Try our Advanced Search for more refined results
Intellectual Property
-
April 23, 2024
AI Invention Guidance Adds New Patent Wrinkles, Attys Say
Recent guidance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that inventions developed with assistance from artificial intelligence tools can be patented prompted a sigh of relief among many attorneys, but confronting the nuances will create challenges, experts said Tuesday.
-
April 23, 2024
Wash. Urges Federal Court To Set Bad Faith Test For IP Cases
A Washington federal judge should apply a standard analyzing patterns of harassment when determining whether the owner of a data processing network patent acted in bad faith by issuing nearly 2,000 uniform demand letters alleging infringement, the state attorney general's office has argued.
-
April 23, 2024
Buchanan Ingersoll Lands Former PTAB Judge In Del.
A former administrative judge at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board is going back to private practice, helping build Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC's Delaware presence of patent professionals.
-
April 23, 2024
Embattled Ex-Animal Rescue Executive Hit With TM Suit
Last Chance Ranch, a nonprofit animal shelter and rescue based in Pennsylvania, has sued its former executive director — who was accused of stealing a kangaroo — and a new nonprofit she created, alleging unauthorized use of the shelter's name and trademarks.
-
April 22, 2024
Eli Lilly Tells Fed. Circ. $177M Patent Loss Was Rightly Axed
Eli Lilly & Co. has urged the Federal Circuit to uphold a Massachusetts federal judge's decision that wiped out a $176.5 million verdict against it for infringing Teva migraine drug patents, saying the lower court correctly found the patent claims to be invalid.
-
April 22, 2024
Jack Daniel's, VIP Hold Firm In Yearslong Dog Toy TM Fight
Jack Daniel's has told an Arizona federal court that VIP Products LLC's contention that its chewy, poop-themed dog toys in the shape of whiskey bottles do not infringe or dilute Jack Daniel's brand is an old argument, borne from a desire to litigate the case "from scratch" after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected its First Amendment defense last year.
-
April 22, 2024
$1 Awarded To Software Co. Splunk In Copyright Fight
A California federal jury on Monday awarded software company Splunk a single dollar in damages in a suit accusing rival Cribl of copyright infringement.
-
April 22, 2024
Gambling Co., Casinos Battle Over Shuffler Antitrust Claims
Scientific Games successor Light & Wonder has urged an Illinois federal judge not to certify a class of automatic card shuffler buyers, even as the riverboat casinos accusing it of tricking the patent office into shoring up its shuffler monopoly argued that their claims should go to trial.
-
April 22, 2024
Fed. Circ. Affirmance Rate In PTAB Cases Hit 83% In 2023
The Federal Circuit affirmed Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions on every issue 83.3% of the time in 2023, a new high that is notably above the historical average of 74.2%, according to the latest data compiled by Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner LLP patent attorneys.
-
April 22, 2024
ITC Backs Partial Win For Voltage In Shoals Solar Patent Case
The full U.S. International Trade Commission has declined to review an administrative law judge's finding that Shoals Technologies Group did not satisfy the requirement of showing it has a domestic industry for one of the solar technology patents it has accused Voltage LLC of infringing.
-
April 22, 2024
Shade Co. Calls $34.6M Patent Verdict 'Grossly Excessive'
Home lighting fixtures company Lutron and rival GeigTech are continuing their legal fight after a New York federal jury found that Lutron owes GeigTech $34.6 million for infringing a patent, with Lutron saying the award was "grossly excessive."
-
April 22, 2024
Ex-Gov. Huckabee Says Bloomberg Can't Duck Copyright Suit
Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has urged a New York federal court not to dismiss Bloomberg from his proposed class action alleging copyright infringement of e-books to train the media company's large language model, arguing the business cannot lean on a fair use defense to toss the complaint at this stage.
-
April 22, 2024
Abbott Says Rival Can Make Diabetes Tech Without TM Shape
An Abbott Laboratories unit is defending a 3D trademark it owns over its continuous glucose monitoring devices, arguing that it is the only company offering a device in that distinctive circular shape despite Sinocare Inc. and other rivals' arguments to the contrary.
-
April 22, 2024
Foley & Lardner Gains Two Perkins Coie IP Partners
Foley & Lardner LLP has landed two attorneys from Perkins Coie LLP who focus on a range of intellectual property and patent matters and work with clients in the financial technology and software industries, the firm announced Monday.
-
April 22, 2024
UAE Considering R&D Tax Break, Seeks Feedback
The United Arab Emirates is seeking public input to help design a possible research and development tax incentive proposal to help drive innovation and growth, its Ministry of Finance said.
-
April 22, 2024
Supreme Court Won't Review Vanda's IP Obviousness Appeal
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s request for review of how the Federal Circuit is deciding whether patents are invalid as obvious, ending the company's attempt to revive patents covering its sleep disorder drug Hetlioz.
-
April 19, 2024
Jane Street Denied TRO In Trade Theft Suit Against Millennium
A New York federal judge on Friday refused Jane Street Group LLC's bid for an emergency order after the trading firm accused rival Millennium Management LLC and two former employees of stealing and misappropriating a confidential trading strategy.
-
April 19, 2024
Nestlé Strikes Deal Ending Gray-Market Drinks Trademark Row
Nestlé USA Inc. and two food distributors have asked a Texas federal judge to permanently dismiss their trademark infringement fight accusing the distributors of illegally selling so-called gray-market versions of Nescafe Clasico and Abuelita products, saying parties recently reached a settlement agreement.
-
April 19, 2024
Don't Let The Rush Into AI Create Risk Blind Spots, Cos. Told
As corporations increasingly adopt artificial intelligence capabilities into their workflows, they should also implement guardrails to stave off major risks the rapidly evolving technology poses, lawyers said during a New York City Bar panel discussion Friday.
