Intellectual Property Law

Big Brown Licensing Lawyer Especially Eager for Triple Crown Win

Lots of horse-racing fans would love to see favorite Big Brown come in first at the Belmont Stakes in New York on Saturday for a rare Triple Crown win. But Harrisburg, Pa., attorney Michael Doctrow and others at his law firm, McNees Wallace & Nurick, are especially eager to see…

Jun 6, 2008 3:34 PM CDT

Ex-Kasowitz Partner Files $90M Suit Over Claim of ‘Extremely Inappropriate’ Conduct

The former chairman of the intellectual property group at Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman has filed a $90 million defamation suit against the firm for issuing a press release that said he was fired for “extremely inappropriate personal conduct.” Jeremy Pitcock contends in his suit that the conduct was nothing…

Jun 6, 2008 12:07 PM CDT

E-Discovery Disclosure Goof Waived Attorney-Client Privilege, Judge Rules

A federal magistrate in Baltimore has ruled a company sued for infringement has no attorney-client privilege in 165 documents mistakenly turned over to its opponent in e-discovery. The documents included several communications between the company Creative Pipe Inc. and its lawyers. U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge Paul Grimm ruled Creative Pipe…

Jun 4, 2008 11:12 AM CDT

Adult Mag’s Case Against Credit Card Companies Declined by Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to hear a lawsuit that contends credit card companies aid copyright infringement by providing services to websites that use pirated materials. The suit was filed by Perfect 10, an adult online magazine, the Wall Street Journal reports (sub. req.). The publication sued Visa Inc.…

Jun 2, 2008 4:32 PM CDT

Affymetrix Legal Team Jumps Ship to Dewey & LeBoeuf

The general counsel of a California-based genetic products manufacturer is leaving, along with three in-house Affymetrix patent lawyers, to join Dewey & LeBoeuf. Barbara Caulfield, who formerly worked as a federal district court judge before she joined the Santa Clara company, will be in charge of the Silicon Valley office…

May 28, 2008 5:06 PM CDT

Malpractice Suit Claims Morgan Lewis Failed to Quickly Admit Patent Goof

A lawsuit filed last week against Morgan Lewis & Bockius and one of its partners claims the partner made mistakes in a patent application and then waited too long to admit it. The suit by billboard maker Landmark Screens claims San Francisco partner Thomas Kohler and the law firm learned…

May 28, 2008 10:50 AM CDT

Patent Holding Company on the Defensive in Attorney Fee Dispute

A patent holding company that unsuccessfully sued Palm and other defendants is now on the defensive, as Palm pursues attorney fees awarded by a judge who questioned the holding company’s pretrial investigation and discovery conduct. In an effort to recover the awarded fees, Palm has filed a motion seeking to…

May 21, 2008 10:41 AM CDT

Dickstein Contingent-Fee Payout Could Be $600K Per Partner

It’s a good time to be a partner at Dickstein Shapiro, an article in this month’s Washingtonian magazine notes. Under a partial contingent-fee arrangement in a patent case, each of the firm’s 150 partners can expect an average payout of $600,000, if a $501 million Texas federal jury award (apparently…

May 20, 2008 11:08 PM CDT

Does That Counterfeit Bag Support Terrorism?

Starting Monday, New Yorkers and visitors who happen by city pay phones will see anti-piracy and anti-counterfeiting ads aimed at educating the public about “The Real Price of Counterfeit Goods.” According to the New York Times City Room blog, one of the ads reads: “When you buy counterfeit goods, you…

May 16, 2008 7:04 PM CDT

Fan May Face IP Claim Over Dr. Who Knitting Patterns

A 26-year-old British fan of the BBC’s classic Doctor Who television show is facing a potential intellectual property claim over the knitting patterns she invented and distributed over the Internet for free, so fellow fans could create their own homemade versions of the show’s characters. Technically, it seems that the…

May 14, 2008 5:14 PM CDT

Legal Dispute Escalates With Craigslist Countersuit Against EBay

Web classified company Craigslist has filed a countersuit against eBay that claims the auction company interfered with its business operations and infringed its trademark after acquiring a minority stake in Craigslist. The suit was filed just two weeks after eBay sued Craigslist executives claiming they improperly sought to dilute eBay’s…

May 14, 2008 1:30 PM CDT

Battle of the Undergarments: Spanx Sues Spank for Trademark Infringement

Spanx, the maker of body shapers, is suing Sexy Panties and Naughty Knickers Ltd. for trademark infringement over its abbreviated name, Spank. The Fulton County Daily Report characterizes the suit as a dispute over an abbreviation between the “makers of abbreviated and abbreviating undergarments for women.” One of the exhibits…

May 8, 2008 3:04 PM CDT

Federal Circuit to Consider Patents for Business Methods Today

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit will consider a case today that will help determine what kinds of business methods are eligible for patents. The case, In re Bilski, asks whether a patent can be issued for a method used by a commodity provider to manage the…

May 8, 2008 10:45 AM CDT

Adidas Award of $305M in Trademark Infringement Case May Be Record

A Portland, Ore., jury has awarded Adidas AG nearly $305 million for violation of its trademark for three-stripe shoes. Lawyers at Kilpatrick Stockton who represented Adidas said the judgment against Payless ShoeSource Inc. may be the largest trademark victory in U.S. history, the American Lawyer reports. The verdict included $137…

May 7, 2008 4:14 PM CDT

Magazine Compiles Top 50 List of Young IP Lawyers

A list of the top 50 intellectual property lawyers under the age of 45 includes big-firm partners, boutique litigators and in-house lawyers. IP Law & Business (reg. req.) has compiled the list, starting with Oliver Ashe, who was a sixth-year associate when started his own firm, to William Zimmerman, who…

May 6, 2008 12:12 PM CDT