The Federal Circuit on Wednesday vacated a verdict against the maker of Norton antivirus software for infringing Columbia University patents and reversed a contempt ruling against Norton's former law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP that had caused the judgment to grow to just over $600 million.
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$600M IP Award, Quinn Emanuel Contempt Faulted On Appeal

By Ryan Davis

The Federal Circuit on Wednesday vacated a verdict against the maker of Norton antivirus software for infringing Columbia University patents and reversed a contempt ruling against Norton's former law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP that had caused the judgment to grow to just over $600 million.

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Squires Adds Domestic Industry, Biz Size To Denial Analysis

By Dani Kass

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires will take into account the domestic impact of invalidating a patent and how big the patent owner is when deciding whether to discretionarily deny Patent Trial and Appeal Board petitions, according to a memorandum issued Wednesday.

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Fed. Circ. Revives Long-Running IP Suit Against John Deere

By Adam Lidgett

The Federal Circuit on Wednesday reinstated a lawsuit accusing John Deere of infringing a patent on a way to keep a crop harvester's header at the right height, saying an Iowa federal judge wrongly found claims in the patent were invalid.

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Comcast, Peacock Escape Irish Co.'s Patent Suit, For Now

By Lauren Berg

A Delaware federal judge on Wednesday dismissed an Irish technology company's lawsuit alleging Comcast and its subsidiaries, NBCUniversal and Peacock TV, offer video streaming and network monitoring services that infringe four of its patents, saying the complaint does not adequately allege infringement, but gave the plaintiff an opportunity to rework the suit.

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Grammarly Hit With Class Action Over 'Expert Review' AI Tool

By Dorothy Atkins

An investigative journalist hit Grammarly's owner with a proposed class action in New York federal court Wednesday, alleging its AI-powered "Expert Review" writing tool misappropriates the names, likenesses and identities of well-known writers and public figures and "involuntarily conscripted" them into serving as Grammarly's unpaid experts.

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PATENTS

Fed. Circ. OKs Dropbox, Box Inc. Wins In Patent Challenges

By Adam Lidgett

The Federal Circuit on Wednesday declined to breathe new life into a pair of data management patents Dropbox and Box Inc. challenged at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board after being sued in federal district court for infringement.

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Brief

Apple Resolves Patent Case Over Coding Co.'s Technology

By Elliot Weld

Apple Inc. and Advanced Coding Technologies LLC have told a Texas federal judge that they've resolved the latter company's infringement claims over patents that cover ways of encoding and decoding data.

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COPYRIGHTS & TRADEMARKS

Fed. Circ. Lets Stand ZSPEC's Auto Hardware TM

By Adam Lidgett

The Federal Circuit on Wednesday backed the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board's denial of a bid from an automotive hardware and fastener company to cancel a competitor's trademark registration on the term "Dress Up Bolts."

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Hemp Co. Seeks Quick Exit In Fla. Cannabinoid Sourcing Suit

By David Minsky

A hemp company is asking a Florida federal court to dismiss a competitor's lawsuit alleging its products contain illegal cannabis-derived THC, arguing the complaint falls short on jurisdiction and listing causes of action. 

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Pelé Soccer Shop Hit With Copyright Suit Over Iconic Photo

By Alex Lawson

A Brazilian photographer's estate has sued the store Pelé Soccer in New York federal court, accusing it of using his iconic 1965 photo of soccer legend Pelé on its apparel without permission and concealing his authorship of the picture.

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UMich Songwriter Messed With EA Game License, Suit Says

By Gina Kim

Electronic Arts stopped using the University of Michigan football team's fight song "Let's Go Blue" in its best-selling College Football video game series after one of the original songwriters demanded the game maker get a license from him to do so, according to a tortious interference suit filed Tuesday in New York federal court.

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TRADE SECRETS

Photobucket Can't Escape AI Training Suit

By Rachel Konieczny

A proposed class action alleging image hosting website Photobucket used billions of photographs uploaded by users for biometric data and training image generators can largely move forward, but one named plaintiff must arbitrate her claims, a Colorado federal judge ruled.

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Texas Firm Fights Atty Immunity Bid In $11M Fee Dispute

By Lynn LaRowe

Texas litigation boutique Williams Simons & Landis PC is pushing back against a claim of attorney immunity in a federal lawsuit against California firm Bartko Pavia LLP over millions in fees connected to litigation against Walmart, saying the Lone Star State doctrine doesn't shield lawyers who manipulate settlement funds to line their own pockets.

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Pharma Co. Says Ex-Director Using Trade Secrets At New Job

By Elliot Weld

A specialty infusion therapy pharmacy has accused a former director of contracts of taking valuable trade secrets with her on her way out to work for a rival company.

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Archer Aviation Seeks ITC Probe Of Rival Joby's Air Taxis

By Jack McLoone

Electric air taxi company Archer Aviation accused rival Joby Aviation of using imported materials that infringe Archer's patents, asking the U.S. International Trade Commission to investigate these claims while the companies also do battle in California federal court.

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Brief

Biomedical Co. Settles Trade Secrets Case Against Ex-Worker

By Elliot Weld

Biomedical company Skye Orthobiologics and a former employee have informed a California federal judge that they have settled a case accusing the ex-employee of breaching fiduciary duties by leveraging Skye's proprietary information.

