What’s in a Name? A Trademark & Branding Primer for Start-Ups
Nothing gets a start-up or any newly-launched business endeavour stumbling out of the gate worse than failing to heed the five branding tips that are…
-
-
Honey Badger Trademarks Allowed by Court to Live and Fight Another Day
The 9th Circuit recently overturned a summary judgment ruling against the creator of a viral video, allowing his trademark infringement lawsuit over the video’s equally…
-
The Saga Continues: LucasFilm Countersued For “Sabacc” Ad Reference
The release of the next installment in the Star Wars universe, “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” is right around the corner, but the next episode…
-
Trademark Registration for a Series of Creative Works
Clients who are content creators often ask if there is a way to protect the titles of their works. If copyright protection is sought, then…
-
Not So Shockingly, Trademark Immoral and Scandalous Clause Struck Down
The court in a recent case, In Re: Erik Brunetti, put another nail in the coffin of the Lanham Act’s Section 2(a), finding that the “immoral” and…
-
IP Followup: Aftermath of Tam, and More Copyright Registration Discord
A couple of recent events in IP law offer codas to issues discussed in this blog earlier in the year. Here is a quick recap:…
-
Free Speech Overpowers Trademark Disparagement Clause, Says SCOTUS
The Slants case finally reached a conclusion when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Lanham Act’s § 2(a) (15 U.S.C. § 1052(a)), which barred trademarks…
-
New CA Cannabis Trademark Registrations Could Give Lawmakers Headaches
A bill was recently introduced in the California legislature that among other things would create classifications of trademark registrations for cannabis goods and services, but…
-
More Stringent Trademark Registration Maintenance Rules Coming Soon
Starting on February 17, 2017 (that’s this Friday folks) USPTO trademark examiners will have the ability to request additional evidence of continued use of registered…
-
Court Blunts Cannabis-Related Trademark Registrations
The explosion of the cannabis industry nationwide has led to an increase in marijuana-related trademark registration attempts, many of which have been met with stone(d)…
-
Court: One Sale Is Enough to Show Trademark Use in Commerce
Clients seeking trademark registrations often ask how much use of a mark in interstate commerce is needed for success. Earlier this month the Federal Circuit…
-
Greatest Snow on Earth Heats Up in Park City Trademark Controversy
Utah touts itself as having the “greatest snow on Earth,” and what’s left of that snow got hot this summer as a menagerie of Park…
-
Trademark Scammers at It Again, Versus….Me!
Back in early 2015, I wrote a post relaying a USPTO and WIPO warning to trademark owners about unscrupulous companies that send very official-looking invoices asking…
-
Of Trademarks & T-Shirts: Tales of Superdad and a Beast
Purveyors of T-shirts beware: before you invest in a design with a clever play on words or an adaptation of an iconic drawing, consider these…
All posts are shown