We use cookies on this site to enable your digital experience. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our cookie policy. close
Newsletter RSS Follow

Intellectual Property

  • Featured

    Lessons From This Year’s High Court Patent Rulings

    By Ryan Davis

    It was another busy term for patent law at the U.S. Supreme Court, as the justices upheld the constitutionality of the America Invents Act review system for challenging the validity of patents but mandated a key change in how it operates, while also expanding the availability of lost profits damages. Here’s a look at the key takeaways from each of the three patent cases the high court heard this term.

  • July 17, 2018

    Trade Secret Suits Rise Sharply In Wake Of Landmark IP Law

    In the two years since the passage of the Defend Trade Secrets Act, federal courts have seen a sharp spike in the number of trade secret misappropriation cases that have been filed, according to report released Tuesday by legal analytics firm Lex Machina.

  • July 17, 2018

    Reps. Reintroduce Bill To Curb Patent Licensing Fee Demands

    Two lawmakers reintroduced legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday that would give the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general the authority to issue civil penalties of up to $5 million for sending misleading letters in bad faith demanding patent licensing fees.

  • July 17, 2018

    Welch's Says Sunkist Candy Infringes Trade Dress

    The company behind Welch's Fruit Snacks is suing over a planned line of Sunkist gummies, saying it will closely mimic the candy’s trade dress to “siphon off” goodwill.

  • July 17, 2018

    Drug Wholesalers Denied Class Cert. In AndroGel Suit

    A Georgia federal judge on Monday denied a bid by a group of drug wholesalers to win class certification in a suit alleging several pharmaceutical companies conspired to delay the entry of generic competitors for testosterone drug AndroGel.

  • July 17, 2018

    Fed. Circ. Rejects BASF's Challenge To Ax Of Patents

    The Federal Circuit on Tuesday upheld the invalidation of two patents owned by BASF Corp., finding the appeals court could review pre-SAS Institute decisions by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board that address only some of a patent's challenged claims.

  • July 17, 2018

    Fed. Circ. Backs USPTO Nix Of Cold Fusion Patent Apps

    The Federal Circuit on Tuesday affirmed a Virginia federal judge’s rejection of a suit against the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office by a man who claims to have invented cold fusion, a hypothetical type of room-temperature nuclear reaction that most scientists believe is impossible, finding that the lower court did not err in dismissing his challenge.

  • July 17, 2018

    China Fires Another Preemptive WTO Shot At US Tariff Plan

    China has again beefed up its World Trade Organization challenge to the U.S. tariffs meant to counter Beijing’s intellectual property regime, taking aim at the Trump administration’s proposal to hit $200 billion in Chinese goods with a 10 percent levy, according to WTO documents circulated Tuesday.

  • July 17, 2018

    Video Doorbell Co. Claims Orrick Switched Sides In IP Row

    Video doorbell company SkyBell Technologies Inc. has asked a California federal court to disqualify Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP from representing its rival Ring Inc., which it sued for patent infringement, claiming SkyBell previously had discussions with the firm about the case.

  • July 17, 2018

    Fox Settles $30M Suit Over Muhammad Ali Super Bowl Promo

    Fox Broadcasting Co. has settled a $30 million lawsuit in which the company that owns the rights to legendary boxer Muhammad Ali’s identity accused the network of using his voice and life story without permission in a 2017 Super Bowl promotion, according to a filing Monday in California federal court.

  • July 17, 2018

    Munsch Hardt To Absorb Dallas Trial And IP Boutique

    Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr PC will boost its commercial litigation and intellectual property services as it brings the attorneys of McDole Williams PC into the fold at its Dallas office starting Aug. 1.

  • July 17, 2018

    Author Drops Suit Over NFL Player's Nickelodeon Show

    An author of children's books on Monday withdrew his New York federal court complaint alleging Nickelodeon parent company Viacom Inc. made a show starring the NFL's Cam Newton with an idea stolen from him, after an arbiter ruled against him.

  • July 17, 2018

    Allergan Awarded $27K In Sanctions In Compounding Suit

    Allergan USA Inc. has been awarded nearly $27,300 in sanctions, according to an order in California federal court on Monday, after accusing drug compounders in its suit over copycat drugs of improperly delaying and withholding discovery.

  • July 17, 2018

    DC Circ. Nixes Ruling On Copyrighted Regulations

    The D.C. Circuit ruled Tuesday on a closely watched case over copyright protection for private industry rules that are later transformed into federal law, tossing out a lower court's decision but leaving "far thornier" constitutional questions for another day.

  • July 16, 2018

    Card Shuffler Co. Denies Having To Show Prior Art At IP Trial

    “It doesn’t matter” that Scientific Games Corp.’s subsidiary didn’t show the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office prior art in patent applications for its Deckmate card shuffler because the prior art was not objected to when it was disclosed in other applications, the company said Monday at the opening of a rival’s antitrust trial against it.

  • July 16, 2018

    Ex-Jawbone Workers Deny Swiping Trade Secrets For Fitbit

    Six former employees of Jawbone pled not guilty Monday in California federal court to allegations they stole trade secrets from the now-defunct fitness device maker intending to take them to rival Fitbit Inc., criminal charges that carry possible sentences of 10 years or more in prison.

