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Intellectual Property
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Featured
Top Patent Eligibility Rulings In The Decade Since Alice
The U.S. Supreme Court's Alice v. CLS Bank decision 10 years ago this week led to scores of inventions being found ineligible for patenting, and rulings since then have fleshed out the law on the contentious topic. Here's a look at the most notable patent eligibility decisions after Alice.
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June 18, 2024
Samsung Bioepis Denies Infringing Blood Treatment Patent
Samsung Bioepis has fought back against a bid by Alexion to prevent it from selling a biosimilar version of a patented blood treatment drug by a rival, telling a court that this will not infringe the protections of an AstraZeneca subsidiary over the medicine.
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June 17, 2024
Startup Wants To Add More Than $200M To Boeing IP Verdict
Zunum Aero Inc. is urging a Washington federal judge to significantly boost a $72 million jury verdict against the Boeing Co. for misappropriating the electric jet startup's trade secrets, including adding $162.5 million in exemplary damages and nearly $52 million in legal costs and interest.
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June 17, 2024
Microsoft Renews Sanctions Bid Against Texas IP Law Firm
Microsoft asked a Texas federal court Friday to order Ramey LLP to pay its $100,000 attorneys' fees tab for "vexatiously" pursuing infringement litigation against it, even when the patent plaintiffs firm's now-former client CTD Networks LLC called for it to end.
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June 17, 2024
NJ Firm Defends Lien On Ex-Client's Patents After Unpaid Bills
A major New Jersey law firm said it has a "common law" right to place a lien on its former client's patents without telling it, after the "failed" biopharmaceutical startup fired the firm and stopped paying its outstanding legal bills.
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June 17, 2024
Judge Cements Decision Clearing Cisco From $2.75B Ruling
There will be not be a third trial for a cybersecurity startup that has seen its multibillion-dollar patent win turn into nothing at all, a Virginia federal judge has decided, after a second trial found that Cisco wasn't actually infringing its patents.
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June 17, 2024
'Anderson Method' Copyright Claim Gets Cut Ahead Of Trial
A California federal judge has handed Tracy Anderson's former employee Megan Roup a summary judgment win on the celebrity fitness trainer's copyright claim accusing Roup of ripping off her "Tracy Anderson Method" exercise routines, but concluded a jury should decide Anderson's sole remaining breach-of-contract claim in an upcoming November trial.
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June 17, 2024
Male Enhancement Pills Infringe RAW Trademark, Co. Says
HBI International, the American distributor of the RAW line of smoking products, has filed a lawsuit in Georgia federal court alleging Mash Enterprise LLC used "identical copies" of its trademarks, trade dress and copyrighted packaging to sell male enhancement pills and beverages.
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June 17, 2024
Huawei Slams Netgear's 'Tenuous' RICO Case
Huawei has responded to a racketeering and antitrust case from a major U.S. maker of Wi-Fi routers by calling it "rife with tenuous legal and factual claims" and comparing its reworking of patent infringement allegations to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's failed antitrust case against Qualcomm.
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June 17, 2024
Fed. Circ. Says Errors Led To Injunction In Trade Secrets Suit
A Federal Circuit panel on Monday overturned a preliminary injunction against a South Korean insulin pump patch manufacturer that allegedly stole trade secrets from a rival, saying a Massachusetts federal court made a series of errors in its determination to grant an injunction.
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June 17, 2024
Boeing, Virgin Can't Agree To Injunction's Scope In IP Row
Boeing and Virgin Galactic have clashed over whether Virgin can share information with outside contractors gleaned as part of a failed aircraft development contract, as Boeing's suit accusing Virgin of breaching the deal and misappropriating trade secrets moves forward in Virginia federal court.
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June 17, 2024
Repeat Violations Land Ore. Forwarder Export Denial Order
An Oregon-based package forwarder has lost export privileges just days before clearing a three-year probationary period for alleged unlicensed rifle scope exports, after an audit revealed 176 new violations, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced Monday.
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June 17, 2024
Tesla Slaps Supplier With $1B EV Battery Trade Secrets Suit
Tesla is accusing one of its suppliers of corporate espionage in a $1 billion California federal lawsuit, saying that Matthews International has even tried to claim it invented the stolen trade secrets for manufacturing electric vehicle batteries by incorporating the confidential information into patent filings.
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June 14, 2024
Meta Halts AI Tech Debut In EU After Regulatory Backlash
Meta Platforms Inc. said Friday that it was putting on hold plans to expand its artificial intelligence offerings to the European market after the Irish privacy regulator raised concerns about the company's efforts to use public content posted on Facebook and Instagram to fuel these models.
