Intellectual Property

  • August 06, 2025

    Bong Maker Warned Of Sanctions After Repeated Errors

    A Texas federal judge said Tuesday he's issued his last warning to a California-based bong maker which has filed nearly five dozen trademark infringement cases against head shops in North Texas, saying sanctions will come if the company keeps making the same procedural mistakes.

  • August 06, 2025

    Judge Says No New Trial In Fleet Monitoring Patent Fight

    A California federal judge said Tuesday there is no basis for a new trial after a jury in April cleared Motive Technologies of allegations that it infringed a series of fleet monitoring patents, but ruled that claims in two of the patents were ineligible for patent protection to begin with.

  • August 06, 2025

    Ye Fights Sanctions Bid In IP Suit Involving DJ Khalil Music

    The artist once known as Kanye West, Ye, and his associated companies have asked a California federal court to reject a request for case-terminating sanctions in a lawsuit accusing him of ripping off copyrighted music for his 2021 "Donda" album, saying the defendants are trying to comply with discovery obligations.

  • August 06, 2025

    USPTO To Require Advanced Multifactor Authentication

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office said Wednesday that, beginning in November, it will no longer accept email as an account verification method and will require other, more advanced authentication processes.

  • August 06, 2025

    WilmerHale Beats Fired Associate's Racial Bias Claims

    A Manhattan judge Wednesday threw out a former WilmerHale senior associate's lawsuit alleging he was unfairly evaluated and eventually fired because he is Black, finding that the complaint doesn't plausibly allege discriminatory comments were made about his race or that employees of other races were treated better.

  • August 06, 2025

    Texas Judge Axes Wellhead Patent Allegations Over Alice

    A Texas federal judge threw out allegations that fracking equipment maker Downing Wellhead Equipment infringed a pair of wellhead control mechanism patents, finding the patents do not pass muster under the U.S. Supreme Court's Alice test.

  • August 06, 2025

    Groupe Dynamite Sued Over 'Members Only' Hoodie

    The owner of the Members Only clothing brand, which skyrocketed to popularity in the 1980s, sued Canadian apparel company Groupe Dynamite Inc., claiming it was making a hoodie that used the mark.

  • August 06, 2025

    Paramount Wants Docs In 'Top Gun: Maverick' Copyright Case

    A "Top Gun: Maverick" screenwriter's cousin who is pursuing copyright infringement claims against Paramount should have to turn over communications he and his lawyer exchanged with the Writers Guild of America, the studio told a New York federal judge on Tuesday, arguing the documents are relevant and aren't shielded by privilege.

  • August 06, 2025

    'Bigger Than Life' Patent Atty Hal Wegner Dies At 82

    Harold C. Wegner, a retired Foley & Lardner LLP partner and educator described by peers as a patent law icon with a larger-than-life personality, has died. He was 82.

  • August 06, 2025

    Vivint Asks 4th Circ. To Rethink Affirming $190M TM Verdict

    Vivint Smart Home Inc. is looking for a do-over after the Fourth Circuit affirmed a nearly $190 million verdict in a suit accusing it of deceiving customers of a rival security company, saying the ruling flouts North Carolina's cap on punitive damages and ignores state appellate precedence.

  • August 06, 2025

    Feuding Flag Football Organizations Settle TM Dispute

    USA Football and USA Flag have agreed to settle a pair of cases they brought against each other alleging trademark infringement, unfair competition and false representations stemming from who should govern flag football in the U.S.

  • August 06, 2025

    10th Circ. Partly Revives Ex-Sales Head's Client List Case

    A split panel of the Tenth Circuit partially revived a case from a sales executive against his former employer who claims the company took a customer list, saying the executive had improperly been barred from offering expert testimony on his lost wages.

  • August 06, 2025

    Juniper, Correct Transmission Reach Deal To End Patent Suit

    Internet router maker Juniper Networks has agreed to settle a lawsuit in California federal court that had accused it of infringing various data communication network patents.

