Intellectual Property

  • June 11, 2025

    Houston Atty Says Rival's Client Files Aren't Trade Secrets

    A Houston attorney accused of stealing another lawyer's files in an attempt to recruit clients to file malpractice suits told a Texas appellate court that his rival "misrepresents facts to support his false narrative" that the information constituted trade secrets.

  • June 11, 2025

    New Patent Cases Rebound As EDTX Seals Top Venue Spot

    The number of new patent suits filed in 2024 increased 22.2% over 2023, bouncing back from a historically slow year, and the Eastern District of Texas further cemented its status as the most popular patent venue after a rule change made another Texas district less attractive to plaintiffs.

  • June 11, 2025

    Vedder Price Boosts IP, Exec Compensation Teams In NY

    Vedder Price PC has bulked up its New York office with the addition of an intellectual property attorney from Vinson & Elkins LLP and an executive compensation and employee benefits pro from Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP.

  • June 11, 2025

    2nd Circ. Says Retirement Funds Can't Pay Arbitration Award

    The Second Circuit refused to let a Japanese video game company raid retirement accounts established by an American game development executive to pay part of a $23.3 million arbitration award related to an intellectual property dispute, ruling the funds are protected by federal benefits law.

  • June 11, 2025

    Ex-Copyright Leader Says Firing Risks 'Inoperable' Agency

    The fired leader of the U.S. Copyright Office has asked a D.C. federal judge to block the Trump administration's action while she challenges her termination, arguing that significant functions of the government agency could be rendered "inoperable" without judicial intervention.

  • June 10, 2025

    Stewart's Newest Discretionary Denial Has Attys On Edge

    The acting U.S. Patent and Trademark Office director's decision on Friday to reject patent challenges due to the petitioner's long-standing knowledge of a patent has many attorneys bracing for either a massive rise or dip in Patent Trial and Appeal Board filings.

  • June 10, 2025

    10th Circ. Affirms Toss Of USPS Contractor's $500M Suit

    The Tenth Circuit on Tuesday refused to revive a U.S. Postal Service contractor's $500 million lawsuit accusing USPS of misappropriating its confidential business information and wrongfully terminating their long-running relationship, affirming a lower court's toss of tort and contract claims.

  • June 10, 2025

    Vertex Says Tax Software Rival Purposely Destroyed Evidence

    Tax compliance software company Vertex Inc. told a Pennsylvania federal judge Monday that Avalara intentionally destroyed and failed to preserve "key sources of electronically stored information crucially relevant" to Vertex's lawsuit accusing its rival of poaching workers to steal trade secrets.

  • June 10, 2025

    Who Infringed Kokomo's Owl Logo? CrisisGo, Suit Says

    Kokomo Solutions Inc., an emergency response and safety technology company, filed a lawsuit against CrisisGo Inc. in Illinois federal court Tuesday alleging the company's use of an owl logo for its ECHO Badge product is confusingly similar to its own owl logo.

  • June 10, 2025

    Key Insights On Looming Fair Use Rulings In AI Cases

    Two California federal judges have indicated they are inclined to find that using copyrighted material to train artificial intelligence systems is transformative, which usually means that copying a work is fair, but that may not let Meta Platforms and Anthropic off the hook in separate lawsuits.

  • June 10, 2025

    Ill. Judge Questions Standing In Biogen Antitrust Suit

    An Illinois federal judge seemed skeptical Tuesday that health benefit plans accusing Biogen of impairing competition for its multiple sclerosis drug, Tecfidera, have standing to bring their lawsuit under decades-old precedent allowing only direct purchasers to recoup damages.

  • June 10, 2025

    Stewart Blocks PTAB From Eyeing Container Assembly IP

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's acting director has reversed Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions that had initiated reviews of patents covering container assembly products, saying the board failed to sufficiently account for U.S. International Trade Commission proceedings over the same patents.

  • June 10, 2025

    11th Circ. Revives Suit Over 'Summer Waves' TM

    The Eleventh Circuit on Tuesday revived a trademark lawsuit that the entity behind a Georgia waterpark launched against an inflatable pool maker over its purported use of the phrase "summer waves," finding a lower court has jurisdiction to hear the case.

