Intellectual Property

  • March 18, 2024

    Patent Suit Over AstraZeneca's Tagrisso Heads To Jury

    A Delaware federal judge said Monday that there are too many "genuine factual disputes" to end a lawsuit from a Pfizer brand claiming it developed a cancer treatment that's being infringed by a drug that has racked up billions in sales for rival AstraZeneca.

  • March 18, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Won't Block Intel License Defense In Calif. Case

    The Federal Circuit on Monday refused to undo a California judge's order letting Intel argue that it has a license to VLSI's microchip patents in cases with billions of dollars at stake, ruling that VLSI hadn't shown that the appeals court should step in.

  • March 18, 2024

    2nd Circ. Rejects 'New Standard' Of Patent Monopolies

    A Second Circuit panel on Monday revived antitrust allegations accusing Novartis of concealing the true history of an eye syringe treatment's development from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to edge Regeneron out of the market, faulting a district court for holding that antitrust markets can't be "coextensive" with the patent.

  • March 18, 2024

    Corteva Wants Jury Trial In FTC Pesticides Case

    Corteva has demanded a jury trial for the Federal Trade Commission's case in North Carolina federal court accusing Corteva and Syngenta of blocking competition from generic pesticides through rebate programs.

  • March 18, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Won't Order Albright To Ship Apple IP Case To Calif.

    The Federal Circuit on Monday denied an appeal from Apple Inc. of a decision denying its bid to move an infringement suit over authentication and fraud reduction patents from Texas federal court to California.

  • March 18, 2024

    Vidal Tells PTAB To Try Defining 'Biometric Signal' Again

    The head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has thrown out decisions from the Patent Trial and Trademark Board that found Assa Abloy was unable to show two biometric patents were unpatentable, saying the PTAB used a definition of a critical term that wasn't proposed by Assa Abloy or the patent owner.

  • March 18, 2024

    Texas Judges Pause Wireless Patent Fights For PTAB

    The top two federal judges in Texas handling patent cases have agreed to hold litigation between two automotive brands and a prolific litigation outfit after BMW persuaded the patent board to review "every single claim" involved in litigation over decade-old wireless patents.

  • March 18, 2024

    ​​​​​​​Amyris Gets OK To Settle Pot Co.'s $15M Trade Secret Suit

    A Delaware bankruptcy judge has approved biotechnology company Amyris' $15.1 million settlement with cannabinoid manufacturer Lavvan, resolving yearslong litigation and arbitration proceedings alleging the debtor misused its then-business partner's trade secrets.

  • March 18, 2024

    AI Voice Platform Faces UK Litigation Over 'Deepfake' Songs

    The U.K.'s trade association for recorded music has threatened legal proceedings against a deepfake artificial intelligence platform, alleging that the former Voicify's collection of AI voices infringes artists' rights.

  • March 18, 2024

    'Bootleg' E-Books Not Fair Use, Book Publishers Tell 2nd Circ.

    Four book publishers urged the Second Circuit on Friday to uphold a lower court's finding that the Internet Archive infringed their copyrights with its free e-book lending program, saying the nonprofit distributes "bootleg ebooks from its website to anyone in the world."

  • March 18, 2024

    Brita Brings ITC Filter Patent Row To Federal Circuit

    The Clorox Co.'s Brita brand has urged the Federal Circuit to overturn a decision that found it failed to show that language in a patent covering the brand's "gravity flow" filter was specific enough to earn legal protection.

  • March 18, 2024

    Justices Won't Review PTAB Ax Of Fabric Printing Patents

    The U.S. Supreme Court declined Monday to hear an appeal arguing that four patents on transferring images to fabric were wrongly invalidated in a challenge by Avery Products and others because the decision did not explain why the patents were obvious.

  • March 15, 2024

    Judiciary Clarifies Judge Shopping Policy After Senator Letter

    The Judicial Conference of the United States said Friday that its updated policy aimed at preventing litigants from shopping for the judge of their choice is not intended to overstep judges' authority or discretion under the law, issuing guidance one day after Republican senators pushed back against the policy.

  • March 15, 2024

    Feds' PACER Gaffe Doesn't Mean A Sure Win For Magnet Co.

