Intellectual Property Law

New bar association focuses on US Patent Office’s PTAB

A new bar association for lawyers who do work in front of the US Patent and Trademark Office’s Patent and Trial Appeal Board was announced Friday. Increasingly, disputes involving the validity of patents are heard by the PTAB, according to a press release. The PTAB Bar Association, which has 45…

Sep 16, 2016 10:05 AM CDT

Prenda Law attorney who had switched to ADA suits is suspended for earlier ‘copyright trolling’ work

A Minnesota lawyer whose practice has recently focused on suing businesses for ADA violations was indefinitely suspended from practicing law for his past legal work targeting people who illegally downloaded pornographic videos. Conduct allegations against Paul Hansmeier include discovery abuse; willfully violating court orders; and lying to the court about…

Sep 16, 2016 8:00 AM CDT

Company that owns rights to viral videos is suing for copyright violation

Jukin Media Inc., a business built around viral videos, with partners including the Huffington Post and Verizon Wireless, recently sued the rap-centric website WorldStarHipHop for copyright infringement. WorldStarHipHop, which posts a variety of popular videos, is accused of stealling 300 clips from Jukin Media, including one that featured a mother…

Sep 15, 2016 4:40 PM CDT

Apple faces some restrictions on use of term ‘iWatch’ in UK

A trademark opposition Swiss watch maker Swatch filed against Apple, involving the term “iWatch,” was recently granted by the United Kingdom’s Intellectual Property Office. The agency found that the term, which was registered by California-based Apple, was too similar to the Swatch trademarks “iSwatch” and “Swatch,” the BBC and Computer…

Sep 13, 2016 1:15 PM CDT

Do memes violate copyright law?

Who owns a meme—those pictures, videos and ideas that go viral on the internet?

Sep 1, 2016 4:00 AM CDT

Lawyer who filed ‘multiplicity of suits’ over use of his skyline photo is ordered to pay $22K

An Indiana lawyer who filed copyright infringement suits against hundreds of people for using his photos of the Indianapolis skyline has been ordered to pay $22,000 in attorney fees for suing a wrong defendant. U.S. District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt of Indianapolis ordered lawyer Richard Bell of McCordsville to pay…

Aug 31, 2016 9:26 AM CDT

Eddie Redmayne will play Cravath name partner in movie about Thomas Edison patent battle

Actor Eddie Redmayne has signed on to play influential lawyer Paul Cravath—who became a name partner at Cravath, Swaine & Moore—in a historical film about a battle over the patent for the light bulb. Cravath had provided legal advice to George Westinghouse in his 1880s patent battle with Thomas Edison,…

Aug 16, 2016 7:40 AM CDT

After debate, ABA House calls for publication of privately drafted standards used in legislation

A resolution calling on Congress to make privately drafted parts of the law freely available attracted accusations in the House of Delegates that the ABA was trying to give away other people’s intellectual property. When federal agencies incorporate privately drafted standards into their rules by reference, Resolution 112, passed by…

Aug 9, 2016 3:20 PM CDT

Federal Circuit appears unlikely to reverse order disqualifying company’s entire legal department

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit doesn’t appear inclined to reverse a federal judge’s order disqualifying the entire in-house legal department at Acacia Research Corp., a company known in some circles as a patent troll or a “patent privateer.” The Federal Circuit heard arguments last week on…

Aug 9, 2016 7:00 AM CDT

This shrinking law firm tops ‘A-List’; is it a ‘one-horse firm’?

Irell & Manella had just 112 practicing lawyers as of mid-July, down from a high of 221 lawyers in 2003. Its revenue dropped 19 percent last year and its profits per partner—at a more than respectable $3.2 million—nonetheless dropped 12 percent. But the firm has been named No. 1 on…

Aug 4, 2016 7:00 AM CDT

Law clinic goes pro as students and profs launch startup practice

Eve J. Brown saw law students get a year's worth of client experience at the intellectual property clinics she ran at Suffolk University and Boston University, but few found jobs in the field after graduation. Small IP firms usually don’t hire first-year associates, and large firms for the most part…

Aug 1, 2016 2:00 AM CDT

Photographer sues Getty Images, alleging it is wrongly selling licenses to her public-domain photos

Photographer Carol Highsmith started donating copyrights to her photos to the Library of Congress in 1988. So when she got a letter demanding $120 for the use of one of her own photos, she knew something was wrong. According to the lawsuit Highsmith filed this week in Manhattan federal court,…

Jul 28, 2016 3:47 PM CDT

ABA urges Supreme Court to apply ruling limiting laches defense to patent cases

The ABA has filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to apply to patent cases a 2014 copyright ruling limiting the laches defense. The brief filed on July 22 says the doctrine of laches—which allows the dismissal of suits that are unreasonably delayed—generally should not bar patent claims…

Jul 26, 2016 10:00 AM CDT

Pokemon Go spurs lawyers to stop and consider legal issues

Pokemon characters are on the loose, and it’s your job to catch and collect them. That’s the premise of the new Pokemon Go app, which uses your phone’s GPS and clock to detect where you are and make Pokemon characters appear on your phone screens, Vox explains. The Pokemon characters…

Jul 13, 2016 8:00 AM CDT

Federal court suspension upheld for lawyer who sued Led Zeppelin; sanction stems from Usher case

The lawyer who lost a lawsuit against Led Zeppelin for copyright infringement won’t be able to practice in Philadelphia federal court temporarily as a result of a federal appeals court decision last Thursday. The Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court upheld a suspension of three months and a day from practice…

Jul 5, 2016 7:30 AM CDT