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Mealey's Intellectual Property

September 26, 2025
Judge Preliminarily Approves $1.5B Settlement In AI Copyright Case

SAN FRANCISCO — A $1.5 billion settlement between authors and Anthropic PBC in a copyright case took a step toward resolution on Sept. 25 when a federal judge in California granted preliminary approval in a docket-only minute entry. The authors previously told the judge in a supplemental brief that changes to the agreement addressed concerns about its completeness.
September 25, 2025
EcoFactor To High Court: Federal Circuit Wrong To Vacate Jury’s Patent Damages

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Google LLC on Sept. 24 waived its right to a respond to a smart thermostat company’s petition for a writ of certiorari in which the company argues that the en banc Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ decision to order a Texas federal judge hold a new trial on damages wrongly eschewed the jury’s factual findings in its favor.
September 25, 2025
Federal Circuit Vacates $166 Million Award Against Nokia, AT&T In Patent Fight

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel on Sept. 24 vacated a jury’s $166 million damages award against AT&T Mobility LLC and Nokia of America Corp., holding that a Texas federal judge should have granted the companies’ request for judgment as a matter of law (JMOL) of noninfringement against a plaintiff-appellee wireless technology company.
September 25, 2025
Federal Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment In Wig Product Patent Dispute

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel affirmed a California federal judge’s grant of summary judgment of noninfringement to defendant wig product manufacturers in a patent infringement suit, finding no error in the judge’s construction of a disputed claim term.
September 25, 2025
Federal Circuit: No Error In PTAB Rejection Of Motorola Challenge To Lens Patent

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel affirmed the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s (PTAB) final written decision upholding all claims in a patent regarding an optical lens assembly for compact devices challenged by Motorola Mobility LLC, holding that substantial evidence supported the board’s finding that there was no motivation to combine Motorola’s cited prior art references.
September 24, 2025
Federal Circuit Partly Vacates PTAB’s Obviousness Ruling Against Bayer

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel on Sept. 23 agreed with the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) that some claims in a patent held by Bayer Pharma Aktiengesellschaft are unpatentable as obvious, but the panel vacated the board’s finding of obviousness for other claims, holding that it was based on an incorrect claim construction regarding the administration of aspirin in a cardiac medication regimen.
September 24, 2025
Judge Tosses FCA Suit Related To Drug Patent Pursuant To Public Disclosure Bar

BOSTON — A Massachusetts federal judge on Sept. 23 dismissed a qui tam relator’s suit alleging violations of the federal False Claims Act (FCA) and related state laws regarding pharmaceutical companies’ purported fraudulently obtained patents for the drug Xyrem resulting in government health insurers reimbursing Xyrem prescriptions “at inflated prices,” finding that facts in the complaint were previously disclosed and that the public disclosure bar applies.
September 24, 2025
Lilly, Medical Centers’ Trademark Dispute Settlement Halted By Federal Judge

SEATTLE — A Washington federal judge refused to sign off on a joint motion filed by Eli Lilly and Co., two medical centers and two of their physicians who prescribe patients compounded versions of tirzepatide, a Food and Drug Administration-approved drug for diabetes and weight loss, for a consent judgment and permanent injunction to end a trademark case, finding that the motion “suffers from numerous defects.”
September 24, 2025
Magistrate Judge Won’t Order Immediate Damages Update In AI Music Copyright Suit

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A federal magistrate judge in California declined to order music publishers to immediately supplement damages computations under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26 in an artificial intelligence copyright suit, noting the novelty and complexity of the issue.
September 24, 2025
Judge Denies Preliminary Injunction In Latest Copyright Case Over Hulk Hogan Tape

TAMPA, Fla. — A federal judge in Florida dissolved a temporary restraining order against a radio personality barring him from publishing portions of a sex tape featuring the late professional wrestler known as Hulk Hogan in a documentary film about the tape; the judge held that the record indicated that the use of the tape in the film is likely a fair use.
September 24, 2025
AI Copyright Authors: Revised Plan Should Relieve Concerns Over $1.5B Settlement

SAN FRANCISCO — Changes to the proposed $1.5 billion artificial intelligence copyright settlement between authors and Anthropic PBC address court concerns through “a state-of-the-art notice plan” and a streamlined claims process that both encourages submissions and adequately handles multi-claimant situations, plaintiffs told a federal judge in California in a supplemental brief.
September 23, 2025
U.S. Moves To Participate In High Court Oral Arguments In ISP Infringement Case

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. government on Sept. 23 requested leave to participate in oral arguments when the U.S. Supreme Court considers whether the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals erred when it found an internet service provider (ISP) was liable for contributory infringement for piracy actions from internet users; the government previously filed an amicus curiae brief in support of the ISP.
September 23, 2025
Petitioner Seeks 11th Circuit Rehearing On Sub Shop Copyright Claims