    Federal prosecutors may suffer a setback in a case accusing a magnet manufacturer of sharing sensitive military data with China after accidentally publicizing the same information, but they may have an out under a regulation governing publishing in the public domain.

  • March 15, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Says Tube-Mac Execs Co-Invented Gas Tank Patent

    The Federal Circuit ruled Friday that two executives of pipe company Tube-Mac Industries Inc. significantly contributed to the invention of a road trailer for transporting liquefied natural gas, upholding a lower court's finding that they must be credited as co-inventors on the patent.

  • March 15, 2024

    Data Scraper Allowed To Scrap, Replace Patent Claims

    An Israeli web data scraper has convinced judges on an administrative patent board to let it switch up language in a patent that's being challenged, shortly after the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced plans to formalize its pilot program to help patent owners amend challenged claims

  • March 15, 2024

    Jury Awards GeigTech $34.6M In Roller Shade Patent Trial

    A New York federal jury has found that home lighting fixtures company Lutron owes GeigTech $34.6 million for infringing its patent on window shade brackets, while also finding that the infringement was willful.

  • March 15, 2024

    Bitcoin 'Founder' Held In Contempt For Disclosure Delay

    A Florida federal judge on Friday held self-professed bitcoin inventor Craig Wright in civil contempt for delaying disclosure of financial information to the holder of a $143 million judgment against him and said a sanctions award of reasonable attorney fees and costs would be appropriate.

  • March 15, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Backs PTAB Decision In Vacuum Patent Fight

    The Federal Circuit backed the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's decision that SharkNinja had not proven the invalidity of several claims of Roomba maker iRobot's patent on robot vacuum technology.

  • March 15, 2024

    Texas Tamale Beats Cross-State Rival In Trademark Fight

    Over three years of legal delays and a tortured case that was "actually arguing mere descriptiveness under the guise of genericness" somehow failed to persuade a judge in Houston to unseat a trademark owned by a small company on the phrase "Texas Tamale."

  • March 15, 2024

    Bradley Arant Adds IP Team From Moore & Van Allen In NC

    A three-attorney intellectual property team has jumped from Moore & Van Allen PLLC to Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP in Charlotte, North Carolina.

  • March 15, 2024

    Influencer Says Ex-BigLaw Atty Can't Get Stalking Injunction

    A social media influencer urged a Florida federal court on Thursday to throw out a request from former Greenberg Traurig LLP patent attorney Allan Kassenoff for an injunction against cyberstalking as the lawyer pursues a $150 million defamation suit against him.

  • March 15, 2024

    Trade Secret Cases Are Up As Clients Eye Patent Alternatives

    Trade secret litigation has seen a gradual increase over the past decade, driven by the promise of substantial damages awards, a new federal law, and frustration over the challenges of patent litigation, according to intellectual property attorneys.

  • March 15, 2024

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

    The past week in London has seen Howard Kennedy face legal action by a London hotel chain, former racing boss Bernie Ecclestone and Formula One hit with a breach of contract claim by a Brazilian racecar driver, and a libel row between broadcaster Jeremy Vine and ex-footballer Joey Barton. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • March 15, 2024

    IP Hires: Lewis Brisbois, Goodwin

    Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP has added an intellectual property attorney who worked for Robins Kaplan LLP to its Minneapolis office, while Goodwin Procter LLP announced it has hired the co-chair of Perkins Coie LLP's post-grant practice as an intellectual property litigation partner. Here are the details on these and other notable IP hires.

Expert Analysis

  • Uncertainty Surrounds Patent Eligibility Restoration Bill

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    A recent U.S. Senate hearing regarding the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act, a bill that aims to overhaul patent eligibility law and establish clearer statutory exclusions, marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing patent eligibility debate, but the law’s fate remains uncertain as discussions continue, say attorneys at Marshall Gerstein.

  • 3 Litigation Strategies To Combat 'Safetyism'

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    Amid the rise of safetyism — the idea that every person should be free from the risk of harm or discomfort — among jurors and even judges, defense counsel can mount several tactics from the very start of litigation to counteract these views and blunt the potential for jackpot damages, says Ann Marie Duffy at Hollingsworth.

