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Patent Injunctions After eBay: The Bidding Is Open on Who Really Benefits
When faced with the threat of a crippling injunction, many businesses would rather pay for a patent license than spend millions litigating an uncertain result. This simple principle lies at the heart of what has been called the 'licensing-by-litigation' model, and has led to numerous battles over patent rights.
The battle lines have become particularly acute in cases involving companies that do not make or sell products, but claim patent rights to core technologies used throughout an industry. Such companies often threaten permanent injunctive relief against accused infringers as a tactic for negotiating higher fees for patent licenses. To the extent their chances of actually obtaining an injunction are diminished, so are their chances of securing a license through threats of litigation.
In an eagerly awaited decision, the U.S. Supreme Court recently addressed these issues in eBay, Inc. v. MercExchange, L.L.C., __ U.S. __, 126 S.Ct. 1837 (2006). In a unanimous opinion, the Court held that permanent injunctive relief in patent cases is not nearly automatic (as the Federal Circuit had held), but is discretionary, determined by using the same four-factor test applied in any other case.
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Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Removing Restrictive Covenants In New York
In Rockwell v. Despart, the New York Supreme Court, Third Department, recently revisited a recurring question: When may a landowner seek judicial removal of a covenant restricting use of her land?