This week, the United States Supreme Court issued an important decision in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office v. Booking.com affirming that “Booking.com” is a protectable trademark. This case stemmed from the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s (“PTO”) rejection of Booking.com’s attempt to register its domain name as a service mark for hotel registration services
Ninth Circuit Expands Access to Attorneys’ Fees in Copyright Cases
Our colleague, Melissa Scott, recently wrote an alert on an opinion from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals about access to attorneys’ fees in copyright infringement cases. The underlying copyright dispute in Doc’s Dream, LLC, v. Dolores Press, Inc., et al. related to the video recordings of a deceased minister’s sermons, but the significant
Suit Takes Aim at Internet Archive, Spurs End of National Emergency Library
An update from Kaitie Eke, one of the firm’s summer associates:
A copyright infringement lawsuit filed by four major publishing companies against the Internet Archive has prompted early termination of the site’s National Emergency Library, a project that made books available electronically during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the project’s conclusion may render some of
The Landscape of Copyright Co-Ownership
An update from Kevin Sandoval, one of the firm’s summer associates:
What started as a copyright infringement claim against the California high school that inspired the television series “Glee” has developed into a conflict that could have ramifications for copyright holders and potential copyright infringers everywhere. In 2016, Tresóna Multimedia, LLC filed a suit against
Animal Rescue Groups May Proceed With Unfair Competition Claims
An update from Jennifer Madaras, one of the firm’s summer associates:
A California federal judge has ruled that two animal rescue groups can proceed with unfair competition claims against numerous defendants accused of misusing the word “rescues” when advertising dogs they purchased from breeders and puppy mills.
The plaintiffs asserted claims under both state and
Branded Face Masks – New Opportunity?
Something we may never have thought would take off – branded face masks – are now on the rise. With CDC recommendations and state/local orders recommending or even requiring employees (and sometimes even all citizens outside of their homes) to wear masks, businesses have an unexpected yet significant marketing opportunity to present their brand in
Copyright for Law Texts Rejected
Following up on an earlier blog post about the State of Georgia’s ability to copyright the annotations to the Official Code of Georgia Annotated (“OCGA”), the U.S. Supreme Court finally weighed in last month. Chief Justice Roberts wrote the majority opinion, which applied the government edicts doctrine in rejecting Georgia’s infringement challenge against a non-profit
Feds Continue to Target Companies Marketing COVID-19 Products
Nearly every week it seems as though the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is sending out a new round of warning letters to companies marketing products and therapies as effectively treating or preventing COVID-19. We previously wrote blog posts here and here about sets of such letters, and our colleague, Marissa Koblitz Kingman, recently wrote
Can a State Ban Advertising Due to COVID-19?
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in dozens or hundreds of city, county, and state stay-at-home/shelter-in-place orders requiring closure of non-essential businesses across the county. Most if not all such orders exempt particular types of businesses, including stores selling groceries, medical supplies, and other necessities. Many also require specific social distancing, hygiene, and sanitization procedures for
Excusable Nonuse of TM Due to Coronavirus
My colleague, Bridget Short, recently drafted an alert regarding an option for trademark owners seeking to avoid cancelation of a registration due to a temporary interruption in use and inability to file a declaration of use.
Due to circumstances beyond their control, trademark owners may file a declaration of nonuse setting forth (1) the