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SECURITIES

Intel Caved To Feds' 'Extortionary' Stock Demand, Suit Says

By Lauren Berg

Intel Corp.'s board gave the federal government $11 billion worth of stock in response to the Trump administration's "extortionary threats," according to a newly unsealed lawsuit brought by a shareholder who says the board lacked authority to issue the U.S. Department of Commerce a 9.9% company stake.

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EXPERT ANALYSIS

Patent Eligibility Bulletin: Steps To Consider As USPTO Shifts

Recent memoranda from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, along with some of the first patents issued under Director John Squires, indicate a recalibration of the subject matter eligibility landscape, signaling a renewed emphasis on concrete technological improvements and a potentially pro-AI stance, say attorneys at Banner Witcoff.

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LEGAL INDUSTRY

4th Circ. Scolds Atty Suspected Of Using AI In Race Bias Suit

By Patrick Hoff

The Fourth Circuit has reprimanded an attorney suspected of using generative artificial intelligence to draft briefs in a race discrimination lawsuit against Baltimore Gas and Electric Co., warning that courts need to grapple with the technology as it "may soon become the norm."

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Democrats Seek Review Of Bondi's Role In Brother's Cases

By Alison Knezevich

Two Democratic lawmakers have asked the U.S. Department of Justice's inspector general to review whether Attorney General Pam Bondi "adequately recused herself" from cases involving clients represented by her brother Brad Bondi, who is a partner at Paul Hastings LLP.

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Sinema Says Tryst With Ex-Guard Not In NC Court's Reach

By Abigail Harrison

Former U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, now a Hogan Lovells attorney, told a North Carolina federal court Thursday that a lawsuit alleging her cross-country affair with a former member of her security detail ended a 14-year marriage must be dismissed because the trysts occurred outside state borders.

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Ex-Judge Testifies About Alleged Forgeries In Amazon Case

By Kelcey Caulder

The former chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia testified Thursday about the alleged forging of court documents, signatures and court stamps in a criminal case against a woman accused of defrauding Amazon out of $9.4 million through fraudulent invoices. 

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Judge Newman Takes Suspension Battle To Supreme Court

By Ryan Davis

Federal Circuit Judge Pauline Newman brought her fight against a suspension imposed on her by her colleagues to the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday, arguing that a lower court wrongly held that her challenges to the order are not subject to judicial review.

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Calif. Bar Says Internal Docs Bolster Claims Against Exam Co.

By Emily Sawicki

The State Bar of California has bulked up its breach of contract and fraud suit against the administrator of its "disastrous" February 2025 bar exam, filing an amended complaint in light of information it says it learned from internal communications unearthed amid discovery.

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Holyoak's US Attorney Nomination Advances

By Courtney Bublé

The nomination of Melissa Holyoak, former commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission, to be U.S. attorney for the District of Utah was sent to the full Senate on Thursday.

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CFTC Takes 1st Steps Toward Prediction Market Regulations

By Jessica Corso

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission opened the door Thursday to promised prediction market regulation, calling for public feedback on what such rules might look like while laying out the staff's view on the current rules that the platforms should follow in order to offer betting on sports and other events.

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LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

BC Law Group PC

Banner Witcoff

Bartko Pavia

Bayard PA

Brewer Attorneys

Clement & Murphy

Cleveland Krist

Cooley LLP

Crowell & Moring

Darkhorse Law

Doniger Burroughs

Esbrook PC

Fabricant LLP

Farella Braun

Finnegan

Gibson Dunn

Hennelly & Grossfeld

Heyman Enerio

Hodgson Russ

Hogan Lovells

Hueston Hennigan

Husch Blackwell

Larkin Hoffman

Latham & Watkins

Leach & Walker

Loevy & Loevy

McCarter & English

Merchant & Gould

Paul Hastings

Peter Romer-Friedman Law

Potomac Law Group

Poyner Spruill

Quinn Emanuel

Reitler Kailas

Rosen Saba

Scott Douglass

Sheppard Mullin

Skadden Arps

Sughrue Mion

Sullivan & Cromwell

Van Camp Meacham

Weber Crabb

Weil Gotshal

Williams Simons

Young Conaway

COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Alabama Policy Institute

Amazon.com Inc.

American Society Of Composers Authors & Publishers

Apple Inc.

Archer Aviation Inc.

Baltimore Gas & Electric Co.

Box Inc.

Carl Fischer LLC

Cisneros

Comcast Corp.

Deere & Co.

Dropbox Inc.

Electronic Arts Inc.

Gen Digital Inc.

George Washington University

Hamilton Lincoln

InfuCare Rx

Intel Corp.

Joby Aero Inc

LinkedIn Corp.

Microsoft Corp.

NBCUniversal Media LLC

New Civil Liberties Alliance

Nikola Corp.

NortonLifeLock Inc.

Peacock TV

Proof

State Bar of California

The New York Times Co.

United Airlines Holdings Inc.

Vertosa Inc.

Walmart Inc.

Zillow Group Inc.

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

City of New York

Colorado Supreme Court

Commodity Futures Trading Commission

Delaware Court of Chancery

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Federal Aviation Administration

Federal Trade Commission

International Trade Commission

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

U.S. Attorney's Office

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia

U.S. Copyright Office

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit

U.S. Department of Commerce

U.S. Department of Defense

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Transportation

U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware

U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia

U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas

U.S. House of Representatives

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

U.S. Senate

U.S. Supreme Court

United States District Court for the District of Colorado