No Password Required: From Heavy Metal to the Front Lines of Cyber Innovation
Is My Guitar Pedal a Klone or a Counterfeit? — No Infringement Intended Podcast
Why Can't I Clean the Graffiti Off My Walls? — No Infringement Intended Podcast
(Podcast) The Briefing: When a TikTok Costs You $150,000 - Copyright Pitfalls in Influencer Marketing
The Briefing: When a TikTok Costs You $150,000 - Copyright Pitfalls in Influencer Marketing
(Podcast) The Briefing: Trademark Mayhem – Lady Gaga Gets Sued for Trademark Infringement
The Briefing: Trademark Mayhem – Lady Gaga Gets Sued for Trademark Infringement
Can My Band Cover Another Famous Song? — No Infringement Intended Podcast
(Podcast) The Briefing: Millions at Stake – How 2 Live Crew Beat Bankruptcy to Reclaim Their Music
The Briefing: Millions at Stake – How 2 Live Crew Beat Bankruptcy to Reclaim Their Music
Why Did Taylor Swift Re-record Her Albums? – No Infringement Intended Podcast
Introduction to No Infringement Intended Podcast - No Infringement Intended
The latest on: NFL Anti-Trust decision; Record Labels Sue Over Generative AI; Copyright Office clarifies Termination Rights, Royalties, Transfers, Disputes, and the MMA.
The Briefing: Not Terminated - Cher Still Entitled to Her Share of Music Royalties
The Briefing: Not Terminated - Cher Still Entitled to Her Share of Music Royalties (Podcast)
The Briefing: Supreme Court Holds Copyright Damages Can Go Beyond 3 Years (Podcast)
Taylor's Version: El Derecho de Artistas en la Industria Musical
The Briefing: Brandy Melville Doubles Down Against Redbubble
AI Update: ELVIS Act Passes, SAG-AFTRA Agree with Record Labels. FTC Non-compete Ban Analyzed By Gordon Firemark and Tamera Bennett.
The Briefing: Tennessee’s ELVIS Act Isn’t What You Think (Podcast)
Bono, Madonna, Beyoncé, Rihanna, Eminem, Drake, Cher, Sting, Lorde, Flea, Adele, Bjork, Seal, Pink: these celebrities all share the same elite status of fame to be known by a single name. But the standalone celebrity name...more
Pop icon Lady Gaga is no stranger to making waves, but a new lawsuit initiated by California-based surfboard company Lost International (aka Lost Surfboards), shows that even superstars can find themselves navigating choppy...more
You might be wondering what cognac, hip-hop and fame have in common. The answer, at least in a recent opinion by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, is certification trademarks. We have written in the past...more
The world of music often sees as much drama in the courtroom as on the stage. One fight that frequently results in protracted, expensive, and bitter legal disputes is over ownership of a band or group name....more
On September 17, 2021, the Third Circuit held in Beasley v. Howard that trademark cancellation proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”) do not have claim preclusive effect against trademark...more
In a recent precedential decision, the U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“Board”) confirmed that a hashtag symbol (#) generally adds little or no source-indicating distinctiveness to a trademark. In this case, rapper...more
Addressing an opposition to the trademark registration of a band name, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) found the opposer—the originator and continuous user of the name—to be the owner and prior user. Dave Brock v....more
In 2014, the Washington Redskins lost a battle before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”) where the petitioner, a group of Native American activists, sought cancellation of the “Washington Redskins” trademark, which...more
In an 8–0 decision, the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed an en banc panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and found the disparagement clause of the Lanham Act to be facially unconstitutional...more
Asian rock band The Slants is no longer "The Band Who Must Not Be Named," as they titled their most recent album. On June 19, 2017, the United States Supreme Court decided Matal v. Tam, striking a provision of the Lanham Act,...more
This week, the U.S. Supreme Court emphasized the importance of broad free speech protection in striking down a statute that allows the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to refuse registration of disparaging trademarks....more
In a unanimous decision handed down on June 19th, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional a long-standing prohibition against federal registration of “disparaging” trademarks, finding that the this provision of...more
From June through August 2015, the Trademark Trial & Appeal Board issued eleven precedential decisions. Over the course of the upcoming weeks, we are briefly summarizing each opinion and a “take away” for brand owners and...more
Recently, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (the “TTAB”) held that an unsuccessful opposer was precluded from later pursuing a cancellation against the same trademark owner, even though the opposer assumed a different...more
The Slants is a Portland-based band composed of musicians of Asian-American descent who characterize their genre as “Chinatown Dance Rock.” The band’s bassist, Simon Tam, filed a trademark application for THE SLANTS for...more
In the same way that Rock and Roll will never die (according to Neil Young) it would appear that battles over the protection of trade dress embodied in the shape of guitars will likewise never die. In the latest installment...more