Intellectual Property

  • June 04, 2026

    USPTO Mulling Certain Patent Apps After 'Atypical' Case

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is asking why it should keep reviewing patent applications that would not end up giving their owners rights to assert against alleged infringers, following a Federal Circuit decision in what the appellate court called an "atypical" appeal.

  • June 04, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Invalidates Spinal Implant Patent Claims

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday invalidated patent claims covering parts used to make expandable implant devices in spinal fusion surgeries that were the basis of a $9.5 million jury verdict against Life Spine Inc. and that had been upheld by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.

  • June 04, 2026

    JD Power Claims Chime's Bogus '#1' Banking Ads Rip Off TMs

    J.D. Power has hit Chime Financial Inc. with a lawsuit in New York federal court, accusing the fintech company of willfully infringing J.D. Power's trademarks to support a "widespread, multi-channel" deceptive advertising campaign falsely suggesting that the data analytics firm rated Chime "America's #1 Choice for Banking."

  • June 04, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Solidifies Google, Oath Wins In Arendi Patent Suits

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday upheld Google LLC and Oath Holdings Inc.'s wins over Arendi SARL's lawsuits that accused them of infringing various data system patents, agreeing with a Delaware federal court that the patents weren't valid to begin with.

  • June 04, 2026

    Realty Rival, Directors Barred From Poaching Brokerage Staff

    Two former sales directors for a real estate brokerage must stop recruiting former coworkers for a rival company that hired them, North Carolina's business court has said, finding the new employer should also be barred from meddling with more of the brokerage's employment contracts.

  • June 04, 2026

    Ex-Surgeon Agrees To $7.7M Tax Bill From Offshore Scheme

    A retired plastic surgeon reached a $7.7 million settlement with the federal government to resolve an Internal Revenue Service case alleging that he ran an offshore employee leasing scheme, according to an agreement filed in an Ohio federal court.

  • June 04, 2026

    6th Circ. Rejects Scotts Bid To Block P&G Weed Killer

    The Sixth Circuit on Thursday affirmed a lower court's refusal to block Procter & Gamble from selling its Spruce weed killer, holding that Scotts failed to show its Miracle-Gro packaging is distinctive enough to support trade dress claims or that the products are likely to confuse consumers.

  • June 04, 2026

    Judge Won't Rethink Insurer's Duty To Cover Data Center Row

    A California federal judge refused to allow Navigators Specialty Insurance Co. to file a reconsideration motion for a prior ruling that dismissed the insurer's claims in its coverage suit against a client company taken into arbitration over a California data center project.

  • June 04, 2026

    Ecobee's $11.5M Thermostat IP Trial Loss Erased By Fed. Circ.

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday threw out an $11.5 million award against Ecobee Technologies in a smart thermostat patent infringement suit from Ollnova Technologies, citing problems with the verdict form and how jurors were instructed to look at the patents.

  • June 04, 2026

    Supreme Court Shuts Down 'Skinny Label' Drug Patent Suit

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday ended a patent suit over Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc.'s generic version of a heart drug that uses a so-called skinny label, saying Amarin Pharma Inc. had not plausibly alleged that Hikma encouraged healthcare providers to infringe its patents.

  • June 04, 2026

    AI Co. Midnight Labs Gets Sony Innovation Fund Investment

    Midnight Labs, a Dublin-based artificial intelligence company focused on intellectual property enforcement, announced Thursday it received an investment from the Sony Innovation Fund to expand its software in the U.S. and Japanese markets.

  • June 03, 2026

    CBP Says Stiiizy's New Vape Cartridges Clear Pax Patents

    U.S. Customs and Border Protection has cleared vape company Stiiizy to import its redesigned oil cartridges, ruling they do not violate patents held by rival Pax Labs Inc., despite the competitor having successfully persuaded the U.S. International Trade Commission to block an earlier version of Stiiizy's products.

  • June 03, 2026

    Squires Institutes 3 Patent Reviews, Denies 3 Others

    U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires on Tuesday granted three requests for review of patents under the America Invents Act, while turning down three other petitions.

  • June 03, 2026

    Samsung Can't Appeal Conflicting Alice Ruling In $78.5M Case

    A Texas federal judge has refused to let Samsung appeal a decision upholding two patents that resulted in a $78.5 million jury verdict against the South Korean tech giant after a different court found one of the patents invalid.

