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Second and Ninth Circuits Split and Also Agree
I have long disagreed with the Ninth Circuit on a standard that I think is unduly crabbed. I’m talking specifically about the cause of action, and therefore remedies available, when the obligations in an agreement that include a copyright license are not met. The courts are in agreement that the obligations can be put into… Continue reading
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Accrual of an Authorship Claim
Copyright ownership claims are not unusual. But what about authorship? Often the distinction doesn’t matter because, in infringement claims, the owner stands in the shoes of author. But it does matter to termination – the author (or the author’s heirs) is the only one with termination rights; a mere owner cannot exercise a termination (and… Continue reading
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You Can’t Just “Re-Form” a Plaintiff
Here are the facts: Ness Stewart Irvine was a patentee. Irvine assigned his patents-in-suit to InterAD Technologies, LLC. InterAD assigned them to Zeroclick, LLC (“Zeroclick I”), the plaintiff, a Texas entity. Zeroclick I sued Apple for patent infringement. Erich Spangenberg, listed as the “governing person,” terminated the Zeroclick I entity.1 Non-party Granicus IP, LLC transferred… Continue reading
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Only Owners (Or Licensees) Can Bring a Claim Under the Federal Trade Secrets Act
In 2016 the United States enacted trade secret law at the federal level. Before that, trade secret law was available only at the state level, meaning a patchwork of different standards and no federal jurisdiction for claims. The Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”), changed that. Like trademark law, the federal trade secret law does not… Continue reading
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A License to Embed (See What I’m Doing Here?)
I was going to blog Sinclair v. Ziff Davis, LLC, but @MarkJKings explained everything you need to know in a Twitter thread. So, by virtue of the license granted to me by Twitter, I present Sinclair. Plaintiff Sinclair is a professional photographer. Mashable approached her about including one of her photographs in an article about… Continue reading
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Foreign Manufacturer Continues to Own Its Mark
Liger6, LLC v. Sarto is right in my wheelhouse, two claimants to the same mark. I passed on it at the district court level, though, because it wasn’t particularly remarkable. However, there is a decision on appeal now, and it’s a slow news week for non-Covid news. The district court opinion is marked “Not for… Continue reading
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Don’t Sue a High School Choir for Copyright Infringement in the Ninth Circuit
Burbank High School has show choirs, which are choirs that combine choral singing with some choreographed steps. If you watched the TV show Glee you’ve seen it; in fact the court says that Burbank High School inspired the TV show. Brett Carroll is the vocal music director at the school and the Burbank show choirs… Continue reading
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The Implied Sublicense
Plaintiff Photographic Illustrators Corp. (PIC) did beauty shots of lightbulbs for Osram Sylvania. The parties had a falling out and in 2006 entered into a settlement agreement. The agreement settled all past claims and set forth the terms of the parties’ future relationship. Relevant to the case, Sylvania had a broad license to use PIC… Continue reading
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This Is Why You Don’t Call It “Intellectual Property”
Oh, just ugh. This is in a software development agreement: 14. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY The Parties agree that no new Intellectual Property will be created under this agreement. That’s sort of like agreeing in a contract that the sun won’t rise. The sun is going to rise, so what happens then? Plaintiff Decisionq hired defendant GigaM… Continue reading
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Waiving Ownership of the Registration
Do you need to own a trademark to succeed in an infringement claim? Not necessarily. The plaintiff, I&I Hair Corporation, now owns the registration for the trademark EZBRAID. Except that it originally didn’t; the registration was owned by Eunja Son, a principal of the plaintiff. I&I Hair sued the defendant, Beauty Plus Trading Co., for… Continue reading