Decoding IP Blog

In a highly anticipated ruling, the Supreme Court of the United States recently held that the disparagement clause of federal trademark law violates the First Amendment. This disparagement clause refused federal trademark registration for trademarks that are likely to disparage people, institutions, or beliefs. All eight participating justices agreed that trademarks are private, not government, […]

Sometimes a President can’t always do what he wants. But tell that to the owner of the Twitter handle @RealDonaldTrump, who happens to also be the current President of the United States and a new government actor. Mr. Trump has created more controversy by using his personal Twitter handle to send out information relating to […]

The ill-fated Fyre Festival drew delighted mockery from Internet denizens earlier this month and continues to draw lawsuits against the organizers. Social media “influencers” played a huge role in convincing people to buy tickets to the event that never happened and they are not escaping legal action. At least one case has been filed against […]

In the United States, trademark rights generally go to the first to use a mark in commerce as opposed to the first to file a mark with the trademark office. But what does that really mean? A recent trademark dispute case, Nexsan v. EMC, made headlines because it seemed to turn that basic premise on […]

Are Internet streaming services cable systems under Section 111 of the Copyright Act and therefore entitled to retransmit broadcast television under the compulsory license scheme? Under Section 111, cable systems can rebroadcast traditional broadcast television content in exchange for paying a statutory license fee to the Copyright Office at the Library of Congress. After the […]

The “Fearless Girl” statue sparked headlines around the world in March when it appeared opposite the famous “Charging Bull” statue at Manhattan’s Bowling Green. The statue, commissioned by State Street Global Advisors as an advertisement for its index fund of gender diverse companies, generated a fair amount of controversy. Among those upset about “Fearless Girl” […]

Every couple of years, we see social media users publishing long posts containing broad declarations of copyright with lots of legalese. We want to shout from the rooftop: STOP!  Those posters are not doing anything to preserve their intellectual property rights. They simply spread misinformation about the nature of copyright in the age of social media. But we know that […]

Hastags – a pound sign followed by a word or series of words with no space between – are ubiquitous on social media. People use them to spark and continue conversation about various topics on social media platforms. But can they be trademarked? #Trademark Applications Increasingly, companies are seeking to protect hashtags as trademarks. In 2015, applicants submitted […]

When Hasbro introduced a hamster named “Harris Faulkner” to its “Littlest Pet Shop” line of animal character toys, it drew a multi-million dollar lawsuit from real-life television journalist Harris Faulkner. The complaint, filed in New Jersey, included claims for violation of the right of publicity under New Jersey common law and false advertising and false […]

The use of photographs and other digital images on the web can be a tricky business. Copyright owners are increasingly taking steps to police their images by monitoring web content using automated means like web scrapers. Many online content creators have had to learn the hard way about the pitfalls and best practices in the […]

Better known for juicy tales of mobsters, adult film stars, and general shenanigans, the now-closed Las Vegas strip club “Crazy Horse Too” plays a role in providing important lessons in trademark law. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently put to rest a dispute over the “Crazy Horse” trademark for strip clubs in the United […]

The European Union (EU) is an economic and political partnership involving 28 European countries. It began after World War II, in large part because many Europeans felt that countries which trade and work closely with each other are less likely to go to war and attempt to invade their partner states. Now, the EU is […]

A couple of months ago we spoke about copyright protection for clothing designs. Now it’s time to talk about shoes and trademarks. Converse, the maker of the ubiquitous Chuck Taylor All Star sneakers, filed lawsuits against thirty shoe manufacturers, importers, and retailers over the last two years alleging trademark infringement of its shoe design. Converse […]

On May 11, 2016, President Obama enacted a new federal trade secret protection law known as the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (DTSA). The DTSA makes federal protection against the misappropriation of trade secrets available to private parties. Before the DTSA, private parties who sought to protect their trade secrets from misappropriation were limited […]

It’s political convention time once again and that means more intellectual property drama! This political season has already given us trademark disputes involving cease and desist letters and living person name registrations. Now we have copyright issues – specifically, music copyright issues. Politicians and political parties often choose popular music as the background for their conventions. […]

On June 23, 2016, in a referendum dubbed “Brexit” voters in the United Kingdom (UK) opted to leave the European Union (EU), sending economic and political shockwaves around the globe. Obviously, the actual Brexit process will not be taking place immediately. The UK must first formally notify the EU of its intention to leave the […]

Understanding the New Federal Trade Secret Law On May 11, 2016, President Obama enacted a new federal trade secret protection law as part of an update to the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 (EEA). The new trade secret law, known as the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (DTSA), makes federal protection against the misappropriation […]

The 2016 presidential contest once again pushed trademark law into the news. A few weeks ago, it was the Democrats. Now it’s the Republicans. Well, sort of. John Oliver’s late-night show aired a segment critical of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. In the segment, Oliver pointed out that the Trump family name was originally “Drumpf” […]

Many software companies, developers, and legal eagles have been watching Oracle’s and Google’s face-off over the question of whether Google’s Android software infringes a copyright Oracle acquired through its purchase of Sun Microsystems. After 6 years of legal wrangling, a jury recently found that Google’s Android system does not infringe Oracle’s copyright in Java code […]

Can you copyright your fashions? In general, clothing designs: i.e., the cut and design of articles of clothing, are not protected by copyright law because the statute expressly excludes protection for “useful articles.” One of the murkiest issues in copyright law is how to determine what transforms a “useful article” otherwise not protected by copyright […]