  • June 03, 2026

    Iconic Lamp Design Isn't MillerKnoll's, 6th Circ. Told

    Counsel for the family of the late designer George Nelson told a Sixth Circuit panel Wednesday that a lower court decision awarding intellectual property rights for his iconic bubble lamp to furniture company MillerKnoll was based on a faulty interpretation of a 2015 contract amendment and should be overturned.

  • June 03, 2026

    KeyBank, Investment Advisers Settle Suit Alleging Client Theft

    KeyBank affiliate Key Investment Services LLC has agreed to settle its suit accusing two former investment advisers of stealing trade secrets and violating their employment agreements by soliciting customers.

  • June 03, 2026

    Tech Industry Groups Back Apple High Court Bid In Epic Case

    Several technology industry groups threw their support behind Apple Inc. on Wednesday, telling the U.S. Supreme Court an injunction issued in a case brought by Epic Games Inc. tries to alter the service Apple provides to millions of developers based on complaints from a single company.

  • June 03, 2026

    Top Wireless Cos. Get PTAB To Wipe Out 5G Patent

    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has invalidated a 5G technology patent that mobile providers like AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon had been accused of infringing in now-dropped litigation, after finding the claims of the patent were obvious.

  • June 03, 2026

    Patent Suit Puts Drum Carrier Function Over Form, Court Told

    Counsel for a Japanese musical instrument manufacturer asked a Pennsylvania federal judge Wednesday to toss a patent infringement case it's facing from drum-maker Pearl Musical Instrument Co. Ltd. over marching band drum carriers, arguing that Pearl wrongly focused on the functionality of its competitor's carrier rather than its looks.

  • June 03, 2026

    Electronics Co. Sues Rival Over Plasma Patents Used In Chips

    A company that offers plasma systems for manufacturing semiconductors has sued a rival in New Hampshire federal court, saying the competitor was infringing four patents covering atmospheric-pressure plasma systems.

  • June 03, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Affirms PTAB Invalidation Of Railcar Patent Claims

    The Federal Circuit on Wednesday refused to revive claims across a pair of Amsted Rail Co. Inc. patents covering a way of monitoring the performance of railcars, backing Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions that the claims were invalid.

  • June 03, 2026

    Netflix Again Beats NJ Atty's IP Suit Over Boy Scouts Films

    Netflix Inc. fought off an amended complaint in New Jersey federal court Tuesday from an attorney claiming that it infringed on his copyright for a documentary about sexual abuse in the Boy Scouts of America, when the judge ruled the suit relied on uncopyrightable facts.

  • June 03, 2026

    M&A Claim Payouts Hit $1B High In North America, Aon Says

    The frequency and severity of claims made under policies for mergers and acquisitions have risen in recent years, with Aon's North American clients recovering a record-breaking $1 billion across transactional liability lines in 2025, according to a report published Wednesday.

  • June 03, 2026

    UK Requiring Google To Let Publishers Opt Out Of AI

    Google is giving publishers tools to prevent their content from being used to power the artificial intelligence features shown in search results, after Britain's competition enforcer imposed new requirements Wednesday.

  • June 02, 2026

    Google Can't Ditch Software Co.'s Patent Infringement Suit

    Google must face a software company's claim that the tech giant directly infringed one of its patents with its Google Cloud Platform and other products, a California federal judge has ruled, trimming the suit while allowing the patent owner to rework its indirect infringement claims.

Expert Analysis

  • Tips For Financial Advisers Facing TRO From Former Firm

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    The Eighth Circuit's recent decision in Choreo v. Lors, overturning a lower court's sweeping injunction after financial advisers moved to a new firm, gives advisers new strategies to fight restraining orders from their old firms, such as focusing on whether the alleged irreparable harm is calculable, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.

  • Learning From A Typical Section 1782 Discovery Case

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    A California federal judge's recent approval of a Section 1782 application, compelling a U.S.-based company to produce materials relevant to a German patent dispute, usefully illustrates the specific steps foreign litigants must undertake before wielding this powerful tool for obtaining evidence unavailable via discovery mechanisms abroad, say attorneys at Fish & Richardson.

