Although Phytelligence. Inc. (“Phytell”) and Washington State University (“WSU”) entered into a Propagation Agreement (“the Agreement”) for Phytell to grow WSU’s patented “WA 38” apple trees for research, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed that the Agreement lacked the language and context permitting Phytell to option…
Publications
Irwin IP Publications is the go-to resource for the latest updates and insights in the world of intellectual property. Over 250 articles are published on cases addressing unique issues, all of which can be found using the search tool below. Additionally, there is a collection of articles/papers and presentations that cover a wide range of topics. Whether you’re a legal professional, business owner, or simply someone passionate about IP, our publications page will provide you with all the knowledge needed to navigate this dynamic field.
On August 7, 2020, the D.C. Circuit remanded the Copyright Royalty Board’s (“CRB”) Final Determination setting royalty rates for certain rights to reproduce and distribute musical works. Though administrative agencies are generally given significant discretion by courts, the Court found that the CRB failed to provide notice of its…
On August 3, 2020, the Federal Circuit affirmed a determination that 10X Genomics had willfully infringed a patent owned by the University of Chicago and assigned to Bio-Rad Laboratories covering microfluidic test chip technology, rejecting 10X’s contentions that the plaintiffs’ doctrine of equivalents theory was barred by prosecution history…
The United States District Court for the District of Arizona recently denied a motion for a preliminary injunction seeking to avoid compliance with an Arizona law requiring software providers to implement an application programming interface. The Court found the law was not preempted by the Copyright Act and did…
The International Trade Commission (“ITC”) issued an exclusion order prohibiting the importation of products infringing a patent that teaches a self-anchoring beverage container, used to prevent spills. Mayborn was not included in the original complaint to the ITC, and none of the defaulting respondents raised invalidity challenges. Mayborn appealed…
On July 6, the PTO’s Precedential Opinion Panel (“POP”) held that when examining proposed amended claims in AIA trials, PTAB panels may raise grounds for rejection sua sponte, but should do so only in rare circumstances and with adequate notice. In this, the fourth opinion issued by the POP,…
In a nonprecedential opinion, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (the “Board”) affirmed a decision refusing to register the trademark TRUMP TOO SMALL on the grounds that the mark consisted of President Trump’s name without his written consent. In doing so, the Board rejected arguments that the applicable Lanham…
Last week, the Supreme Court held that the combination of a generic word and “.com” is not necessarily generic and may be eligible for federal trademark registration. A trademark allows consumers to distinguish the goods or services of one manufacturer from another’s and permits a trademark owner to protect…
Plaintiff Stephanie Sinclair brought suit against Defendant Mashable and its parent company, alleging copyright infringement when Mashable posted Sinclair’s photograph on its website without Sinclair’s authorization. The Court originally granted Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss, finding that the Defendants had a valid sublicense from Instagram to post the photograph. However,…
In a summary order, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit recently side-stepped a difficult question currently facing copyright law: whether the human body is a sufficiently tangible medium of expression to warrant copyright protection. Plaintiff Sammy Mourabit (“Mourabit”), a makeup artist, provided makeup services for a…
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…
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,…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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,…
Plaintiff Stephanie Sinclair brought suit against Defendant Mashable and its parent company, alleging copyright infringement when Mashable posted Sinclair’s photograph on its website without Sinclair’s authorization. The Court granted Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss, finding that the Defendants had a valid sublicense from Instagram to post the photograph. Stephanie Sinclair…
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…