Trademark

Talk to the Hand: Michigan Copyright and Trademark Lawsuit Over Similar Hand Gesture Images Clapped Back

This 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.

Sixth Circuit Clarifies When Online Marketplaces Can and Can’t Be Liable for Direct Trademark Infringement

The 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.”

The Colors on a Rubik’s Cube are Nonfunctional? Really?

In 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?

Courier Journal Beats Back Trademark Infringement Lawsuit from Makers of DERBY-PIE®

The court held that the news articles challenged in the lawsuit do not constitute “trademark use” and therefore the Lanham Act does not even apply.

Seventh Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Defamation, False Light and Related Lanham Act Claims on Opinion Grounds War of Experts Best Resolved By Rebuttal, Not Defamation Suit

Supreme Court Preview: FUCT

Trademark Disparagement Clause Violates First Amendment

Second Circuit Affirms Louis Vuitton Can’t Take a Joke

Roundtable on 2016 Media Developments

Using Trademarks in Expressive Works

An in-depth discussion of the main legal defenses that may enable content creators to avoid the time and expense of establishing that consumer confusion is unlikely under the applicable multi-factor test.