Intellectual Property

  • March 21, 2024

    Ford Says $350K TM Jury Award Can't Be Boosted To $15M

    Ford Motor Co. on Wednesday urged a Michigan federal court to deny a tech company's request to boost an unfair competition award against Ford from less than half a million to $15 million because the tech company didn't challenge Ford's sales and profit data at trial. 

  • March 21, 2024

    NY Disbars 'Copyright Troll' Atty For Ignoring Orders, Lying

    A suspended New York attorney who became known as a "copyright troll" has been disbarred, with a state appeals court concluding that a long pattern of noncompliance with court orders and making false representations during cases merits the punishment.

  • March 21, 2024

    Business Coalition Rebuffs Biden Plan To Seize Drug Patents

    The Biden administration's proposal to exercise so-called march-in rights to seize drug patents would harm innovation in the U.S., according to an assemblage of business-focused groups.

  • March 21, 2024

    Teleflex Catheter Patent Makes It Through Fed. Circ.

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday opted to leave untouched an administrative patent board ruling that rejected a legal effort to invalidate a patent covering a type of catheter that's sold by Teleflex. 

  • March 21, 2024

    TTAB Rejects 'ZPile' TM As 'Descriptive' Of Metal Sheet Piles

    A construction materials company's attempt to register "ZPile" as a trademark has failed at the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, which affirmed an examining attorney's denial of the mark because it's "merely descriptive" of a term known in the industry as a type of metal sheet pile.

  • March 21, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Upholds Edwards' PTAB Win On Heart Valve Patent

    The Federal Circuit has affirmed a Patent Trial and Appeal Board finding that various parts of medical technology maker Cardiovalve's patent on an artificial heart valve implant were invalid as obvious.

  • March 21, 2024

    Pool Company Aims To Bar Rival's False Ads After Verdict

    A swimming pool equipment manufacturer is looking to permanently ban a competitor from using deceptive marketing techniques on Amazon after a federal jury in North Carolina slapped the rival company with a nearly $15 million verdict for false advertising and unfair business practices.

  • March 21, 2024

    Barings' Exec Helped Raid Employees To Join Rival, Suit Says

    A former executive of the investment firm Barings LLC is accused of joining a rival firm who together conspired to hire away 21 Barings employees and then offered to buy the decimated Barings unit for "on the dollar" in "one of the largest corporate raids at an asset manager in years," a suit alleges.

  • March 21, 2024

    Frost Brown Hires West Coast IP Talent From Lewis Roca

    Frost Brown Todd has announced the addition of two intellectual property attorneys from Lewis Roca Rothgerber Christie LLP, including the former managing partner of two IP-focused Lewis Roca offices in California.

  • March 21, 2024

    USPTO Expands Types Of E-Signatures Allowed For Patents

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office will allow filers to sign patent documents using a wider range of third-party electronic signature platforms, including DocuSign and Acrobat Sign, starting Friday.

  • March 21, 2024

    Faegre Drinker Hires Indianapolis Litigation Boutique Founder

    Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP has hired a founding partner of Indianapolis litigation boutique Hoover Hull Turner LLP, who joins the firm as a partner to continue her practice centered on business litigation matters, the firm recently announced.

  • March 20, 2024

    Metals Co. Gets Injunction Bid Revived In Fireproofing IP Case

    The Federal Circuit on Wednesday upheld a California federal judge's decision scrapping a royalty award that metals company CEMCO won after a jury found a smaller rival induced infringement of several fireproofing patents, but the circuit vacated the judge's denial of the company's permanent injunction bid.

  • March 20, 2024

    USPTO Won't Weigh In On Samsung Chip Patent Fight

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's deputy director has turned down appeals from a California company seeking to overturn patent board rulings that could unravel a $303 million verdict against Samsung that has yet to make it through a federal court in East Texas.

  • March 20, 2024

    PTAB To Analyze Moderna COVID Vaccine Patents

    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has agreed to review two Moderna COVID-19 vaccine patents challenged by rivals Pfizer and BioNTech as having "unimaginably broad claims directed to a basic idea that was known long before."

