A business’s intellectual property may be its most valuable asset. Whether it is biotechnology, trade names, business methods, or computer software, intellectual property should be protected to the greatest extent possible in order to maximize the value of the business. This article summarizes the types of intellectual property protection that are available What Is Intellectual… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: Intellectual Property
Googling Google
Posted in Copyright Law, Cyberspace Law, Trademark Law, Web/Tech“I googled it …” has become ubiquitous in every day conversation. Many of us refer to “googling” as the act of searching the internet regardless of whether we use the Google search engine to do so. But has our everyday use of the verb “googling” rendered the Google trademark unprotectable? “Nope,” said the Ninth Circuit… Continue Reading
U.S. Supreme Court Limits Laches Defense in Patent Cases
Posted in Patent LawIn SCA Hygiene Products AB et al. v. First Quality Baby Products LLC et al., the United States Supreme Court held that laches cannot be invoked as a defense against a claim for patent infringement damages brought within U.S.C §286’s 6-year limitations period. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit had previously held… Continue Reading
Is Marilyn Monroe Too Generic to Be Registered as a Trademark?
Posted in Trademark LawI’ve written on numerous occasions in the past about celebrities who registered their own names as trademarks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Just the other week, I wrote about how UFC superstar Conor McGregor had filed an application to register his name as a trademark, and in that same article, I mentioned… Continue Reading
Northern District of California Revises Local Patent Rules
Posted in Copyright Law, Legal Info, Patent LawOn January 17, 2017, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California issued revisions to its Local Patent Rules requiring early disclosure of damages-related discovery and contentions. The revised rules are effective immediately in all patent cases pending in the Northern District. Local Patent Rules are rules that apply to all civil… Continue Reading
Federal Circuit Requires Standing to Appeal PTAB’s Final Decisions
Posted in Copyright Law, Patent Law, Trademark LawAlthough arguably foreshadowed, some may be surprised to learn that a party with the right to challenge the validity of a patent at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) may not have the right to appeal an unfavorable decision. In Phigenix v. ImmunoGen, the Federal Circuit clarified that while there is no standing… Continue Reading
From Rogue One to Forces of Destiny: A Star Wars Intellectual Property Story
Posted in Copyright Law, Cyberspace Law, Entertainment Law, Trademark LawWith last weekend’s release of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Star Wars is once again living and thriving. Rogue One opened with a most impressive $155 million opening in North America, and $290 million worldwide, making it the 12th largest opening in United States History. Now, this isn’t really related to intellectual property, but… Continue Reading
Federal Circuit Takes A Common Law Approach to “Abstract Idea” Determinations in Alice Cases
Posted in Copyright Law, Entertainment Law, Legal Info, Patent Law, Trademark Law, Web/TechBy: Eric Caligiuri In Amdocs (Israel) Ltd. v. Openet Telecom Inc. et al., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently upheld four software patents against a patent-eligibility challenge, finding that the patents do not claim an “abstract idea.” The patent challenge was under the frame work set out by the U.S. Supreme… Continue Reading
Branding Buds – Still Illegal Under Federal Law
Posted in Patent Law, Trademark LawIf voters in California approve Proposition 64 which would legalize the possession and use of marijuana for recreational purposes, it is without question that the sunshine state will see a huge increase in the number of businesses within the cannabis industry. According to a November 7, 2016 Forbes article, the passage of Proposition 64 could… Continue Reading
Weintraub Tobin’s IP Law Blog recognized as “Top 100 Legal Blogs” By Feedspot Blog Reader
Posted in IP Law Blog Lawyers In The NewsWeintraub Tobin’s Labor & Employment and Intellectual Property Blogs have both been recognized as a “Top 100 Legal Blogs Every Lawyer and Law Student Must Follow” by Feedspot Blog Reader! Feedspot takes into consideration 1,000’s of Law blogs from across the United States and Canada and uses search and social metrics to rank them. Congratulations… Continue Reading
Locksmith Locked Out By Communications Decency Act
Posted in Cyberspace Law, Web/TechThe Communications Decency Act (“CDA”) provides broad immunity for “providers of interactive computer services.” In essence, if an internet service provider falls within certain parameters, it is entitled to immunity against certain claims of liability brought under state law. Last month, the Ninth Circuit again considered the breadth of such immunity in the case, Kimzey… Continue Reading
Federal Circuit Rules the Patent Trial and Appeal Board Can Consider New Evidence During AIA Review Trial
Posted in Copyright Law, Legal Info, Patent Law, Trademark LawOn September 26, 2016, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit declined to review in a unanimous en banc decision a panel Federal Circuit decision affirming that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (the “Board”) at the Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) could hear new evidence during a trial, evidence that was not… Continue Reading