ATLANTA — The 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals was wrong to affirm a Florida federal judge’s decision to dismiss a pro se plaintiff-appellant’s copyright infringement claims against the commercial entity behind the Firehouse Subs restaurant chain, the appellant tells the court in a petition for panel rehearing and rehearing en banc, arguing that the panel misunderstood the facts when writing its unpublished opinion.
September 23, 2025
Federal Circuit Vacates Jury’s Patent Verdict Over Faulty Claim Construction

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A jury’s finding of noninfringement in a patent dispute involving magnetic objects used in data recording may have been based in part on a Pennsylvania federal judge’s improper construction of a patent claim term, a Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel held, vacating the jury’s verdict and remanding for a new trial.
September 23, 2025
Magistrate Judge Won’t Order Production Of NYT’s AI Chat Usage

NEW YORK — A federal magistrate judge in New York denied a motion to compel by OpenAI entities and Microsoft seeking user logs from The New York Times’ internal ChatGPT-based tool, ruling that the logs are irrelevant to the fair use defense and would cost nearly $1 million and three months to review and produce.
September 23, 2025
2nd Circuit Affirms Kimmel’s Copyright Win Over Former New York Rep.

NEW YORK — A Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel agreed with a New York federal judge that late-night show host Jimmy Kimmel’s use of videos recorded by former Congressman George Santos on his show was a fair use, affirming the judge’s decision to dismiss Santos’ copyright infringement claim against the host and related entities.
September 22, 2025
9th Circuit Denies App Maker’s Rehearing Bid In Peloton Infringement Suit

SAN FRANCISCO — The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals rejected an app maker’s request for panel rehearing or rehearing en banc, leaving in place a panel’s finding that factors “overwhelmingly” favored a finding that Peloton Interactive Inc.’s “Peloton Bike+” was not likely to be confused with the petitioner’s mobile app called “Bike+.”
September 18, 2025
Del. Federal Judge Won’t Order Permanent Injunction Barring Bid For FDA Approval

WILMINGTON, Del. — A pharmaceutical company that sought “equitable relief that is unprecedented under” federal law “has not established that its story warrants such relief,” a Delaware federal judge said, denying a motion that sought to bar a competitor from seeking approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for a drug to treat narcolepsy.
September 17, 2025
Weight Loss Company Loses Motion To Dismiss Trademark Infringement Case

SAN DIEGO — The manufacturer of Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus, fended off a motion to dismiss after a California federal judge found that a weight loss company facing claims of trademark infringement and unfair competition did not show that its application of the trademarks was within the nominative fair use doctrine.
September 16, 2025
Judge Rules On Summary Judgment Motions In Copyright Infringement Coverage Suit

WILMINGTON, Del. — A Delaware judge granted in part and denied in part primary and excess insurers’ motions for summary judgment in a coverage dispute arising from copyright infringement claims brought against an insured, finding that the movie studio’s claims against the insured are not indemnifiable but the record company claims against the insured are potentially indemnifiable.
September 15, 2025
Disney’s JMOL Win In Face Capturing Software IP Fight Reversed By 9th Circuit

SAN FRANCISCO — A Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel held that a California federal judge erred by granting posttrial judgment as a matter of law in favor of Walt Disney Pictures on a software company’s copyright infringement claim, holding that there was sufficient evidence for a jury to plausibly find that Disney was liable for vicarious infringement of the company’s facial imaging software.
September 15, 2025
AI Exam Company Must Face Copyright Claims, Judge Says

LOS ANGELES — An education exam company’s allegations that it curates test prep materials and that a competitor reproduces that work and uses it for training its artificial intelligence are sufficient to trigger copyright law protections and survive a motion to dismiss, a federal judge in California said.
September 12, 2025
Google AI Copyright Case Proceeds As Court Preps For AI Metadata Discovery Issue

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A federal judge on Sept. 11 dismissed with prejudice claims involving certain Google LLC artificial intelligence models and vicarious liability claims against parent company Alphabet Inc. but otherwise denied a motion to dismiss. Earlier a magistrate judge said she would not take up artificial intelligence copyright plaintiffs’ request to appoint a special master but would hold a hearing on a motion to compel after plaintiffs complained that discovery lacked metadata critical to identifying copyrighted material. Google LLC filed its response to the motion on Sept. 10, saying it had “gone above and beyond” what was required of it.
September 12, 2025
2nd Circuit: Labels Waived Inducement Argument, But Opinion Slightly Amended

NEW YORK — A Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel partly granted a group of record labels’ petition to reconsider its finding that the labels failed to show that video sharing website Vimeo Inc. had “red flag” knowledge that user-uploaded videos contained copyrighted musical recordings, agreeing to remove a footnote musing on whether the labels had preserved for U.S. Supreme Court review arguments that Vimeo could not be entitled to the safe harbor defined in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
September 12, 2025
Federal Circuit Won’t Reinstate Invalidity Finding In Cherry Plant Patent Row

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a short Sept. 11 order, the Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals denied a petition for a writ of mandamus filed by cherry-growing entities requesting that a Washington federal judge be directed to reinstate a previous finding of patent invalidity against the Canadian government department covering agriculture in a dispute over U.S. plant patents.