  • March 20, 2024

    Spanish Investment Co. Beats Slovak TM Opposition In EU

    A Spanish investment company has won an appeal to revive its trademark application, as European officials ruled that buyers of financial services paid a "high degree of attention" and wouldn't think that the sign was linked to a Slovak company.

  • March 20, 2024

    Digital Comms Filings Bolster Record EPO Applications

    Companies and inventors filed the highest number of European patent applications to date in 2023, buoyed by marked increases in filings for digital communications and energy technologies.

  • March 20, 2024

    Tech Partner Takes Reins Of New AI Team At Phillips Lytle

    Phillips Lytle this week became one of the latest firms to unveil a dedicated team focused on artificial intelligence, with a partner experienced in technology and business matters poised to lead that group of seven attorneys overall.

  • March 20, 2024

    EU Commission Builds 'Toolkit' To Fight Counterfeiting

    The European Commission has adopted new measures to crack down on counterfeiting aimed at strengthening intellectual property rights by increasing the sanctions for criminal offenses while also designating a single contact point for enforcement issues. 

  • March 20, 2024

    Boehringer Wins Diabetes Treatment Patent On Appeal In EU

    Boehringer Ingelheim saved its diabetes drug patent from the chopping block after a European appellate board ruled that the treatment for patients with moderately damaged kidneys was new and innovative despite eight oppositions.

  • March 20, 2024

    Stroller Co., Music Publisher Agree To End IP Row Over Song

    Music distributor Third Side Music Inc. and car-seat maker Evenflo Co. Inc. have agreed to end a lawsuit that claimed Evenflo used a "sound-alike" song in its advertisements that allegedly infringed Third Side's rights to music by the electronic band Sofi Tukker, according to a filing in Ohio federal court.

  • March 20, 2024

    Upper Deck Settles Suit Over 1998 Michael Jordan Photo

    Upper Deck and the owner of a 1988 photo of NBA legend Michael Jordan have agreed to settle a California federal lawsuit that accused the trading card giant of making millions off the famous photograph without permission. 

  • March 20, 2024

    How The Supreme Court Could Narrow Chevron

    After hours of oral argument in a closely watched administrative law case, it appeared that some U.S. Supreme Court justices could be open to limiting the opportunities for lower courts to defer to federal agencies' legal interpretations in disputes over rulemaking — and legal experts said there are a number of ways they could do it.

  • March 20, 2024

    EU's AI Act Disclosure Rules Could Spark Further Litigation

    The European Union's new artificial intelligence law included some welcome guardrails to protect intellectual property rights. But lawyers say it remains to be seen whether these new rules will bridge the gap between concerned rights holders and AI pioneers.

  • March 20, 2024

    Law360 Announces The Members Of Its 2024 Editorial Boards

    Law360 is pleased to announce the formation of its 2024 Editorial Advisory Boards.

  • March 20, 2024

    Fight Over NFL Star's Statue Hinges On Who Holds Copyright

    The works of sculptors, like those of other artists, are protected by the fair use doctrine in U.S. copyright law, while photographers also have copyright protection for their work when others try to use it for their own profit. The intersection of those rights complicates a rare copyright infringement suit against the NFL and the Detroit Lions over a statue of Hall of Fame player Barry Sanders, experts say.

Expert Analysis

  • Fed. Circ. In Feb.: Using Prior Products To Invalidate A Patent

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    The Federal Circuit's recent Weber v. Provisu ruling, that prior-product operating manuals constituted printed publications that can be used to invalidate patents in an inter partes review proceeding, makes it easier for a petitioner to invalidate a patent, say Sean Murray and Jeremiah Helm at Knobbe Martens.

  • How Cos. Can Assess Open-Source Contribution Patent Risks

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    Recent trends underscore the importance of open-source software to the technology industry for both engineering and strategic purposes, and companies should consider using a framework that addresses whether contributions require granting licenses to patent claims in portfolios to analyze associated risks, says Shrut Kirti at TAE Technologies.

  • 7 Common Myths About Lateral Partner Moves

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    As lateral recruiting remains a key factor for law firm growth, partners considering a lateral move should be aware of a few commonly held myths — some of which contain a kernel of truth, and some of which are flat out wrong, says Dave Maurer at Major Lindsey.