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June 14, 2024
Tata Must Pay $168M For Trade Secret Theft, Texas Judge Says
A Texas federal judge has ordered Tata Consultancy to pay $168 million for willfully misappropriating an IT company's trade secrets concerning source code and life insurance software documentation, plus $25 million in prejudgment interest.
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June 14, 2024
Amazon Slams Co.'s Bid For $180M Interest On $525M IP Win
Amazon urged an Illinois federal judge Thursday to reject software company Kove IO Inc.'s demand for $180 million in interest and fees on top of a $525 million infringement verdict relating to cloud data storage patents, arguing Kove delayed bringing its case for years since it sought to start a business venture with Amazon.
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June 14, 2024
Amazon On Hook For $122M In Ad Patent Case, Jury Says
A federal jury in Waco, Texas, said Friday that Amazon should pay a small advertising software outfit almost $122 million, which was on the lower end of a request that stretched upward to $348 million.
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June 14, 2024
Motif Gets Most Of Impossible Foods Patent Trimmed At PTAB
The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has invalidated claims of an Impossible Foods Inc. meat-substitute patent that food technology company Motif Foodworks Inc. had challenged, finding they were obvious.
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June 14, 2024
Samsung Can't Get Stay After PTAB Axes IP In $303M Verdict
A Texas federal judge has refused to stay a case in which Samsung was found to have infringed computer memory patents that were later invalidated in parallel proceedings at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.
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June 14, 2024
Justices Are Asked To Wade Into Blood Pressure Drug IP Fight
United Therapeutics is taking its patent case seeking to stop a rival from selling a drug that competes with its blockbuster treatment for high blood pressure to the U.S. Supreme Court.
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June 14, 2024
Court Says NYC Can Intervene In Cannabis TM Fight
New York City is looking to kill a Manhattan entrepreneur's trademark lawsuit over a cannabis themed cruise he claims stole his logos when advertised on Facebook, with the municipality arguing the businessman has been previously ordered to stop using its "NYC" logo.
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June 14, 2024
Judge Won't Undo Save Of J&J Patent After Fed. Circ. Ruling
A federal court has refused to reconsider a March decision finding Tolmar failed to show a patent on Janssen's blockbuster schizophrenia drug Invega Sustenna was invalid as obvious.
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June 14, 2024
3rd Circ. Won't Halt 'Made In America' False Ad Ruling
The Third Circuit will not pause an injunction against Albion Engineering Co. for falsely marketing its caulking guns as made in the United States, according to a Friday order declining to hold off the New Jersey federal court's order while the firm appeals.
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June 14, 2024
Off The Bench: Ex-Players Claim NIL, Loss For Trans Swimmer
In this week's Off The Bench, the 1983 men's college basketball champions want a piece of the loot the NCAA made off of their names, swimmer Lia Thomas loses in her bid to overturn an international trans athlete ban, and the House gets a bill through committee that would keep college athletes from becoming employees.
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June 14, 2024
Littler Aims To End Theft Suit After $1M Deal With Ex-Firm Atty
Littler Mendelson PC this week moved to drop a lawsuit accusing a former associate of stealing confidential documents following a settlement in which the firm agreed to pay her nearly $1 million, though a separate, newer case in which the lawyer accuses Littler of violating that deal remains open.
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June 14, 2024
Calif. Software Co. Hits UnitedLex With Copyright Suit
California-based technology company Scalr Inc. has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against data and professional services company UnitedLex in federal court , accusing the Kansas-based company of continuing to use its infrastructure software after its contract expired on Dec. 31.
Editor's Picks
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Fed. Circ.'s Fight With Newman: A Year In Review
One year has passed since it came to light that the Federal Circuit's judges were investigating whether their colleague, U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman, was mentally competent to remain on the court. In that time, Judge Newman has garnered support from many in the patent community, but has faced a series of setbacks in her legal challenges.
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Why IP Attys Are Watching This $2B Trade Secrets Battle
A case of alleged corporate espionage involving two software companies that resulted in a $2 billion verdict has all the hallmarks of a legal thriller, and attorneys are watching the appeal closely to see how it could impact trade secrets litigation.
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Trials After PTAB Invalidity Rulings Present Tricky Issues
A recent case illustrates that Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions finding patents invalid do not necessarily preclude a district court from holding an infringement trial on the same patents, though attorneys say such a scenario could raise some challenging issues.