-
April 19, 2024
Vidal Undoes PTAB Denial That Cited Previous Settled Case
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director Kathi Vidal on Friday faulted the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's denial of a petition challenging a lighting patent based on a previous review of the same patent by an unrelated company that settled.
-
April 19, 2024
Judge Mulls Axing Biomedical Cos.' $25M Punitive Damages
Not enough evidence supports Skye Orthobiologics' $25.5 million punitive damages award against an ex-employee found to have breached his fiduciary duties by leveraging Skye's proprietary information, a California federal judge has ruled, asking for briefing on whether the proper remedy is to cut the damages or grant a new trial.
-
April 19, 2024
Roku Beats Streaming-Tech Infringement Suit In Texas
A Texas federal jury on Friday cleared Roku Inc. on allegations that it infringed two Ioengine LLC patents with its various streaming players, while not addressing arguments that those patents should be invalidated.
-
April 19, 2024
Del. Court Won't Invalidate Coupon IP On Alice 'Borderline'
A Pennsylvania federal judge sitting in Delaware has determined that Inmar Brand Solutions Inc.'s coupon-processing system patents are not abstract and therefore should not be invalidated under the U.S. Supreme Court's Alice precedent.
-
April 19, 2024
Tattoo Artist Loses IP Trial Against NBA 2K Video Game Cos.
An Ohio federal jury on Friday found in favor of the makers of the video game series NBA 2K, which were accused by a tattoo artist of infringing copyrights he has on tattoos that he inked on LeBron James and other basketball players.
-
April 19, 2024
Steelmaker Asks ITC To Halt EV Imports From Vietnamese Co.
Luxembourg-based steel manufacturer ArcelorMittal is asking the U.S. International Trade Commission to bar electric vehicle imports from Vinfast, which claims to be the first Vietnamese business to ship electric cars worldwide, with ArcelorMittal saying the company is infringing its patented aluminum-steel coating.
Expert Analysis
-
Can A DAO Be Sued? SDNY Case May Hold The Answer
A case pending in the Southern District of New York will examine whether decentralized crypto co-op MakerDAO is a partnership with the capacity to be sued in federal court, and the decision could shape how legal frameworks will adapt to accommodate blockchain technologies moving forward, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.
-
Navigating Trade Secret Litigation In A High-Stakes Landscape
Recent eye-popping verdicts are becoming increasingly common in trade secret litigation — but employers can take several proactive steps to protect proprietary information and defend against misappropriation accusations in order to avoid becoming the next headline, say Jessica Mason and Jack FitzGerald at Foley & Lardner.
-
Disney Copyright Expiration Spurs Trademark Questions
While the recent expiration of Disney’s Steamboat Willie copyright is not likely to have an immediate impact, it could provide clarity on the extent to which trademark rights in character names and appearance affect what others can do with characters from works whose copyright has expired, says Bryan Wheelock at Harness IP.
-
Think Like A Lawyer: Forget Everything You Know About IRAC
The mode of legal reasoning most students learn in law school, often called “Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion,” or IRAC, erroneously frames analysis as a separate, discrete step, resulting in disorganized briefs and untold obfuscation — but the fix is pretty simple, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
-
Opinion
There Is No NCAA Supremacy Clause, Especially For NIL
A recent Tennessee federal court ruling illustrates the NCAA's problematic position that its member schools should violate state law rather than its rules — and the organization's legal history with the dormant commerce clause raises a fundamental constitutional issue that will have to be resolved before attorneys can navigate NIL with confidence, says Patrick O’Donnell at HWG.
-
Valeant Ruling May Pave Way For Patent-Based FCA Suits
The Ninth Circuit’s recent ruling in Silbersher v. Valeant marks a significant development in False Claims Act jurisprudence, opens new avenues for litigation and potentially raises the stakes for patent applicants who intend to do business with the government, say Joshua Robbins and Rick Taché at Buchalter.
-
Webpages Must Meet Accessibility Standard To Be Prior Art
The Patent Trial and Appeal Board's First Solar Inc. v. Rovshan Sade decision, that an available internet resource doesn't necessarily qualify as a prior art "printed publication" that is publicly accessible, serves as a reminder of the unforgiving requirements that must be satisfied to establish that a reference is a printed publication, say attorneys at Akin.
-
The Pros And Cons Of Protecting AI As Trade Secrets
Despite regulatory trends toward greater transparency of artificial intelligence models, federal policy acknowledges, and perhaps endorses, trade secret protection for AI information, but there are still hurdles in keeping AI information a secret, say Jennifer Maisel and Andrew Stewart at Rothwell Figg.
-
Trending At The PTAB: Navigating A Motion To Amend
The Patent Trial and Appeal Board's recent decisions in motions to amend patent claims highlight the challenges of taking advantage of the board's pilot program for amending such claims, and owners and petitioners should keep several strategic considerations in mind as the program continues through mid-September, say Joshua Goldberg and Kai Rajan at Finnegan.
-
How Firms Can Ensure Associate Gender Parity Lasts
Among associates, women now outnumber men for the first time, but progress toward gender equality at the top of the legal profession remains glacially slow, and firms must implement time-tested solutions to ensure associates’ gender parity lasts throughout their careers, say Kelly Culhane and Nicole Joseph at Culhane Meadows.
-
How Echoing Techniques Can Derail Witnesses At Deposition
Before depositions, defense attorneys must prepare witnesses to recognize covert echoing techniques that may be used by opposing counsel to lower their defenses and elicit sensitive information — potentially leading to nuclear settlements and verdicts, say Bill Kanasky and Steve Wood at Courtroom Sciences.
-
Fed. Circ. In Feb.: Using Prior Products To Invalidate A Patent
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
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
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
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.