  • July 16, 2018

    Google Asks PTAB To Clarify Meaning Of Printed Publication

    Google has requested that an expanded Patent Trial and Appeal Board, including Chief Judge David Ruschke, rehear the company's bid for an inter partes review of a patent covering digital voice assistant technology so the board can clarify what counts as a printed publication.

  • July 16, 2018

    IBM Seeks $167M From Groupon For Infringing Web Patents

    IBM Corp. told a federal jury in Delaware on Monday that Groupon Inc. should pay about $166.5 million in damages for infringing four of what it described as widely licensed IBM patents that helped make early public use of the internet faster and more efficient.

  • July 16, 2018

    Ex-Apple Engineer Denies Stealing Self-Driving Car IP

    A former Apple employee accused of illegally downloading the tech giant's proprietary information related to self-driving cars before taking a job with a Chinese self-driving car company pled not guilty in California federal court Monday to trade secret theft.

  • July 16, 2018

    Texas A&M Blocks '12th Man' Soap At TTAB

    Texas A&M University has convinced the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board to block Washington Soap Co. from registering the phrase “12th Man Hands” for its soap, with the board saying there was a likelihood of confusion because the university frequently gives away rally towels bearing the "12th Man" slogan at football games.

  • July 16, 2018

    CBS Kept Using Licensed TM, Fantasy Sports Co. Says

    The parent company of fantasy sports operator Scout Fantasy is suing CBS Interactive Inc., accusing it of trying to steal its brand and deceive its customers by continuing to use trademarks CBSi had previously licensed, even after Scout killed the deal over CBSi’s repeated failures to pay on time.

Expert Analysis

  • Opinion

    3 Pros, 3 Cons Of Litigation Finance

    Ralph Sutton

    An educated guess puts the number of new litigation funders launched in the past 18 months at 30 — an astonishing number, with more to come. Is this a blessing to our legal system or something more akin to tulip mania? Maybe both, says Ralph Sutton, founder and CEO of litigation funding firm Validity Finance LLC.

  • Praxair's New Twist On Subject Matter Ineligibility

    Paul Zagar

    Notwithstanding well-settled precedent, the Federal Circuit in Praxair v. Mallinckrodt expressly equated printed matter limitations lacking patentable weight with patent-ineligible subject matter, says Paul Zagar of Leason Ellis LLP.

  • Modern Communication Brings E-Discovery Challenges

    Thomas Bonk

    As new communications platforms displace email, the legal industry is awkwardly grappling with complex e-discovery questions. Fortunately, this environment provides a very fertile ground of incentives for innovation in both e-discovery technology and service offerings, says Thomas Bonk of Epiq.

  • Judge Kavanaugh On Intellectual Property

    Van Lindberg

    What are U.S. Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh's views on intellectual property? He has not been presented with a lot of IP-specific issues, but a few D.C. Circuit cases give some clues as to his thinking, says Van Lindberg of Dykema Gossett PLLC.

  • Prepare For New Claim Construction Standard At PTAB

    Matt Kamps

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's proposed rule changing claim construction in post-grant proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board is likely to be adopted in some form. In view of the 300 comments submitted over the last two months, we have a few predictions and some questions, say attorneys with Faegre Baker Daniels LLP.

  • Opinion

    It's Not All About The Benjamins, Baby (Lawyer)

    J.B. Heaton

    Notwithstanding the latest salary war among prominent law firms, I urge my middle-aged and older colleagues to help the recent graduates we know focus on the long term. Even if the salary is the same, there is a big difference between an institutional firm and the relatively younger firms matching BigLaw, says J.B. Heaton, a University of Chicago business law fellow and former partner at Bartlit Beck.

  • WesternGeco May Reshape Reasonable Royalty Damages

    Aaron Fahrenkrog

    The analysis underlying the U.S. Supreme Court's holding in WesternGeco v. Ion opens the door to arguments for reasonable royalty damages based on foreign activities arising from domestic infringement, say attorneys with Robins Kaplan LLP.

  • Series

    Judging A Book: Hood Reviews 'Lawyering From The Inside Out'

    Judge Denise Hood

    Law professor Nathalie Martin's new book, "Lawyering From the Inside Out: Learning Professional Development Through Mindfulness and Emotional Intelligence," can be of value to any lawyer aiming to achieve greater productivity, relieve the stress of the legal profession and focus on goals, says U.S. District Chief Judge Denise Page Hood of the Eastern District of Michigan.

  • PTAB Institution Decisions In The Wake Of SAS

    Stephen Schreiner

    We studied more than 50 inter partes review institution decisions issued since the U.S. Supreme Court's SAS Institute ruling ended partial reviews at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The results to date are encouraging, say ​​​​​​​Stephen Schreiner of Goodwin Procter LLP and Maxine Graham of American Express Co.

  • 3 Top E-Discovery Case Law Lessons Of 2018 (So Far)

    Casey Sullivan

    The blockbuster e-discovery cases, with big sanctions and bigger controversies, have been few and far between this year. But that doesn’t mean the legal questions around e-discovery have been answered. Let’s take a closer look at three cases worthy of our attention, says Casey Sullivan, an attorney at discovery technology provider Logikcull.