  • June 10, 2025

    Lawmakers Float NIL Bills Following NCAA Deal

    Members of Congress introduced a pair of bills Tuesday looking to establish national standards for how college athletes monetize their name, image and likeness in the wake of the landmark NCAA class action settlement last week.

  • June 10, 2025

    Paramount Says 'Top Gun' Authorship Claim Is 'A Delusion'

    Paramount Pictures Corp. urged a New York federal judge Monday to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the cousin of a "Top Gun: Maverick" screenwriter who claims he is a joint author of the film's script, saying his complaint is "a delusion."

  • June 10, 2025

    Spokesman Sues Motel 6 Over Unauthorized Use Of His Voice

    Tom Bodett, a radio personality and voice actor known for Motel 6's radio and television ads for nearly 40 years, has sued the hospitality chain for allegedly using his name and voice without consent after he ended an agreement.

  • June 10, 2025

    4th Circ. Backs Contract Verdict Against Turkish Weapons Co.

    The Fourth Circuit on Tuesday rejected a Turkish military supplier's appeal in a case where a Virginia federal jury found that it owed $720,000 for breaching a 2019 agreement between it and a U.S. importer.

  • June 10, 2025

    OpenAI Hit With Trademark Suit Over IO Co. Name

    Technology company IYO Inc. has accused OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman of knowingly infringing its trademark when the company acquired competitor IO Products Inc. last month.

  • June 10, 2025

    Ex-GC Accused Of Stealing IP Amid Ownership Stake Dispute

    E-commerce company Storehouse In A Box sued its former general counsel and chief operating officer in Michigan federal court Monday, alleging he misappropriated trade secrets and confidential information, while also engaging in outside ventures that conflicted with his duties, after a dispute arose over his ownership claim in the business.

  • June 10, 2025

    Photographer Says Marlon Wayans Took Pot Pic

    Marlon Wayans, star of such films as "White Chicks" and "Scary Movie," was hit with a copyright infringement lawsuit on Tuesday by a photographer who claims he used her image of a Ziploc bag filled with marijuana on his Facebook account without permission.

  • June 10, 2025

    Judge Warns Attys Over Candor In Grubhub-Kroger TM Row

    An Illinois federal judge on Monday admonished defense counsel in ongoing trademark litigation between Grubhub Inc. and The Kroger Co. after finding discrepancies in the Kroger attorney's representations of information Grubhub provided in a discovery response, reminding all lawyers involved of their duty of candor and adherence to professional conduct rules.

  • June 10, 2025

    Merck Gets PTAB To Nix Johns Hopkins Cancer Drug Patent

    Merck & Co. Inc. subsidiary Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC has notched a win at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board in its disagreement with Johns Hopkins University over a cancer research partnership, persuading a panel to invalidate claims in a university-owned patent relating to a colorectal cancer treatment.

  • June 10, 2025

    Neurocrine Loses Suit Challenging Hormone Treatment Patent

    Neurocrine Biosciences has lost its attempt in Delaware federal court to invalidate a patent owned by biotechnology company Spruce Biosciences Inc. relating to the treatment of a hormonal disorder, after a federal judge tossed the lawsuit.

  • June 09, 2025

    Squires Dodges Trump Questions, Emphasizes AI For Backlog

    The Trump administration's nominee for U.S. Patent and Trademark Office director avoided answering whether Joe Biden won the 2020 election, how to describe defendants in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and whether he would follow an illegal directive from the president, along with addressing concerns about USPTO resources and artificial intelligence in post-hearing responses to senators.

  • June 09, 2025

    Judge To Limit Experts in Biogen, Genentech Drug Royalty Trial

    A California federal judge Monday laid out the ground rules for an upcoming high-stakes jury trial between Biogen and Roche Holding AG subsidiary Genentech over patent royalties on multiple sclerosis drug sales, giving each side nine hours to argue their case and saying she plans to limit expert testimony.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From NY Fed To BigLaw

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    While the move to private practice brings a learning curve, it also brings chances to learn new skills and grow your network, requiring a clear understanding of how your skills can complement and contribute to a firm's existing practice, and where you can add new value, says Meghann Donahue at Covington.