Expert Analysis
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Think Like A Lawyer: Always Be Closing
When a lawyer presents their case with the right propulsive structure throughout trial, there is little need for further argument after the close of evidence — and in fact, rehashing it all may test jurors’ patience — so attorneys should consider other strategies for closing arguments, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Tracking China's Push To Invalidate Foreign Patents
China’s increasing use of courts and administrative panels to nullify patents in strategically important industries, such as technology, pharmaceuticals and rare-earth minerals, raises serious concerns about the intellectual property rights of foreign businesses operating there, say Rajat Rana and Manuel Valderrama at Selendy Gay.
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3 Ways To Fight Alice Rejections Of Blockchain Patents
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
With blockchain-related patent application filings on the rise, Thomas Isaacson at Polsinelli offers strategies for responding to U.S. Patent and Trademark Office determinations that the blockchain network is just a generic computer and patent-ineligible under the U.S. Supreme Court's 2014 Alice v. CLS Bank decision.
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F1 Driver AI Case Sheds Light On Winning Tactics In IP Suits
A German court recently awarded damages to former F1 driver Michael Schumacher's family in an artificial intelligence dispute over the unlicensed use of his image, illustrating how athletes are using the law to protect their brands, and setting a precedent in other AI-generated image rights cases, William Bowyer at Lawrence Stephens.
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8th Circ. Insurance Ruling Spotlights Related-Claims Defenses
The Eighth Circuit’s recent Dexon v. Travelers ruling — that the insurer must provide a defense despite the policy’s related-acts provision — provides guidance for how policyholders can overcome related-acts defenses, say Geoffrey Fehling and Jae Lynn Huckaba at Hunton.
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Counterfeits At The Olympics Pose IP Challenges
With the 2024 Olympic Games quickly approaching, the proliferation of counterfeit Olympic merchandise poses a difficult challenge to the protection of intellectual property rights and the preservation of the Olympic brand's integrity, says Kimiya Shams at Devialet.
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Series
Playing Chess Makes Me A Better Lawyer
There are many ways that chess skills translate directly into lawyer skills, but for me, the bigger career lessons go beyond the direct parallels — playing chess has shown me the value of seeing gradual improvement in and focusing deep concentration on a nonwork endeavor, says attorney Steven Fink.
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Patent Lessons From 7 Federal Circuit Reversals In May
A look at recent cases where the Federal Circuit reversed or vacated decisions by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board or a federal district court provide guidance on how to succeed on appeal by clarifying the obviousness analysis of design patents, the finality of a judgment, and more, say Denise De Mory and Li Guo at Bunsow De Mory.
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Litigation Inspiration: Attys Can Be Heroic Like Olympians
Although litigation won’t earn anyone an Olympic medal in Paris this summer, it can be worthy of the same lasting honor if attorneys exercise focused restraint — seeking both their clients’ interests and those of the court — instead of merely pursuing every advantage short of sanctionable conduct, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.
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Lean Into The 'Great Restoration' To Retain Legal Talent
As the “great resignation,” in which employees voluntarily left their jobs in droves, has largely dissipated, legal employers should now work toward the idea of a “great restoration,” adopting strategies to effectively hire, onboard and retain top legal talent, says Molly McGrath at Hiring & Empowering Solutions.
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Momofuku Chili War May Chill Common Phrase TM Apps
Momofuku’s recent trademark battle over the “Chili Crunch” mark shows that over-enforcement when protecting exclusivity rights may backfire not just in the public eye, but with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as well, says Anthony Panebianco at Davis Malm.
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Trademark In Artistic Works 1 Year After Jack Daniel's
In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court's Jack Daniel's v. VIP Products ruling, courts have applied Jack Daniel's inconsistently to deny First Amendment protection to artistic works, providing guidance for dismissing trademark claims relating to film and TV titles, say Hardy Ehlers and Neema Sahni at Covington.
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NCAA Settlement May End The NIL Model As We Know It
The recent House v. NCAA settlement in California federal court, in which the NCAA agreed to allow schools to directly pay March Madness television revenue to their athletes, may send outside name, image and likeness collectives in-house, says Mike Ingersoll at Womble Bond.
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Legal Battles Show Brands' Dilemma In Luxury Resale Trend
Recent litigation, such as Chanel's pending case against The RealReal, underscores the intricate balance luxury brands must strike between protecting their trademarks and embracing the burgeoning secondhand market that values sustainability, says Prachi Ajmera at Michelman & Robinson.
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AI-Generated Soundalikes Pose Right Of Publicity Issues
Artificial intelligence voice generators have recently proliferated, allowing users to create new voices or manipulate existing vocals with no audio engineering expertise, and although soundalikes may be permissible in certain cases, they likely violate the right of publicity of the person who is being mimicked, says Matthew Savare at Lowenstein Sandler.