On June 5, 2017, the United States Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Kokesh v. Securities and Exchange Commission that disgorgement in an SEC case is subject to the five-year statute of limitations for civil monetary...more
In a unanimous 8-0 decision, the Supreme Court ruled on May 22, 2017, in TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods Group Brands LLC that for purposes of venue in patent-infringement litigation, a U.S. corporation “resides” only in the...more
Summary -
In Star Athletica, LLC v. Varsity Brands, Inc., 580 U.S. ___ (2017), the Supreme Court clarified the test for whether artistic features of a useful article are separable and therefore copyright eligible. The...more
4/3/2017
/ Cheerleaders ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyrightable Subject Matter ,
Fashion Design ,
Fashion Industry ,
Graphic Designs ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 101 ,
Separability ,
Sports Apparel ,
Star Athletica v Varsity Brands ,
The Copyright Act ,
Uniforms ,
Utilitarian Function
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear argument in a case—TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Food Brands Group LLC, No. 16-341—that may lead to significant restrictions on where patent infringement cases can be filed. The Federal...more
On November 21, the Federal Circuit held that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) has been applying too broad a view of its own jurisdiction in conducting “covered business method” (CBM) reviews of patents pursuant to...more
Case Background -
Brandeis University initiated disciplinary proceedings against a student, John Doe, who allegedly engaged in sexual misconduct with another student, J.C. The two students had been in a romantic...more
Business trusts, statutory trusts and non-corporate real-estate investment trusts now face a significant jurisdictional barrier that will reduce their access to the federal courts, following a March 7 ruling by the U.S....more
Trademark disputes often focus on whether two marks create a “likelihood of confusion” with one another. That issue can come up before a court considering trademark infringement; before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board...more
On January 21, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court announced the definitive rule governing the timing of appeals from a multidistrict litigation proceeding (MDL). The Court held that plaintiffs in actions centralized in an MDL whose...more
Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court decided an issue with widespread importance in the interpretation of patents: whether a district court’s factual findings in support of its construction of a patent claim term may be reviewed...more
Speed Read -
The Federal Circuit has granted an en banc rehearing in SCA Hygiene Products v. First Quality Baby Products to revisit whether and to what extent a patent owner’s unreasonable delay in filing an...more
The U.S. Supreme Court Friday agreed to revisit a longstanding precedent that bars patent owners from collecting royalties after their patents have expired, even if those post-expiration payments represent compensation for...more
The Supreme Court today agreed to decide an important question of inducement liability under the Patent Act: whether a defendant accused of inducing infringement may defend on the ground that it believed in good faith that...more
In a recent decision with significant implications for smart phone users’ privacy expectations, the Supreme Court, in Riley v. California, unanimously rejected the application of the “incident to arrest doctrine” to law...more
Yesterday, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in Abdow v. Attorney General rejected challenges to a ballot initiative seeking the effective repeal of Massachusetts’s 2011 gaming law, directing the measure to be included...more
Yesterday, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) released its decision in Abdow v. Attorney General, handing a victory to proponents of a Massachusetts electoral initiative that seeks the repeal of the Massachusetts...more
The Supreme Court yesterday issued its long-awaited decision in Alice Corporation v. CLS Bank International addressing the patent eligibility of computer-implemented inventions under 35 USC §101. The Court’s unanimous...more
In a decision handed down yesterday, Heimeshoff v. Hartford Life & Accident Insurance Co., the Supreme Court confirmed that ERISA plan documents may prescribe an enforceable limitations period for the assertion of benefits...more