  • August 05, 2025

    Epic Games Defeats Bid To Upend Jury Patent Verdict

    A Seattle federal judge Tuesday denied Utherverse Gaming LLC's bid to undo a jury finding from a verdict favoring Epic Games, rejecting Utherverse's contention that a jury leaned on insufficient evidence when rebuffing a claim in its patent for playing back recorded experiences in a virtual world.

  • August 05, 2025

    Novo Nordisk Lodges Suits Over 'Knockoff' Semaglutide Meds

    Novo Nordisk said Tuesday it has recently filed more than a dozen lawsuits accusing weight loss companies, med spas and pharmacies of tricking patients into purchasing and using unapproved drugs containing semaglutide, which the Danish pharmaceutical company uses in its blockbuster medicines Wegovy and Ozempic.

  • August 05, 2025

    USPTO Urges Fed. Circ. To End Motorola's Fintiv Appeal

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office stood by its acting leader's decision to shut down Motorola's challenge to various Stellar patents at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, saying all of Motorola's appellate arguments at the Federal Circuit should be rejected.

  • August 05, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Presses Brita On Bid To Revive Water Filter Patent

    A Federal Circuit panel Tuesday questioned Brita LP's effort to reverse a U.S. International Trade Commission decision that a water filter patent is invalid, suggesting the patent describes little more than an unpredictable scientific formula.

  • August 05, 2025

    Ex-USPTO Heads, Judges Oppose Anti-Patent Thicket Bill

    A pro-innovation group composed of former U.S. Patent and Trademark Office officials and former Federal Circuit judges on Tuesday asked Congress to oppose a bill introduced last month that would limit so-called patent thickets used by pharmaceutical companies to restrict the production of generic counterparts to their drugs.

  • August 05, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Panel Feeling Deja Vu In Hoverboard IP Case

    A Federal Circuit panel had little support for the owner of hoverboard design patents Tuesday, as the judges said much of its noninfringement appeal relies on concerns addressed in a prior appellate decision.

  • August 05, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Partly Revives Solar Panel Safety Patent Challenge

    The Federal Circuit on Tuesday said the Patent Trial and Appeal Board has to take another look at one of renewable energy industry trade group SunSpec Alliance's arguments in its challenge to claims of a patent on safeguards for solar panels.

  • August 05, 2025

    Stewart Won't Reconsider Her 1st Settled Expectations Denial

    The acting U.S. Patent and Trademark Office director on Tuesday stood by her first-ever decision that an older patent shouldn't have to face Patent Trial and Appeal Board scrutiny.

  • August 05, 2025

    Microsoft Reaches Injunction Deal With Canadian Firm

    Microsoft Corp. and Canadian business The Search People Enterprises Ltd. have agreed to end a dispute after reaching a deal in which the latter company is barred from infringing intellectual property related to Microsoft's software.

  • August 05, 2025

    Ex-Patent Examiner Fights USPTO Exclusion At High Court

    A former U.S. Patent and Trademark Office examiner wants the U.S. Supreme Court to review his exclusion from practicing before the agency, saying the justices should look at issues relating to a suspension he received and also federal civil rights protections.

  • August 05, 2025

    Zazzle Nabs Win After Judge Cuts Font Copyright Claim

    A California federal judge has tossed a copyright infringement claim against online retailer Zazzle over a set of fonts used on its site after previously allowing the claim to stand, finding her earlier order misstated Zazzle's argument.

  • August 05, 2025

    Drone Cos. Sue Former Exec For Alleged Trade Secret Theft

    Red Cat Holdings Inc. and its Teal Drones Inc. unit accused a former executive of sabotaging a major product development deal and using their trade secrets to launch a rival drone company to compete for government sales.

Expert Analysis

  • How Patent Attys Can Carefully Integrate LLMs Into Workflows

    Author Photo

    With artificial intelligence-powered tools now being developed specifically for the intellectual property domain, patent practitioners should monitor evolving considerations to ensure that their capabilities are enhanced — rather than diminished — by these resources, say attorneys at McDonnell Boehnen.

