One of the most common forms of relief sought in trade secret litigation is an injunction preventing the defendants from using or disclosing the plaintiff’s trade secret information.  Although temporary restraining orders and/or preliminary injunctions may be obtained that are in place during the lawsuit, a permanent injunction is entered after trial and typically has no set time period for expiration.  There are various statutes that allow a defendant to seek to modify or dissolve a trade secret injunction at a later date, including a showing that the information that is the subject of the injunction is no longer entitled to trade secret protection.  The recent decision in Global Protein Products, Inc. v. Le (Cal. 6th App. Dist.) helps illustrate the high hurdle a defendant must clear in order to obtain such relief. Continue Reading Challenging a Trade Secret Injunction? Better Come Loaded For Bear

The priority date of a patent is an important aspect in protecting intellectual property. The priority date is the earliest possible filing date that a patent application is entitled to rely on; it is based on the filing dates of any related patent applications that were filed before the application (the priority chain).  This date determines which prior art can be used by the Patent and Trademark Office to determine patentability of the invention and which prior art can be used by competitors to challenge the patent’s validity. Continue Reading Patent Priority Dates Must Be a Priority!

When sued for patent infringement, a defendant can still petition for inter partes review (“IPR”) of the asserted patent at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) if the petition is filed within one year of service of the complaint.  But, as Game & Technology Co. v. Wargaming (Fed. Cir. 2019) reminds us, a plaintiff must properly serve the complaint to trigger the one-year deadline.  Specifically, “[s[ection 315(b) states that ‘[a]n inter partes review may not be instituted if the petition requesting the proceeding is filed more than 1 year after the date on which the petitioner … is served with a complaint alleging infringement of the patent.’”  35 U.S.C. § 315(b). Continue Reading Online Gaming Case Addresses Trigger for One-Year IPR Filing Deadline

If you’re plugged into the digital world and its constantly emerging meme trends, you’ve probably encountered various “OK, Boomer” memes by now. If you’re unfamiliar with the trend, here is a brief synopsis. OK, Boomer is a phrase that is used in response to members of the baby-boomer generation who have, through their conduct, demonstrated that they are out of touch. For example, when a member of the baby-boomer generation harps on a member of the millennial generation or Generation Z for allegedly lacking the work ethic of the boomer generation, one might respond, “OK, Boomer.” There are various other situations where the phrase could be used, but as you can see, it is either a trendy insult, or an ageist slur, depending on your point of view. Continue Reading OK, BOOMER: Fox Media Seeks Registration of the Viral Phrase From the USPTO

Virginia Vallejo, a well known Colombian journalist and media personality, authored the memoir “Loving Pablo, Hating Escobar”.  The book is a factual account of her romantic relationship with Pablo Escobar and a chronicle of the rise of the Colombian drug cartel.

Vallejo claimed that certain scenes in the television series Narcos infringed the copyright in her book, and she sued Narcos Productions, the producer of the series, Gaumont Television, the series’ distributor, and Netflix, the U.S. broadcaster.  Specifically, Vallejo claimed that certain scenes in the series were copied from various chapters in her book, including one that describes a sexual encounter between Vallejo and Escobar involving a handgun, and Continue Reading Order in Netflix Lawsuit is a Reminder of the Bounds of Copyright Protection