  • What's At Stake In Pending Fed. Circ. Design Patent Test Case

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    The full Federal Circuit recently heard argument in LKQ v. GM Global, a case concerning patent obviousness in the aftermarket for auto parts; the court's decision will likely influence how design patents are obtained, enforced and challenged, and affect the broader innovation ecosystem, says Larry DeMeo at Hunton.

  • No AI FRAUD Act Is A Significant Step For Right Of Publicity

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    The No Artificial Intelligence Fake Replicas and Unauthorized Duplications Act's proposed federal right of publicity protection, including post-mortem rights, represents a significant step toward harmonizing the landscape of right of publicity law, Rachel Hofstatter and Aaron Rosenthal at Honigman.

  • Series

    Cheering In The NFL Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Balancing my time between a BigLaw career and my role as an NFL cheerleader has taught me that pursuing your passions outside of work is not a distraction, but rather an opportunity to harness important skills that can positively affect how you approach work and view success in your career, says Rachel Schuster at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Averting Patent And Other IP Risks In Generative AI Use

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    While leveraging generative AI presents potential problems such as loss of ownership of patents and other intellectual properties, a series of practice tips, including ensuring that the technology is used as a supplementary tool and is not contributing to invention conception, can help mitigate those concerns, say Mackenzie Martin and Bryce Bailey at Baker McKenzie.

  • After TikTok, Tiptoeing Toward Patent Transfer Alignment

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    Following the Fifth Circuit's TikTok decision, which aimed to standardize transfer analysis in patent cases, the Federal Circuit and Texas federal courts facing transfer requests have taken small steps to consider the practical realities of patent litigation, reinforcing the intensely factual focus of the analysis, says Charles Fowler at McKool Smith.

  • New Hydrogen Regulations Show The Need For IP Protections

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    The introduction of hydrogen regulations, such as the IRS' proposed tax credit for clean hydrogen under the Inflation Reduction Act, are reshaping the competitive landscape, with intellectual property rights an area of increased emphasis, say Evan Glass and James De Vellis at Foley & Lardner.

  • Inside The PTAB's Seagen Cancer Drug Patent Decision

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    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board's recent finding that Seagen's claims for antibody-drug conjugate technology were unpatentable — for lack of enablement, lack of written description and anticipation — mark the latest chapter in the complex patent dispute as the case heads for director review, says Ryan Hagglund at Loeb & Loeb.

  • 6 Pointers For Attys To Build Trust, Credibility On Social Media

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    In an era of information overload, attorneys can use social media strategically — from making infographics to leveraging targeted advertising — to cut through the noise and establish a reputation among current and potential clients, says Marly Broudie at SocialEyes Communications.

  • Opinion

    Biden Admin's March-In Plan Would Hurt Medical Innovation

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    The Biden administration's proposal to reinterpret the Bayh-Dole Act and allow the government to claw back patents when it determines that a commercialized product's price is too high would discourage private investment in important research and development, says Ken Thorpe at the Rollins School of Public Health.

  • Google Patent Case Is A Claim Construction Litigation Lesson

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    The Federal Circuit's recent precedential decision in Google v. EcoFactor, which held that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board erred in the claim construction it had unknowingly adopted, shows that litigators should be alert to claim construction issues that masquerade as something else, says Roy Wepner at Kaplan Breyer.

  • A Post-Mortem Analysis Of Stroock's Demise

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    After the dissolution of 147-year-old firm Stroock late last year shook up the legal world, a post-mortem analysis of the data reveals a long list of warning signs preceding the firm’s collapse — and provides some insight into how other firms might avoid the same disastrous fate, says Craig Savitzky at Leopard Solutions.

  • Reassessing Trade Secrets Amid Proposed Noncompete Ban

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    The Federal Trade Commission's proposed ban on noncompete agreements as well as state bans make it prudent for businesses to reevaluate and reinvigorate approaches to trade secret protection, including knowing what information employees are providing to vendors, and making sure confidentiality agreements are put in place before information is shared, says Rob Jensen at Wolf Greenfield.

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