  • How To Trademark A Guy In 8 Ways: An IP Strategy Against AI

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    Attempting a novel method of protection against artificial intelligence misuse of his voice and likeness, Matthew McConaughey's recent efforts to register eight trademarks for a series of audio and video clips of himself underscore the importance of extending existing legal frameworks beyond traditional applications, says Summer Todd at Patterson Intellectual Property.

  • Utilizing The ITC To Combat 'Gray Market' IP Infringement

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    As technological developments intensify trademark owners' need to respond swiftly to "gray market" sales of international goods imported into the U.S. without the trademark owner's consent, litigating at the U.S. International Trade Commission offers an underutilized enforcement option, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • Series

    Teaching Logic Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Teaching middle and high school students the skills to untangle complicated arguments and identify faulty reasoning has made me reacquaint myself with the defined structure of thought, reminding me why logic should remain foundational in the practice of law, says Tom Barrow at Woods Rogers.

  • From IPR To EPR: The Rapid Rise Of Ex Parte Reexamination

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    With the current administration's dramatic shifts in policy rendering inter partes reviews essentially unavailable for the majority of patents being asserted in litigation, IPR filing rates have plunged, and ex parte reexamination requests have surged to the average rate of IPR petitions in 2024, say attorneys at McKool Smith.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Practicing Resilience

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    Resilience is a skill acquired through daily practices that focus on learning from missteps, recovering quickly without internalizing defeat and moving forward with intention, says Nicholas Meza at Quarles & Brady.

  • Upshot Of 'Skinny Label' Case May Go Beyond Pharma

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's pending review of Hikma v. Amarin, over a drugmaker's "skinny label," carries implications for both generics and brand-name pharmaceutical manufacturers, and could shed light on how inducement doctrine should operate in other regulated industries where products have substantial lawful uses, says Jason Shull at Banner Witcoff.

  • Assessing Factors Behind Biosimilar Uptake And Competition

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    As biosimilar uptake remains uneven and questions linger over whether the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act can deliver robust competition between biologics and biosimilars, a case study of Humira and its biosimilars illustrates how many factors, including payor reimbursement and formulary strategy, collectively shape competitive dynamics, say analysts at Analysis Group.

  • How 2 Tech Statutes Are Being Applied To Agentic AI

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    The application of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and the California Invasion of Privacy Act to agentic artificial intelligence is still developing, but recent case law, like Amazon's lawsuit against Perplexity in California federal court, provides some initial guidance for companies developing or deploying these technologies, say attorneys at Weil.

  • FTC Focus: Testing Joint Enforcement Over Loyalty Programs

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    The Federal Trade Commission's case against Syngenta can be understood both as a canary for further scrutiny over loyalty-discount practices and a signal of the durability of joint federal-state antitrust enforcement, with key takeaways for practitioners and those subject to regulatory antitrust scrutiny alike, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • NYC Bar Opinion Warns Attys On Use Of AI Recording Tools

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    Attorneys who use artificial intelligence tools to record, transcribe and summarize conversations with clients should heed the New York City Bar Association’s recent opinion addressing the legal and ethical risks posed by such tools, and follow several best practices to avoid violating the Rules of Professional Conduct, say attorneys at Smith Gambrell.

  • Series

    The Biz Court Digest: Dispatches From Utah's Newest Court

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    While a robust body of law hasn't yet developed since the Utah Business and Chancery Court's founding in October 2024, the number of cases filed there has recently picked up, and its existence illustrates Utah's desire to be top of mind for businesses across the country, says Evan Strassberg at Michael Best.

  • Checking In On Biologics-Related Patent Review Trends

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    Comprehensive analysis of Patent Trial and Appeal Board data since the PTAB's creation indicates that while inter partes review and post-grant review are potent weapons for challenging biologics-related patents, recent policy changes may reduce their effectiveness, say attorneys at Steptoe.

  • 4 Quick Emotional Resets For Lawyers With Conflict Fatigue

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    Though the emotional wear and tear of legal work can trap attorneys in conflict fatigue — leaving them unable to shake off tense interactions or return to a calm baseline — simple therapeutic techniques for resetting the nervous system can help break the cycle, says Chantel Cohen at CWC Coaching & Therapy.

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