Intellectual Property

  • July 31, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Says Leica's Filtered Light Skirts U. Mich. Patent

    In a dispute centered on how laser light is used in fluorescence technology, a unanimous Federal Circuit panel said on Friday that Leica Microsystems did not infringe on a University of Michigan patent, affirming the decision of a federal court in California.

  • July 31, 2026

    Thermo Fisher Says Ex-VP Took 'Know-How' To Rival

    A former Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. executive broke a noncompete agreement when she left for a position that will make her responsible for building a rival firm's sterile manufacturing business in direct competition with her old company, according to a case removed to North Carolina federal court Friday.

  • July 31, 2026

    Meta Says AI Voice Suit Rests On Speculation, Not Facts

    Meta sought to throw out a proposed class action claiming it flouted Illinois' biometric privacy law when it used the voices of journalists and voice actors to train their artificial intelligence models, arguing the suit is little more than "professional anxiety" over AI "in search of a cause of action."

  • July 31, 2026

    Reddit AI Data Scraping Case Mostly Survives Dismissal

    A Manhattan federal judge on Friday largely declined to dismiss Reddit's suit accusing SerpApi of illegally scraping its content to be sold to Perplexity for training its artificial intelligence models.

  • July 31, 2026

    Scottish Whisky Glass Co. Says Colo. Retailer Stole Design

    The Scottish creator of a patented whisky glass told a Colorado federal judge that a Denver-based retailer is knowingly selling a nearly identical version of the glass online.

  • July 31, 2026

    Verizon Asks EDTX Judge To Overturn $190M Patent Verdict

    Verizon Wireless wants a Texas federal judge to overrule a jury's verdict that it owed $190 million for infringing a patent covering a way for cellphone calls to switch between Wi-Fi and cellular networks.

  • July 31, 2026

    Comedian Daring Buc-ee's To Sue Takes Dig At Brand Policing

    The string of lawsuits Buc-ee's Ltd. has filed against businesses it says mimic its popular beaver branding has caught the attention of comedian John Oliver, who unveiled a bucktoothed "Buc-Off" mascot and dared the travel center chain to sue him — spotlighting the delicate balance trademark owners face between protecting a valuable brand and provoking backlash.

  • July 31, 2026

    Insulet Urges Full Fed. Circ. To Revive $59M Trade Secret Win

    Insulin product developer Insulet Corp. has asked the full Federal Circuit to hear its arguments for reinstating a jury's $59.4 million trade secret theft verdict against EOFlow Co. Ltd., saying a split panel decision overturning the award reached a timeliness issue that was not mentioned by either party.

  • July 31, 2026

    Netflix Sued Over Alleged Theft Of Nicolas Cage Movie

    The producer of an unreleased World War II spy movie starring Nicolas Cage has accused Netflix of allowing an unencrypted master copy of the film to be stolen and causing more than $105 million in damages by compromising the movie's marketability and distribution prospects.

  • July 31, 2026

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

    The past week in London has seen George Michael's estate bring an intellectual property claim against the late star's friend over footage shared online, collapsed law firm Axiom Ince sue the U.K. branch of State Bank of India and Ryanair face a group claim from 262 people. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • July 31, 2026

    Anthropic Says Authors' New AI Copyright Claims Fall Flat

    Anthropic says that a three-year statute of limitations bars the amended copyright claims of a group of authors who opted out of the $1.5 million settlement the artificial intelligence company reached in a suit claiming it pirated writers' works to train its flagship product, Claude.

  • July 30, 2026

    Disney, Cameron Get 'Avatar' Sequels IP Suit Nixed, For Now

    A California federal judge Thursday tossed an author's suit accusing the Walt Disney Co., film director James Cameron and Cameron's production company of ripping off the author's work to create "Avatar" movie sequels, saying any substantial similarities between the works should be better fleshed out should the writer amend his complaint again.

  • July 30, 2026

    Fitch Even Says €10M French Patent Feud Must Be Arbitrated

    Fitch Even Tabin & Flannery LLP is urging an Illinois federal court to halt a €10 million ($11.5 million) French lawsuit by former clients who accuse the intellectual property law firm of downplaying the economic viability of their patents, saying the matter belongs in arbitration.

