The pandemic relief and economic stimulus legislation that hurriedly passed Congress at the tail end of 2020, named the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (“the Act”), resulted in major changes to American trademark and copyright law. Specifically, the Act included three intellectual property bills: the Trademark Modernization Act of 2020, the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims
Major Changes to Trademark and Copyright Law Included in Massive Stimulus Package
Two of our colleagues, Patricia Flanagan and and Alex Braunstein, recently wrote an alert on trademark and copyright changes that have been included in the most recent stimulus package. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, which was signed into law on December 28th, makes significant changes to American intellectual property laws via
Amy Coney Barrett on IP Issues
As the Senate hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett conclude, and as her confirmation looms nearly certain, I’ve been wondering where she falls on Intellectual Property (IP) issues. Turns out so have others.
An article posted on Bloomberg Law titled “Where Does Judge Barrett Fall on IP Issues” noted that Judge Barrett has only decided
5Pointz Graffiti Art Case Affords SCOTUS the Opportunity to Interpret Rarely Tested Copyright Law
On Monday, G&M Realty, a real estate development company, asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse a $6.75 million damages award that the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York entered in favor of a group of graffiti artists after G&M Realty, without warning, whitewashed the artists’ work, which had been displayed
The Fourth Circuit Issues Litigants A Strong Reminder Of The Risks Associated With Failing To Preserve Evidence
On July 16, 2020, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit issued a decision highlighting the critical need for litigants to preserve evidence once notified of a potential lawsuit, and the serious ramifications associated with failing to do so. See QueTel Corp. v. Hisham Abbas, et al., No. 18-2334 (4th Cir. July
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
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
Copyright Office Seeks Changes to Law To Help Copyright Owners
The U.S. Copyright Office recently called for changes to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”). Congress enacted 17 U.S.C. § 512 of the DCMA to balance the threat of liability for copyright infringement on online service providers with “the threat of rampant, low-barrier online infringement.” This was accomplished with the use of “safe harbors” for