The Federal Circuit recently issued two opinions regarding fee awards in patent cases, both of which show the Court’s reticence to award fees in contravention of the “American Rule” where each party bears its own costs. As such, if patent litigants seek fees as an exception to this rule (e.g.,
The cannabis industry is subject to a confusing, complex web of laws that differ among each state, all while marijuana remains illegal at the federal level. Unable to register trademarks related to cannabis and marijuana with the federal U.S. Patent and Trademark Office or seek protection in federal courts, business
A federal judge recently ruled that the inclusion of the chorus of a children’s song in a documentary about burlesque dancers amounted to fair use. The decision shows just how impactful the evolving transformative use issue can be in a fair use analysis. Tamita Brown, along with two coauthors (“the
On May 13, 2020, the United States District Court for the Central District of California granted summary judgment to all corporate and individual defendants with respect to Plaintiff’s non-source-code, “know-how”-based Defend Trade Secret Act (“DTSA”) (18 U.S.C. §§ 1830-1839) claims seeking relief for misappropriation of trade secrets. All source-code based claims
A contentious copyright opinion by the Sixth Circuit reversed the district court’s summary judgment decision, finding that fact issues precluded summary judgment on whether one songwriter repudiated the other’s co-authorship, or whether their agreement transferred ownership and, as such, could be terminated pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 203. Between the
On April 27, 2020, in a 5-4 decision with two dissenting opinions, the United States Supreme Court held that the annotations included in Georgia’s official statute are not copyrightable. The ruling, authored by Chief Justice Roberts, was based on the majority’s conclusion that work performed in official legislative capacity does
On April 23, 2020, the United States Supreme Court resolved an even circuit split[1] by unanimously holding that willful infringement is not a pre-condition to a profits award in a trademark infringement suit. This ruling increases the likelihood that, in the affected Circuits, more trademark infringement suits will settle for
The Federal Circuit recently held that trademarks for product packaging consisting of certain colors arranged in a particular design or pattern can be inherently distinctive, regardless of whether the design has any defined peripheral shape or border. In re Forney Indus., Inc., Case No. 19-1073 (Fed. Cir. April 8, 2020)
The Federal Circuit recently reversed a decision granting a preliminary injunction prohibiting patent infringement threats and allegations on the grounds that the district court failed to consider whether the statements were made in bad faith, reaffirming longstanding Federal Circuit precedent regarding the scope of a patentee’s protected speech. In March
Plaintiff Bovinett brought suit against Defendant HomeAdvisor and other companies in August 2017 generally alleging improper use of Plaintiff’s image in HomeAdvisor advertising.[1] During the course of the litigation, HomeAdvisor filed several motions for sanctions, including requests for sanctions against Plaintiff’s Attorney. During the course of the litigation, Plaintiff’s Attorney
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