Copyright Protection for Recipes – Restaurateur Denied Copyright Protection Denied – A federal court ruled that an Ohio restaurateur’s recipes were not protectable under copyright laws. The court issued its ruling earlier this year on a motion for summary judgment, and the plaintiff has since filed her notice of appeal. (Read the full opinion here.)...Read More

Graffiti Artists Copyright Infringement Case Moves Forward Graffiti Artists Copyright Infringement Case – Italian fashion house Roberto Cavalli will be heading to court after a federal judge overruled its motion to dismiss a copyright infringement case against it earlier this month. (Read the full memorandum here) The clothing and accessories company was sued by three...Read More

Grooveshark Loses Copyright Infringement Case to Record Label Giants Grooveshark Loses Copyright Infringement Case – Grooveshark became yet another file sharing website to face defeat against the recording industry for copyright infringement. It came shortly after Sirius XM Radio, Inc. lost to a 1960s band for its infringement of its music. (Read the full opinion here)...Read More

Trademarking Food – Pizzeria Makes Case Pizzeria Makes its Case for Trademarking Food – A federal court in Texas ruled that flavors of a pizza chain’s food and its plating techniques lacked trademark and trade dress protection. The pizza chain, New York Pizzeria, Inc. (NYPI) alleged that Ryandir Syal, a restaurateur, along with other defendants,...Read More

What began as a trademark infringement case, developed into a battle of possible “genericide” when two popular moving and storage companies went head-to-head in federal court. Back in 2012, PODS sued U-Haul for trademark infringement for its use of “pods” under both state and federal laws. U-Haul countered that it was not infringement, because pods...Read More

Flo & Eddie Inc v. Sirius XM Radio Inc Flo & Eddie Inc v. Sirius XM Radio Inc – In a legal battle questioning copyright protection for the 1967 hit song, “Happy Together,” the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California held that sound recordings made before February 15, 1972, are granted exclusive...Read More

Warner Brothers Trademark Infringement Case – Keeps Clean Slate Warner Brothers Trademark Infringement Case – In a case stemming from the 2012 box office hit, The Dark Knight Rises, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit granted Warner Brothers’ motion to dismiss allegations of trademark infringement made against it for a fictional software program...Read More

Intellectual Property Law – No Dull Moments Intellectual Property Law – With Labor Day quickly approaching, and Back-to-Work and Back-to-School mentality haunting many of our minds, it’s a good time to reflect on what’s transpired in the IP world so far this year. From the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) revoking the Redskins’ registered...Read More

Aereo Inc Copyright Loss Leaves Much in the Clouds Aereo Inc’s Copyright Loss Leaves Much in the Clouds – The Supreme Court recently held that Aereo, Inc., infringed on copyrights belonging to cable broadcasters, producers, distributors, and marketers with its online cable streaming service. See opinion here. As part of its service, Aereo provides each...Read More

When is it Ok to Use Another’s Artwork? Use Another’s Artwork? – Today we take a look at the case of Seltzer v. Green Day and examine the circumstances under which one may use the creative works of another person. The major issue in the case was fair use of copyrighted material – in this...Read More