  • July 30, 2026

    Tesla Tells Justices USPTO Is 'Gutting' Patent Reviews

    Tesla Inc. has become the latest company to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review limits that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has put on patent challenges, arguing that the office is "gutting" the review system created by the America Invents Act.

  • July 30, 2026

    Health Plans Ask 2nd Circ. To Revive Celgene Cancer Drug Row

    Health plans and pharmacies backed by Cigna are asking the Second Circuit to revive a proposed class action alleging Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. and its Celgene subsidiary fraudulently obtained patents, filed sham lawsuits and paid off generic-drug makers to maintain a monopoly on the blockbuster blood cancer drug Pomalyst.

  • July 30, 2026

    Ex-Greenberg Traurig Atty Named Acting Patent Commish

    A former principal shareholder at Greenberg Traurig LLP has been promoted to acting commissioner for patents at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, according to his LinkedIn profile.

  • July 30, 2026

    CBP Outlines Rates, Classifications For Pharma Tariffs

    U.S. pharmaceutical giants aren't expected to face various tariff rates up to 100% on certain imported patented drugs and ingredients beginning Friday, but all importers must begin to classify their goods that will eventually be subject to the duties, according to customs guidance published Thursday.

  • July 30, 2026

    8th Circ. Agrees Chartreuse Color Can't Save Hose Maker's TM

    The Eighth Circuit on Thursday declined to revive a trademark that was asserted in a case brought by a water hose manufacturer against a competitor, agreeing with a federal judge who ruled the chartreuse color of the hoses was a functional feature and therefore invalidated the trademark.

  • July 30, 2026

    Squires Erases PTAB Ax Of Dermatology IP Upheld At ITC

    U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires has thrown out the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's finding that Biofrontera Inc. had shown that all the challenged claims of a Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Inc. patent on a photodynamic dermatology device are invalid as obvious.

  • July 30, 2026

    Fed. Circ. OKs Samsung Win Over Patent Tied To $81M Award

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday upheld a Patent Trial and Appeal Board decision invalidating a patent covering standard-essential 5G wireless network technology that Samsung was directed to pay $81 million for infringing, rejecting G+ Communications LLC's procedural and evidentiary arguments.

  • July 30, 2026

    WDTX Jury Awards $1.5M In Lighting Patent Retrial

    A Texas federal jury has awarded Chinese company Jiaxing Super Lighting almost $1.5 million in damages from rivals found to have infringed an LED tube lamp patent, a year after the Federal Circuit ordered a new trial.

  • July 30, 2026

    Impossible Foods Gets New TM Trial On Punitive Damages

    A California federal judge has ordered a new trial on punitive damages against Impossible Foods in a case over the "Impossible" trademark, ruling that the $1.75 million in punitive damages a jury awarded lifestyle brand Impossible X was against the clear weight of trial evidence.

  • July 30, 2026

    XAI Can't Unmask Jane Does In Deepfake Suit, Judge Says

    A California federal judge on Thursday declined to order a group of women suing xAI Corp. over Grok-generated deepfakes of them in sexual situations to reveal their identities and allowed them to proceed pseudonymously, finding their fears of threatened harm and retaliation from having to disclose their real names were reasonable.

  • July 30, 2026

    Squires Grants 6 Patent Petitions, Denies 4 In New Order

    U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires has granted six requests for America Invents Act patent reviews and rejected four in his latest batch of decisions.

  • July 30, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Revives Schmeisser Gun Magazine Patent Suit

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday reversed a Wyoming judge's decision that found a firearm patent invalid as indefinite, reviving a preliminary injunction against a Bosnian gun part-maker that the lower court had dissolved.

Expert Analysis

  • Checking For AI Errors Is Now A Two-Way Street

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    A handful of recent federal and state cases demonstrate the importance of checking for errors generated by artificial intelligence not only in your own court submissions, but also your opponent's, as well as when catching opposing counsel's AI mistakes could result in an award for attorney fees, says Tamara Barago at Hollingsworth.

  • Opinion

    Federal Circuit Should Implement Mini En Banc Process

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    To fulfill its mission of uniformity in patent law while avoiding the challenges of en banc hearings, the Federal Circuit should institute mini en bancs — allowing regular three-judge panels to exercise en banc powers unless a majority of the court says otherwise, says Joshua Sohn at the U.S. Department of Justice.