How BREXIT Will Affect Intellectual Property
Posted in Copyright Law, IP Law Blog Lawyers In The News, Legal Info, Patent Law, Trade SecretsAs everyone knows, in June, the United Kingdom passed the BREXIT referendum (driven by British voters), voting to exit the European Union. What affect does BREXIT have on intellectual property rights in the United Kingdom and the European Union? There is a two-year process of negotiation between the UK and the EU, provided for by… Continue Reading
Federal Circuit Holds the PTAB Must Apply Narrower Phillips Claim Construction Standard to Patents that Expire During Pendency of Re-exam
Posted in Patent LawBy: Eric Caligiuri In In re CSB-System Int’l, Inc., No. 15-1832 (Fed. Cir. Aug. 9, 2016), the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently held that patents that expire during a pending re-examination before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (“PTAB”) should be examined under the Phillips standard of claim construction, and not the… Continue Reading
The Seattle Seahawks’ 12th Man Flies Again
Posted in Trademark LawIf you regularly follow our publication, you may remember when I discussed the Seattle Seahawks and their use of the Texas A&M trademark “12TH MAN” over a year ago. If not, that’s okay too. In short, I discussed how the Seattle Seahawks have been utilizing the Texas A&M trademark without permission and were facing legal… Continue Reading
Small Burger Chain Has a Beef With Chipotle
Posted in Copyright Law, Patent Law, Trademark LawBy: Scott Hervey Chipotle’s entry into the burger business has a Boston based small burger chain up in arms. The Boston burger spot, which has been in operation since 2010 and goes by the name Tasty Burger, has a beef with the brand Chipotle has chosen for its restaurants, Tasty Made. Tasty Burger claims that Chipotle… Continue Reading
Trademark Assignability Laid Bare
Posted in IP Law Blog Lawyers In The News, Trademark LawCrazy Horse was a legendary Native American chief of the Oglala Lakota tribe who lived during the second half of the 1800s. Unfortunately today, his name may be more familiar as a brand for various products, such as motorcycle gear, whiskey, rifles and strip clubs. In Russell Road Food & Beverage, LLC v. Spencer, et… Continue Reading
Fair Use and Youtube – A Creator’s Take
Posted in Cyberspace Law, IP Law Blog Lawyers In The News, Web/Tech6/25/16- At the 7th Annual VidCon in Anaheim, CA , Weintraub Tobin Shareholder Scott M. Hervey and Rian Bosak, Head of Network Operations Full Screen, presented “Fair Use and Youtube- A Creator’s Take” to a standing room only audience of digital media creators and industry professionals. Check out their presentation below: Fair Use and Youtube- A… Continue Reading
Google’s Fair Use Defense Thwarts Oracle’s Attempt to Recover $9 Billion in Copyright Case
Posted in Copyright Law, Patent LawIn a high-profile case, a jury recently found that Google’s use of portions of Oracle’s Java software code was allowable under the fair use doctrine and thus did not constitute copyright infringement. Oracle sought as much as $9 billion in damages from Google for incorporating approximately 11,000 lines of Oracle’s Java software code into Google’s… Continue Reading
Federal Circuit Applies Broadened Test For Divided Infringement
Posted in Copyright LawOn April 18, 2016, the Supreme Court denied certiorari in Akamai Technologies, Inc. v. Limelight Networks, Inc., 797 F.3d 1020 (Fed. Cir., August 2015) (“Akamai IV”), cert. denied, 2016 U.S. LEXIS 2768. The Court declined Limelight’s petition for review of a $46 million jury verdict against Limelight for patent infringement. The jury had found Limelight… Continue Reading
The Federal Circuit Finds Foreign Sales Do Not Exhaust Patent Rights
Posted in Patent LawIn Lexmark International, Inc. v. Impression Products, Inc., No. 14-1617 (Fed. Cir. 2016), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit decided en banc that a U.S. patent owner’s “first sale” of items in a foreign country does not exhaust the patent owner’s right to sue for patent infringement when those items are later… Continue Reading
Disney’s Influence on United States Copyright Law
Posted in Copyright Law, Entertainment LawIf you’ve ever applied for, or researched copyright law, you likely learned one thing above all else: it’s not a perpetual right. So, how, you might wonder, have companies like The Walt Disney Company managed to maintain copyrights on certain creations for almost 100 years? In the case of the Walt Disney Company, the answer… Continue Reading
Federal Circuit Limits Attorneys’ Fees in Exceptional Cases
Posted in Patent LawTwo weeks ago, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals limited the factors a district court may consider in determining the amount of attorneys’ fees to award in an “exceptional” patent infringement case. Lumen View Tech., LLC v. Findthebest.com, Inc. (January 22, 2016) 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 1087. Lumen was the exclusive licensee of a patent… Continue Reading
Five IP Pitfalls That Start-Up (and Grown Up) Companies Can Easily Avoid
Posted in Copyright Law, Legal Info, Patent Law, Trade Secrets, Trademark LawIn business, there are numerous opportunities for pitfalls, mistakes and errors and they come up in all different legal areas – from basic formation issues to labor and employment to intellectual property. Mistakes and missteps involving intellectual property can be particularly problematic because IP is a company asset; it constitutes a part of (often a… Continue Reading
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