    Dolby Labs Buying GE Licensing For $429M

    Dolby Laboratories Inc. said Thursday it has agreed to pay $429 million for intellectual property business GE Licensing, in a deal that will expand Dolby's existing licensing businesses with more than 5,000 GE patents covering the consumer digital media and electronics sectors.

  • June 06, 2024

    Eckert Seamans Adds 5-Atty Dentons IP Team In Pittsburgh

    Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott LLC has expanded its intellectual property services with the addition of a five-member team that moved its practice from Dentons Cohen & Grigsby to the firm's Pittsburgh office.

  • June 06, 2024

    'Brussels Effect' Of EU's AI Act Is Uncertain, Legal Pros Say

    BigLaw attorneys advising international clients on the European Union's AI Act tell Law360 there are significant uncertainties over vague terms in the 458-page statute, how its steep eight-figure fines will be enforced, and whether it will set a new standard globally as part of the "Brussels effect."

  • June 06, 2024

    Romania Becomes 18th EU State To Join Unified Patent Court

    European officials said Wednesday that Romania has joined Europe's unitary patent system after ratifying the agreement just ahead of its first anniversary.

  • June 06, 2024

    Turf Co. Says Ex-VP Stole Secrets Before Joining Rival

    A longtime sales executive at FieldTurf USA, one of the leading manufacturers of artificial turf sports fields, has absconded with confidential information about the company's customers and taken the information to an industry rival, according to a lawsuit filed in Georgia federal court Wednesday.

Expert Analysis

  • Supply Chain Considerations For Companies Deploying AI

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    Many businesses will risk failure by embracing artificial intelligence without fully understanding the risks, and the value of a five-step AI supply chain analysis cannot be overstated, say Brooke Berg and Nathan Staffel at Nardello & Co.

  • How Real Estate Cos. Can Protect Their IP In The Metaverse

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    The rise of virtual and augmented reality creates new intellectual property challenges and opportunities for real estate owners, but certain steps, including conducting a diligence investigation to develop an understanding of current obligations, can help companies mitigate IP issues in the metaverse, says George Pavlik at Levenfeld Pearlstein.

  • Using A Children's Book Approach In Firm Marketing Content

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    From “The Giving Tree” to “Where the Wild Things Are,” most children’s books are easy to remember because they use simple words and numbers to tell stories with a human impact — a formula law firms should emulate in their marketing content to stay front of mind for potential clients, says Seema Desai Maglio at The Found Word.

  • Patent Lessons From 4 Federal Circuit Reversals In April

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    Four Federal Circuit decisions in April that reversed or vacated underlying rulings provide a number of takeaways, including that obviousness analysis requires a flexible approach, that an invalidity issue of an expired patent can be moot, and more, say Denise De Mory and Li Guo at Bunsow De Mory.

  • How To Use Exhibits Strategically Throughout Your Case

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    Exhibits, and documents in particular, are the lifeblood of legal advocacy, so attorneys must understand how to wield them effectively throughout different stages of a case to help build strategy, elevate witness preparation and effectively persuade the fact-finders, say Allison Rocker at Baker McKenzie and Colorado prosecutor Adam Kendall.

  • Tips For Companies Tapping Into Commercial Cleantech

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    A recent report from the European Patent Office and European Investment Bank examining the global financing and commercialization of cleantech innovation necessary for the green energy transition can help companies understand and solve the issues in developing and implementing the full potential of cleantech, says Eleanor Maciver at Mewburn Ellis.

  • Opinion

    USPTO's Proposed Disclaimer Rule Would Harm Inventors

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    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s recently proposed rule on terminal disclaimers will make the patent system less available to inventors and will unfairly favor defendants in litigation, say Stephen Schreiner at Carmichael IP and Sarah Tsou at Omni Bridgeway.

  • Series

    Being An EMT Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While some of my experiences as an emergency medical technician have been unusually painful and searing, the skills I’ve learned — such as triage, empathy and preparedness — are just as useful in my work as a restructuring lawyer, says Marshall Huebner at Davis Polk.

  • 15 Quick Tips For Uncovering And Mitigating Juror Biases

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    As highlighted by the recent jury selection process in the criminal hush money trial against former President Donald Trump, juror bias presents formidable challenges for defendants, and attorneys must employ proactive strategies — both new and old — to blunt its impact, say Monica Delgado and Jonathan Harris at Harris St. Laurent.

  • Tips For Keeping Trade Secrets In The Vault

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    Key practices aimed at maintaining confidentiality can help companies establish trade secret status as the Federal Trade Commission's ban on noncompetes makes it prudent to explore other security measures, says John Baranello at Moses & Singer.

  • Reducing Patent Litigation Costs Starts With Early Strategy

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    With the average cost ranging from $1 million to $4 million, defending a patent case can create a serious strain on resources, particularly for midsize or smaller companies, so certain cost-cutting steps should be considered at the outset — even if some seem counterintuitive, say Jeffrey Ahdoot and Wendy Verlander at Verlander.

  • Legal Issues To Watch As Deepfake Voices Proliferate

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    With increasingly sophisticated and accessible voice-cloning technology raising social, ethical and legal questions, particularly in the entertainment industry and politics, further legislative intervention and court proceedings seem very likely, say Shruti Chopra and Paul Joseph at Linklaters.

  • Opinion

    'Natural Person' Or Not, AI-Made IP Deserves Protection

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    The entire legal edifice rests on a determination that an artificial system is not a so-called natural person, and although this may appear to be straightforward on its face, rapid advances in technology may soon force us to revisit our understanding of a natural person, says Manav Das at McDonnell Boehnen.

  • Lessons On Challenging Class Plaintiffs' Expert Testimony

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    In class actions seeking damages, plaintiffs are increasingly using expert opinions to establish predominance, but several recent rulings from California federal courts shed light on how defendants can respond, say Jennifer Romano and Raija Horstman at Crowell & Moring.

  • Exploring An Alternative Model Of Litigation Finance

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    A new model of litigation finance, most aptly described as insurance-backed litigation funding, differs from traditional funding in two key ways, and the process of securing it involves three primary steps, say Bob Koneck, Christopher Le Neve Foster and Richard Butters at Atlantic Global Risk LLC.

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