Intellectual Property
Talk to the Hand: Michigan Copyright and Trademark Lawsuit Over Similar Hand Gesture Images Clapped Back
Brian D. WassomThis lawsuit vindicates the maxim that “no good deed goes unpunished,” but the outcome provides some encouragement for those using advertising images that are minor variations on common themes.
Second Circuit Affirms Fair Use Dismissal of “Fish Sticks” Copyright Suit
Joe SlaughterThe Second Circuit affirmed the trial court’s dismissal of a copyright infringement lawsuit on fair use grounds
Oracle v. Google: It’s Not Over
Moon Hee LeeThe Court’s decision may have ended the decade-long fight between Google and Oracle, but sets the stage for decades of future copyright litigation.
When Copyright Met Cryptocurrency: A Conversation About NFTs
Jeff HermesMLRC deputy director thinks through non-fungible tokens.
Sixth Circuit Clarifies When Online Marketplaces Can and Can’t Be Liable for Direct Trademark Infringement
Sam ZeitlinThe court held that direct trademark liability is limited by the Lanham Act’s requirement that the defendant “use” the mark in a way the Act prohibits, and as a result “some trademark-infringing activity does not create liability.”
King Takes Rook: Eleventh Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment for Dark Tower
Vincent CoxThe suit raised the typical array of copyright issues relating to such matters as ownership, access, and substantial similarity of protectible expression. Complicating those issues were the long passage of time between creation of the works and the claim of infringement.
Second Circuit “Clarifies” (Restores?) Law Governing Fair Use
Kenneth P. NorwickThe court not only reversed pretty much the entirety of the extensive decision of the SDNY judge under review but it came close to disowning one of its own most important (and controversial) recent fair use precedents.
The Colors on a Rubik’s Cube are Nonfunctional? Really?
Jeff HermesIn this article, I will focus on one aspect of the report: the magistrate’s ruling that the coloration of the Rubik’s Cube is not functional, and therefore eligible for trade dress protection. Because, what?
Copyrights and Constitutional Takings
Leslie Gardner MasonIs a governmental unit’s use of a copyrighted photo without permission considered a constitutional taking? The Supreme Court of Texas is faced with this question.
Courier Journal Beats Back Trademark Infringement Lawsuit from Makers of DERBY-PIE®
Michael AbateThe court held that the news articles challenged in the lawsuit do not constitute “trademark use” and therefore the Lanham Act does not even apply.