On December 3, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court heard argument in Republic of Hungary v. Simon. The case involves Hungary’s theft of valuable items from Jewish families during the Holocaust. The plaintiffs sued the Republic of...more
Perhaps you represent a U.S. company that is entering into a contract with an overseas entity, or vice versa. You are contemplating whether the contract should provide for arbitration or litigation in the event of a dispute....more
Sarah Silverman and her fellow author plaintiffs are fighting a judge’s recent order requiring them to disclose the prompts and outputs they used in preparation for filing their class action lawsuit against ChatGPT owner...more
7/19/2024
/ Algorithms ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Authors ,
Class Action ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Litigation ,
Disclosure ,
Innovative Technology ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Machine Learning ,
Motion to Dismiss
The author of the lyrics for Canada’s national anthem, “O Canada,” probably didn’t have trademarks in mind when he wrote “we stand on guard for thee.” But a recent trademark infringement win for a Maryland-based U.S....more
We are still waiting for a formal ruling on the Andersen v. Stability AI defendants’ second round of motions to dismiss, but so far it’s looking like most of the case may be allowed to proceed to discovery. The judge heard...more
The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the Eleventh Circuit’s holding in Warner Chappell Music v. Nealy that copyright plaintiffs bringing timely claims of infringement may recover damages for acts occurring outside the three-year...more
In the wake of several Congressional hearings over the past year on AI and intellectual property, Representative Adam Schiff (D-California) has introduced the Generative AI Copyright Disclosure Act of 2024 (H.R. 7913). ...more
5/3/2024
/ Algorithms ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Litigation ,
Copyright Office ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Machine Learning ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
The Copyright Act
A whole host of creators have filed suit in the U.S. alleging that AI companies improperly used the creators’ content to train AI programs. In most cases, the creators don’t know for sure whether the AI companies copied...more
Tennessee has joined the ranks of states regulating, in various ways, the use of artificial intelligence to manipulate an individual’s likeness. On March 21, 2024, Gov. Bill Lee said “thank you very much” to the Tennessee...more
4/3/2024
/ Algorithms ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Entertainment Industry ,
Fair Use ,
First Amendment ,
Goods or Services ,
Innovative Technology ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Machine Learning ,
Name and Likeness ,
New Legislation ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Right of Publicity
Last week, we asked for your input on whether certain images generated by AI programs were substantially similar to the Plaintiffs’ original artworks, as alleged in Andersen v. Stability AI....more
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Warner Chappell Music, Inc. v. Nealy, an appeal of the Eleventh Circuit’s determination that a copyright plaintiff can recover damages for infringement occurring more...more
2/26/2024
/ Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Litigation ,
Damages ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Music ,
Music Industry ,
Petrella v. MGM ,
SCOTUS ,
Settlement ,
Statute of Limitations ,
The Copyright Act ,
Warner Chappell Music v Nealy
By any measure, the world has changed vastly since we issued our first Commercial Litigation Outlook in 2020. We are now on our fourth installment of providing insights and flagging trends for what to expect in the coming...more
2/16/2024
/ Arbitration ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Banks ,
Class Action ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Commercial Court ,
Commercial Litigation ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Copyright ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Machine Learning ,
Merger Agreements ,
Patents ,
Trademarks
In a relatively scathing opinion finding the plaintiffs’ Complaint “defective in numerous respects,” a district court judge has thrown out most of the claims a group of artists has asserted against AI platforms that allegedly...more
2/14/2024
/ Algorithms ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Authors ,
Authorship ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Machine Learning ,
The Copyright Act
Seyfarth Synopsis: The health care sector faces escalating cybersecurity risks given its size, technological dependence and the sensitive nature of data used therein. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human...more
1/23/2024
/ Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Data Theft ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Information Technology ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Popular
‘Twas a day in December, when all through the blog, we were writing ‘bout trademarks, as if in a fog. When, what to our wondering eyes should appear, but holiday trademarks, so lovely and dear. The PTO said, as it reviewed...more
In the latest skirmish between Sarah Silverman and other authors against Chat GPT-maker OpenAI, OpenAI submitted a new decision from a California federal court in support of its attempt to dismiss the Silverman plaintiffs’...more
Thanksgiving is the start of the holiday season, a beloved time of the year where family and friends gather over delicious meals to share and create memories and to express love and gratitude. Thanksgiving also commences the...more
In a relatively scathing opinion finding the plaintiffs’ Complaint “defective in numerous respects,” a district court judge has thrown out most of the claims a group of artists has asserted against AI platforms that allegedly...more
President Biden signed a comprehensive Executive Order addressing AI regulation across a wide range of industries and issues. Intellectual property is a key focus. The Order calls on the U.S. Copyright Office and U.S. Patent...more
11/2/2023
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Biden Administration ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Office ,
Executive Orders ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Machine Learning ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patents ,
Risk Mitigation ,
USPTO
On September 15th 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law an amendment to the New York Labor Law. The amendment adds a new Section 203-f to the Labor Law, which addresses the assignment of inventions made by employees....more
11/1/2023
/ Copyright ,
Employee Inventors ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Policies ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Inventions ,
New York ,
Ownership of Works ,
Private Right of Action ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trademarks
The latest briefing in Silverman v. OpenAI reads like that old REM song, “The End of the World as We Know It.” OpenAI has responded to the Plaintiffs’ claims that OpenAI’s popular platform ChatGPT has infringed their...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: In May 2023, music and entertainment mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, through his company, Combs Wines and Spirits LLC, commenced a lawsuit in New York Supreme Court alleging that Diageo North America, a...more
10/12/2023
/ Arbitration ,
Brand ,
Breach of Contract ,
Distributors ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Equal Opportunities ,
Joint Venture ,
Motion to Compel ,
NY Supreme Court ,
Race Discrimination ,
Wine & Alcohol
We’ve all heard about so-called AI “hallucinations,” when AI programs like ChatGPT make up “facts” that are not true. For example, lawyers have gotten in trouble for citing fake AI-generated court cases. But could the...more
As we’ve previously written, the rise of generative AI has led to a spate of copyright suits across the country. One major target of these suits has been OpenAI. Actor/comedian Sarah Silverman and author Paul Tremblay are...more
10/2/2023
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Authorship ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
DMCA ,
Fair Use ,
Innovative Technology ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Machine Learning ,
Ownership of Works ,
Vicarious Liability
In what appears to be the first court opinion to weigh in on the copyrightability of AI-generated art, the District of D.C. has blessed the Copyright Office’s position to date: only works created by humans deserve protection...more