  • Celebs May Need Federal Protection To Fight Voice Deepfakes

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    Deepfakes and digital replicas are increasingly misappropriating celebrities' voices for commercial purposes, but unless federal right of publicity protections are developed, celebrities are left to rely on ill-equipped trademark and state law, say attorneys at Brown Rudnick.

  • Tips For Protecting Privilege On Multinational IP Teams

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    As recent court rulings illustrate how fact-specific privilege determinations have become in modern legal workflows, corporations with multinational intellectual property teams must take steps to deliberately preserve attorney-client privilege through clear roles, confidentiality controls and disciplined communication practices, say Taylor Stemler and Grace Neumann at Merchant & Gould.

  • Series

    The Biz Court Digest: Shoring Up Corporate Law In Maryland

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    Launched more than 20 years ago to improve complex corporate adjudication, Maryland's Business and Technology Case Management Program has been a solid success in some areas, but there always is room for improvement, says Bill Krulak at Miles & Stockbridge.

  • 2nd Circ.'s Embedded Video Ruling May Protect Publishers

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    The Second Circuit's recent decision in Richardson v. Townsquare, dismissing an infringement claim arising from an embedding of a YouTube-hosted interview, reaffirms a potent defense for publishers who regularly use social media platforms' embed functionality, says Amanda Harris at Jassy Vick.

  • Series

    Competing At Poker Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing poker in male-dominated rooms taught me to treat skepticism as background noise when my opponents seem to underestimate me, to apply pressure when it matters and to adapt without losing strategic discipline — skills that are all indispensable in restructuring and insolvency matters, says Alexis Gambale at Pashman Stein.

  • Why IPR Slowdown Has Not Led To More Patent Litigation

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    Despite sustained strength in patent application filings and a decline in inter partes review and post-grant review, 2026 has not seen the anticipated surge in patent litigation in district courts and at the U.S. International Trade Commission, potentially due to four reasons, say attorneys at Sterne Kessler.

  • 5 Things Associates Must Ask About Their Firm's Merger Plan

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    The associates who navigate law firm mergers best ask the right questions early, such as inquiring about partners' plans, to assess how the merger could affect their workflow and career path, says Jackie Bokser-LeFebvre at Major Lindsey.

  • Columbia Software IP Ruling Tests Royalty Damages Model

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Columbia University v. Gen Digital, vacating a damages verdict involving foreign software sales, provides guidance on ambiguities surrounding the worldwide royalty damages model established by the court's decision in Brumfield v. IBG two years ago, say attorneys at Munger Tolles.

  • 2 'Rocket Dockets' And The Rules That Propel Them

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    The fastest civil trial courts in the country are currently in the Eastern District of Virginia and the Southern District of Florida, and their chief judges provide insights into the court rules that keep them ahead, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

  • AI Practices To Protect Trade Secrets Amid Unstable Case Law

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    Amid recent diverging district court approaches to whether inputting proprietary information into artificial intelligence tools could constitute a failure to take reasonable measures to safeguard secrets, trade secret owners must adapt their confidentiality practices to keep trade secrets secure, says Fitz Collings at MoFo.

  • Teva Ruling Offers Patentees New Support For Genus Claims

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Teva v. Eli Lilly, finding that the Teva patents at issue are not invalid, offers an interesting counterexample against the recent trend of courts invalidating patents claiming a broad, functionally defined class of compounds, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • Defense Patent Holiday's Real Prize May Be Collab Potential

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    The true value of participating in the ongoing defense patent holiday program might lie not in access to technology developed by the U.S. Department of War, but in developing a working relationship with a federally funded lab and potentially achieving a cooperative research and development agreement, says Lawrence Kass at Steptoe.

  • Your Next Litigation Hold Should Cover AI Chat Logs

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    The Delaware Chancery Court’s recent decision in Fortis Advisors v. Krafton to treat a CEO’s artificial intelligence chats as substantive evidence is being read as a discovery warning to litigators, but there is a second duty-to-preserve lesson that is especially pertinent to in-house counsel, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

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