IP News
October 01, 2016
Federal Circuit: Actual Controversy Existed When Patent Owner Did Not Know Existence of Specific Products<br>Federal Circuit Upholds Prosecution Estoppel Determination<br>
To Sue or Not to Sue for Trademark Infringement
September 01, 2016
A strong trademark can be a company's most significant asset. Infringement, however, can strip the trademark of its value by causing "confusion among consumers" as to the identity and origin of the client's product.
Patents: When the 'Plain and Ordinary' Meaning Is Neither Plain Nor Ordinary
September 01, 2016
It is common in patent cases for the patentee to ascribe "plain and ordinary" meaning to terms in a patent claim, while the defendant often seeks a narrower construction. But what if the parties agree that "plain and ordinary" applies but then dispute what the plain and ordinary meaning should be?
IP News
September 01, 2016
Federal Circuit: <i>Halo Electronics</i> Sent Back to District Court <br>
Copyrightable Karaoke Tracks Not Protected By Trademark Act
September 01, 2016
Slep-Tone Entertainment Corporation and its successor in interest, Phoenix Entertainment Partners, filed more than 150 Lanham Act suits throughout the country. The suits alleged that defendants had committed trademark infringement by making unauthorized copies and performing commercial karaoke files containing Slep-Tone's registered trademark "Sound Choice" and graphically displayed trade dress.
IP News
August 01, 2016
A Patent on the Method of Filtering Internet Content Survives '101 Challenge <br>Public Interest Factor Does Not Bar a Permanent Injunction Against a Direct Competitor<br>Patent Owner Does Not Have to Prove Non-Obviousness In IPR Proceedings
Federal Circuit Provides Clarity For Contract Manufacturing On-Sale Invalidity Claims
August 01, 2016
In <i>The Medicines Company v. Hospira</i>, the Federal Circuit provided clarity and guidance to companies that rely on contract manufacturing, holding that "to be 'on sale' under '102(b), a product must be the subject of a commercial sale or offer for sale, and that a commercial sale is one that bears the general hallmarks of a sale pursuant to Section 2-106 of the Uniform Commercial Code."
<i>Cuozzo</i> Upholds PTAB Authority
August 01, 2016
In June, in <i>Cuozzo Speed Technologies</i>, the Supreme Court upheld the prior Federal Circuit decision that a patent owner cannot, in most circumstances, appeal the decision of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board to institute an inter partes review.
Intellectual Property Rights in the UK After Brexit
August 01, 2016
While the dust continues to settle from Brexit, questions abound regarding how the United Kingdom's historic vote to leave the European Union will affect the future. Intellectual property owners have a variety of mechanisms available for the protection of their patents, designs and trademarks, and Brexit has different significance depending upon how intellectual property protection in the UK was obtained.
<i>Kirtsaeng</i> Clarifies Attorney's Fees Standard In Copyright Cases, Injects More Uncertainty Into Availability of Fee Awards
July 01, 2016
Issuing its second decision in Supap Kirtsaeng's long-standing dispute with John Wiley & Sons ' and its first copyright decision in nearly two years ' the SCOTUS recently clarified the applicable standard for evaluating the appropriateness of an attorney's fee award under Section 505 of the Copyright Act, holding that a district court should give substantial weight to the objective reasonableness of the losing party's position, while also taking into consideration all other circumstances relevant to the attorney's fees inquiry.
