Cybersquatters often exploit brand owners by demanding a large payment for a domain name that is similar to the brand owner’s trademark. Cybersquatters may also seek to profit from rerouting internet traffic intended for the...more
How important is reputation in your line of work? What is it worth? Does it matter that others associate your company with consistently high-quality goods or services? That your company represents a strong value-add...more
For decades, the Washington Redskins’ name has been the center of controversy, both in federal court and in the court of public opinion. Native American groups have long decried the name as a racial slur and have challenged...more
7/22/2020
/ Black Lives Matter ,
Disparagement ,
Football ,
Fraud ,
Name Changes ,
Native American Issues ,
NFL ,
Protests ,
Redskins ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trolls ,
Trademarks ,
Use in Commerce
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that Booking.com B.V., the owner of the hotel-reservation website of the same name, is entitled to register the mark BOOKING.COM with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”)....more
7/13/2020
/ Acquired Distinctiveness ,
Appeals ,
Booking.com ,
Descriptive Trademarks ,
Domain Name Registration ,
Domain Names ,
Generic Marks ,
Lanham Act ,
SCOTUS ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
United States Patent and Trademark Office v Booking.com BV ,
USPTO
Caution: Spoilers Ahead. Netflix’s wildly popular documentary series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness continues to capture the imagination of the public as countless media reports and a follow-up Netflix episode...more
4/27/2020
/ Assignments ,
Consent Decrees ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Registration ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
IP License ,
Photographs ,
Statutory Damages ,
Summary Judgment ,
Transfer of Interest
Caution: Spoilers Ahead. Netflix’s documentary series “Tiger King” is currently the number one show on the streaming service and one of the most talked about shows in media. The series explores the peculiar world of private,...more
In late 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held Amazon liable as the seller of a third-party's dog collar that broke causing the retractable leash to recoil, hitting and blinding the purchaser in one eye....more
1/29/2020
/ Amazon ,
Bodily Injury ,
Buyers ,
Corporate Liability ,
Online Marketplace ,
Popular ,
Product Defects ,
Sellers ,
Strict Liability ,
Third-Party Service Provider ,
User-Generated Content ,
Website Owner Liability
Although many business owners have a general idea of what intellectual property is, most are not as familiar with the different types of intellectual property and what may be protected. This can be an expensive learning curve...more
9/26/2019
/ Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Registration ,
Design Patent ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Misappropriation ,
Patent Applications ,
Patents ,
Trade Secrets ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
Utility Patents
A trademark is a word, name, or symbol used to identify and distinguish a seller’s product from those of others. A trademark is part of a company’s brand. It is the embodiment of the company’s reputation. Over time, a...more
9/17/2019
/ Cease and Desist Orders ,
Confusingly Similar ,
Corporate Branding ,
Counterfeiting ,
Cybersquatting ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Domain Names ,
Enhanced Damages ,
Exclusivity ,
Goodwill ,
gTLD ,
Imports ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Lanham Act ,
Madrid Protocol ,
Online Platforms ,
Popular ,
Trademark Clearinghouse ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Symbols ,
Trademarks ,
UDRP ,
Use in Commerce ,
USPTO
Great photographs of your product are essential to a successful Amazon listing. Following certain basic rules is critical to keeping your listing from being shut down. In addition to satisfying the minimum requirements so...more
5/18/2019
/ Amazon Marketplace ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Registration ,
Damages ,
Fair Use ,
Photographs ,
Public Domain ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Selfies ,
Statutory Damages ,
Technical Standards ,
Without Consent
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled copyright owners must register their copyrights before filing a lawsuit for copyright infringement. The decision resolves a conflict between certain federal appeals courts that held copyright...more
Marketing a product as “Made in the USA” or “Made in America” can provide a competitive advantage to companies using the designation. Some view the designation as signifying a safer or higher-quality product. Many consider...more
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that employers may require their employees to resolve wage and hour disputes through one-on-one arbitration instead of through class actions. In Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, the Supreme Court...more
5/30/2018
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Collective Actions ,
Employment Contract ,
Epic Systems Corp v Lewis ,
Ernst & Young v Morris ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Murphy Oil v NLRB ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Preemption ,
Reversal ,
Savings Clause ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 7
Copyrights arise automatically when an original work is created. Copyrights protect “original works of authorship,” which include paintings, illustrations, sculpture, photographs, books, articles, poems, movies, songs,...more
5/15/2018
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Cease and Desist ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Office ,
Copyright Ownership ,
Copyright Registration ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Derivative Works ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Litigation Fees & Costs ,
Product Exclusivity ,
Statutory Damages ,
Valuation
Following the recent investment frenzy in crypto-currencies, blockchain technology has seemingly reached mainstream status. Many different uses for this technology have emerged and are disrupting public and private-sector...more
4/17/2018
/ Blockchain ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Descriptive Trademarks ,
Generic Marks ,
Inherently Distinctive ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Popular ,
Suggestive Marks ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
In the context of trademarks, “fair use” is the term given to the use of someone else’s trademark in a way that will not subject the user to liability for infringing the owner’s rights. Fair use is a defense to a claim of...more
4/3/2018
/ Advertising ,
Brand ,
Endorsements ,
Fair Use ,
Goods or Services ,
Likelihood of Confusion ,
Logos ,
Marketing ,
Nominative Fair Use Doctrine ,
Sponsors ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademarks
Celebrity kitty Tardar Sauce aka “Grumpy Cat” (or, rather, the entity that owns rights to the GRUMPY CAT brand) has prevailed on its claims of breach of contract and trademark and copyright infringement against a beverage...more
2/9/2018
/ Approval Requirements ,
Breach of Contract ,
Contract Terms ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Damages ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
IP License ,
Jury Trial ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademarks
The lawyer for the controversial Advocates for Individuals with Disabilities (AID), the organization that launched over a thousand nearly identical lawsuits against Arizona businesses last year, has quietly been filing a...more
10/3/2017
/ Accessibility Rules ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Disability Access Claims ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Dismissals ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Hotels ,
Notice Requirements ,
Parking Lots ,
Serial Lawsuit Filers ,
Title III ,
Website Accessibility
Yes, seriously. This is no longer a remote threat cautioned by overzealous lawyers. This is now a real threat that business owners should address now. If you own and/or operate a business, and the business has a website that...more
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) recently filed a copyright infringement lawsuit on behalf of a crested macaque monkey, who famously snapped a smiling selfie of himself using wildlife photographer David...more
10/12/2015
/ Authorship ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Ownership ,
PETA ,
Photographs ,
Popular ,
Public Domain ,
Selfies ,
Work-For-Hire ,
Young Lawyers
It is a common misconception that a seller’s completion of the Arizona Association of Realtor’s Seller Property Disclosure Statement (“SPDS”) is required by law and will eliminate litigation regarding non-disclosure. The...more