  • The Metamorphosis Of The Major Questions Doctrine

    Author Photo

    The so-called major questions doctrine arose as a counterweight to Chevron deference over the past few decades, but invocations of the doctrine have persisted in the year since Chevron was overturned, suggesting it still has a role to play in reining in agency overreach, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • New PTAB Denial Processes Grow More And More Confusing

    Author Photo

    Guidance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office about the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's new workload management and discretionary denial processes has been murky and inconsistent, and has been further muddled by the acting director's seemingly contradictory decisions, say attorneys at Finnegan.

  • EU Space Act Could Stifle US Commercial Operators

    Author Photo

    The EU Space Act, proposed last month, has the potential to raise global standards for safety and sustainability in space, but the U.S. and EU need to harmonize their regulatory approaches to avoid imposing regulatory burdens that undermine commercial innovation and agility, say Jessica Noble and Adriane Mandakunis at Aegis Space Law.

  • A Word On Ensuring Precision In Patent Claim Construction

    Author Photo

    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Express Mobile v. Meta Platforms, overruling the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's interpretation of the term "style," highlights the importance of articulating claim constructions that are as clear as possible, says Derrick Carman at Robins Kaplan.

  • Series

    Playing Mah-Jongg Makes Me A Better Mediator

    Author Photo

    Mah-jongg rewards patience, pattern recognition, adaptability and keen observation, all skills that are invaluable to my role as a mediator, and to all mediating parties, says Marina Corodemus.

  • Does Research Tool Safe Harbor Cover AI Drug Development?

    Author Photo

    As artificial intelligence increasingly takes root in drug development, many questions may emerge regarding current gaps in courts' application of the research tool exception to the safe harbor defense against patent infringement, and whether that defense applies to AI-based tools, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Tips For Business Users After 2 Key AI Copyright Decisions

    Author Photo

    Because two recent artificial intelligence copyright decisions from the Northern District of California — Bartz v. Anthropic and Kadrey v. Meta — came out mostly in favor of the developers using the plaintiffs' works to train large language models, business users should proceed with care, says Chris Wlach at Acxiom.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Navigating Client Trauma

    Author Photo

    Law schools don't train students to handle repeated exposure to clients' traumatic experiences, but for litigators practicing in areas like civil rights and personal injury, success depends on the ability to view cases clinically and to recognize when you may need to seek help, says Katie Bennett at Robins Kaplan.

  • Copyright Takeaways From 2 Calif. GenAI Rulings

    Author Photo

    Two California federal court decisions suggest that the fair use defense may protect generative artificial intelligence output, but given the ongoing war between copyright holders and AI platforms, developers should still consider taking steps to reduce legal risk, says Lincoln Essig at Knobbe Martens.

  • Opinion

    Juries Are Key In Protecting The Rule Of Law

    Author Photo

    Absent from the recent discourse about U.S. rule of law is the crucial role of impartial jurors in protecting the equitable administration of justice, and attorneys and judges should take affirmative steps to reverse the yearslong decline of jury trials at this critical moment, says consultant Clint Townson.

  • Opinion

    4 Former Justices Would Likely Frown On Litigation Funding

    Author Photo

    As courts increasingly confront cases involving hidden litigation finance contracts, the jurisprudence of four former U.S. Supreme Court justices establishes a constitutional framework that risks erosion by undisclosed financial interests, says Roland Eisenhuth at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

  • Brand Protection Takeaways From OpenAI Trademark Case

    Author Photo

    The ongoing battle between IYO and OpenAI offers critical lessons on diligent trademark enforcement and proactive risk management for startups and established players alike navigating branding in the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence sector, say attorneys at Dykema.

  • How Attys Can Use AI To Surface Narratives In E-Discovery

    Author Photo

    E-discovery has reached a turning point where document review is no longer just about procedural tasks like identifying relevance and redacting privilege — rather, generative artificial intelligence tools now allow attorneys to draw connections, extract meaning and tell a coherent story, says Rose Jones at Hilgers Graben.

  • IP Due Diligence Tips For AI Assets In M&A Transactions

    Author Photo

    Artificial intelligence systems' integration into business operations creates new considerations for intellectual property due diligence in mergers and acquisitions and financing transactions, and implementing a practical approach to identifying AI assets can help avoid litigation and losses, say Armin Ghiam and Senna Hahn at Hunton.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Intellectual Property archive.