  • Infringement Policy Lessons From 4th Circ. Sony Music Ruling

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    The Fourth Circuit's recent decision in Sony Music v. Cox Communications, which in part held that the internet service provider was liable for contributing to music copyright infringement, highlights the importance of reasonable policies to terminate repeat infringers, and provides guidance for litigating claims of secondary liability, say Benjamin Marks and Alexandra Blankman at Weil.

  • What Recent Study Shows About AI's Promise For Legal Tasks

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    Amid both skepticism and excitement about the promise of generative artificial intelligence in legal contexts, the first randomized controlled trial studying its impact on basic lawyering tasks shows mixed but promising results, and underscores the need for attorneys to proactively engage with AI, says Daniel Schwarcz at University of Minnesota Law School.

  • Tips On Numerical Range From Fed. Circ. Philip Morris Ruling

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    The Federal Circuit's recent RAI v. Philip Morris decision that a patent provided sufficient written description to support a claimed numerical range offers several takeaways for practitioners, including the need for a cautious approach to criticism of ranges, say attorneys at BCLP.

  • UMG-TikTok IP Rift Highlights Effective Rights Control Issues

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    Despite Universal Music Group's recent withdrawal of TikTok's licensing rights to its music catalog, the platform struggles to control uploads and reproductions of copyrighted material, highlighting the inherent tension between creative freedom and effective rights control in the age of social media, says Simon Goodbody at Bray & Krais.

  • 5 Things Trial Attorneys Can Learn From Good Teachers

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    Jennifer Cuculich at IMS Legal Strategies recounts lessons she learned during her time as a math teacher that can help trial attorneys connect with jurors, from the importance of framing core issues to the incorporation of different learning styles.

  • Fed. Circ. Patent Lesson: No Contradiction, No Indefiniteness

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    The Federal Circuit’s recent ruling in Maxwell v. Amperex Technology highlights the complexities of construing patent claims when seemingly contradictory limitations are present, and that when a narrowing limitation overrides a broader one, they do not necessarily contradict each other, says Roy Wepner at Kaplan Breyer.

  • Data-Driven Insights On Optimizing PTAB Institution Decisions

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    A look at Patent Trial and Appeal Board institution decisions from the last six years highlights critical information a patent owner should know regarding trends in the board’s decision making when patents come under challenge, and which arguments to raise in preliminary responses, say Jacob Golan and Benjamin Anger at Knobbe Martens.

  • Golf Course Copyright Bill Implications Go Beyond The Green

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    A new federal bill, the BIRDIE Act, introduced in February would extend intellectual property protections to golf course designers but could undercut existing IP case law and raise broader questions about the scope of copyright protection for works that involve living elements or nonhuman authorship, say attorneys at Bradley Arant.

  • What's At Play In Rising Lanham Act Cases At The ITC

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    Amid an uptick in Lanham Act claims involving false advertising related to medical devices at the U.S. International Trade Commission, Brian Busey and Maryrose McLaughlin at MoFo discuss recent ITC complaints from Eli Lilly and R.J. Reynolds, Lanham Act claim limits under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, and the issues practitioners face in this realm.

  • Key Factors In Establishing Compelling Merits At The PTAB

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    A look at over 450 Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions between June 2022 and now provides insights into strategies for petitioners and patent owners in establishing compelling merits arguments in post-grant proceedings, say David Holman and Tyler Liu at Sterne Kessler.

  • Business Litigators Have A Source Of Untapped Fulfillment

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    As increasing numbers of attorneys struggle with stress and mental health issues, business litigators can find protection against burnout by remembering their important role in society — because fulfillment in one’s work isn’t just reserved for public interest lawyers, say Bennett Rawicki and Peter Bigelow at Hilgers Graben.

  • Takeaways From USPTO's AI-Assisted Invention Guidance

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    Recently issued guidance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office clarifies how patent inventorship is to be determined when AI is involved, and while the immediate risk of prosecution for failing to meet the new standards appears low, the extent of examiners’ scrutiny remains to be seen, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

  • The Taylor Swift Effect: Leveraging IP Thresholds In Ads

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    The Cetaphil #GameTimeGlow commercial, which aired before the Super Bowl, has garnered attention for its indirect use of Taylor Swift-related symbols that were easily spotted by fans — sparking questions about the legality of nodding to the iconic pop star without violating intellectual property rights, say attorneys at ​​​​​​​Brooks Kushman.

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