Last month, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a press release describing its proposed changes to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. The Act contains various advertising and cash solicitation rules for...more
The federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued a consumer update regarding products containing cannabis or cannabis-derived compounds, including cannabidiol (CBD). Although aimed at consumers, the update...more
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued guidance titled “Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers.” The guidance consists of a short, easy-to-read document aimed directly at those who work with brands to...more
As predicted, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) has now extended its inquiry on the impact of artificial intelligence (“AI”) technologies to copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property rights....more
During this coming term, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear an interesting case involving the State of Georgia’s ability to copyright the annotations to the Official Code of Georgia Annotated (“OCGA”). The issue is framed as...more
Late last month, the United States Patent & Trademark Office (“USPTO”) issued a Notice seeking comments as to whether Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) can be considered an inventor on a patent. Its questions “are designed to...more
Earlier this month, the United States Patent & Trademark Office’s (USPTO) finalized and announced a rule requiring foreign trademark applicants to be represented by a United States licensed attorney when applying for a US...more
It’s old news by now, but the Supreme Court ruled earlier this week that the immoral and scandalous trademark ban set forth in Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act is unconstitutional under the First Amendment because it disfavors...more
6/28/2019
/ Appeals ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Iancu v. Brunetti ,
Lanham Act ,
Reaffirmation ,
Reversal ,
Scandalous/Immoral Marks ,
SCOTUS ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO ,
Viewpoint Discrimination
Since 1995, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have maintained intellectual property licensing guidelines, most recently updated in 2017. Those guidelines, titled “Antitrust Guidelines for...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which enforces federal consumer protection and antitrust laws with the goal of promoting competition while protecting consumers from fraud, deception, and unfair business practices, has...more
Earlier this month, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) issued Examination Guide 1-19, intended to “clarify the procedure for examining marks for cannabis and cannabis-derived goods and for services...more
Earlier this month, the Federal Circuit ruled that trademark rulings from the International Trade Commission (“ITC”) do not have preclusive effect. This means that ITC actions do not bar district court cases, that ITC...more
This week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in the Product Holdings, Inc. v. Tempnology, LLC N/K/A Old Cold LLC case previously blogged about. The issue in that case was whether, when a trademark owner/licensor files...more
5/22/2019
/ Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (BAP) ,
Bankruptcy Code ,
Breach of Contract ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Debtors ,
Exclusions ,
Executory Contracts ,
IP License ,
Mission Product Holdings Inc v Tempnology LLC ,
Rescission ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 365 ,
Split of Authority ,
Trademark Licenses ,
Trademarks ,
Trustees
Earlier this month, at the request of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals officially set a trademark registration requirement by making an earlier ruling precedential. That...more
I only (very briefly) fell for one April Fools’ prank this year. Yesterday the University of Wisconsin tweeted what appeared to be a press release announcing that fans could no longer perform their “Jump Around” tradition at...more
Earlier this week, the European Parliament voted in favor of a directive overhauling the European Union’s online copyright rules. These controversial changes, following extensive lobbying and a 348-274 vote, implicate an...more
Yesterday the Food & Drug Administration (“FDA”) Commissioner announced a new plan for increased oversight over dietary supplements. In his statement, the Commissioner noted how much the dietary supplement market has grown...more
From beer to snacks to cars to tech, we love them all. Or, we love judging them all. Each year, we tune in to see which companies—both the old staples and the new blood—will shell out the cash for a Super Bowl ad. ...more
Nothing is as it seems. I previously blogged about the marketing of non-dairy products as “milk” – now it’s meat’s turn. According to a recent article in the Star Tribune, multiple states are either already regulating or...more
Earlier this month, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (“CIPO”) published a new set of Trademark Regulations and announced that amendments to Canada’s trademark laws will go into effect on June 17, 2019. The CIPO’s...more
As I previously blogged about, there is a circuit split as to whether, when a trademark owner/licensor files for bankruptcy, the licensee of the trademark can legally continue use of the mark or whether the trademark...more
Over the past year we’ve traced the progression of the Coachella/Filmchella lawsuit, which was scheduled for trial earlier this month. Approximately a week before trial, the parties settled the case and the Court entered a...more
The Food & Drug Administration (“FDA”) has published a Consumer Update with a reminder regarding the implementation of the new Nutrition Facts label. According to the FDA’s Update, at least 10% of food packaging already...more
What does “natural” mean in the context of product advertising? Consumers see phrases like “natural,” “all natural,” and “100% natural” over and over again in modern marketing. The trouble is that “natural” may not mean...more
Earlier this year, I authored a blog post about the so-called “Monkey Selfies” after the Ninth Circuit ruled that animals cannot sue for copyright infringement because, as nonhumans, they lack the required standing under the...more