  • What Businesses Need To Know About EU Design Law Reform

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    Recent reforms to European Union design protection law will broaden the scope of what constitutes protected designs and products, likely creating new opportunities and considerations for businesses operating within the EU or those engaging with its markets, say lawyers at Foley & Lardner.

  • Berry Ruling Shows Why Plant IP Suits Can Be Thorny

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    A California federal court's recent decision in Driscoll's v. California Berry Cultivars illustrates that while a path exists for asserting U.S. plant patent rights against extraterritorial breeders, it can be difficult to prove infringement based on importation of plant parts, say Travis Bliss and Stephany Small at Panitch Schwarze.

  • 7 Considerations For Conducting Drug Clinical Trials Abroad

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    With continuing cuts to U.S. Food and Drug Administration staffing motivating some pharmaceutical companies to consider developing drugs abroad, it's important to understand the additional risks and compliance requirements associated with conducting clinical studies in other countries, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Top 3 Litigation Finance Deal-Killers, And How To Avoid Them

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    Like all transactions, litigation finance deals can sometimes collapse, but understanding the most common reasons for failure, including a lack of trust or a misunderstanding of deal terms, can help both parties avoid problems, say Rebecca Berrebi at Avenue 33 and Boris Ziser at Schulte Roth.

  • Best Practices For Companies Integrating Existing IP With AI

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    Some copyright owners are exploring how they can make new content by combining their existing intellectual property assets with generative artificial intelligence, and although these initiatives can serve multiple business goals, those considering such practices should be aware they are entering largely uncharted waters, says Josh Weigensberg at Pryor Cashman.

  • How Attys Can Use A Therapy Model To Help Triggered Clients

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    Attorneys can lean on key principles from a psychotherapeutic paradigm known as the "Internal Family Systems" model to help manage triggered clients and get settlement negotiations back on track, says Jennifer Gibbs at Zelle.

  • How Athletes Can Protect Their Signature Celebrations As IP

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    As copyright and trademark law adapts to short-form choreography and dynamic media, athletes and their business partners have new tools to protect the intellectual property embedded in their unique dances, poses and celebrations, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Opinion

    Third-Party Funding Transparency Is Key In Patent Suits

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    Third-party litigation funding is a growing industry that could benefit from enhanced disclosure standards to ensure transparency, as challenges in obtaining discovery of such funding can complicate patent litigation against nonpracticing entities, say attorneys at Skadden.

  • How Attorneys Can Make The Most Of A Deposition Transcript

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    With recent amendments to federal evidence rules now in effect, it’s more important than ever to make sure that deposition transcripts are clear and precise, and a few key strategies can help attorneys get the most out of a transcript before, during and after a deposition, says Allison Rocker at Baker McKenzie.

  • 3 Steps For In-House Counsel To Assess Litigation Claims

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    Before a potential economic downturn, in-house attorneys should investigate whether their company is sitting on hidden litigation claims that could unlock large recoveries to help the business withstand tough times, says Will Burgess at Hilgers Graben.

  • Vape IP Ruling Shows Stark Contrast Between ITC And Courts

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    The U.S. International Trade Commission's recent termination of a Section 337 investigation of vaporizer devices highlights the fact that — unlike in federal courts — all complaints terminated by the ITC may be refiled, though there are some ways for respondents to protest, says P. Andrew Riley at Mei & Mark.

  • Series

    Teaching College Students Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Serving as an adjunct college professor has taught me the importance of building rapport, communicating effectively, and persuading individuals to critically analyze the difference between what they think and what they know — principles that have helped to improve my practice of law, says Sheria Clarke at Nelson Mullins.

  • Why Attys Should Get Familiar With Quantum Computing

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    Quantum computing is projected to pose significant updates to current practices in cryptography, making the issue relevant to policymakers and the legal profession generally, particularly when it comes to data storage, privacy regulations and pharmaceutical industry market changes, say professors at the University of San Francisco.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From DOJ Enviro To Mid-Law

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    Practitioners leaving a longtime government role for private practice — as when I departed the U.S. Department of Justice’s environmental enforcement division — should prioritize finding a firm that shares their principles, values their experience and will invest in their transition, says John Cruden at Beveridge & Diamond.

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