The Intellectual Property Strategist

Features

The Federal Circuit recently revisited the issue of joint infringement in <i>Golden Hour Data Sys. v. emsCharts, Inc.</i> The court's decision in that case illustrates one way in which vicarious liability may not close the loophole for liability avoidance through the use of multiple actors. Further, the decision shows that claim drafting alone does not end the joint infringement problem for patentees.

On Aug. 31, 2010, the Federal Circuit rejected a procedural attempt to stem the recent flood of "false patent marking" lawsuits and provided guidance on the standing requirements for pursuing false marking claims under 35 U.S.C. &sect; 292.

Features

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently affirmed a judgment in excess of $11 million entered against a furniture manufacturer found liable for copyright infringement. Although the Fourth Circuit's judgment has not yet become final, unless it is reversed or overruled this opinion establishes, for the first time in that Circuit, certain significant principles of copyright law.

The availability of patent misuse as a defense in patent litigation may be substantially constrained as a result of <i>Princo Corp. v. International Trade Commission and U.S. Philips Corp.</i>

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Features

Highlights of the latest intellectual property news from around the country.

The Seventh Circuit's recent decision in <i>Specialized Seating v. Greenwich Industries, L.P.</i>, highlights several important considerations that are often overlooked by counsel representing clients who claim trade dress rights in product designs. Paramount among those considerations is the effect that claims in a utility patent can have on the availability of trade dress protection.

Features

Perhaps signaling an interest in revisiting the doctrine in its entirety, in April 2010, the Federal Circuit asked for briefing on six questions regarding the defense of inequitable conduct to patent infringement.