Two years ago, Congress greatly expanded the authority of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by enacting the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act (MoCRA). This Act requires companies to register each facility...more
One recent victim of scams preying on U.S. trademark filers and registrants answered a call that appeared to be from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). It wasn’t. The target of the scam was forced to...more
2/8/2024
/ Email ,
Fraud ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Phishing Scams ,
Risk Management ,
Scams ,
Spoofing ,
Trademark Application ,
Trademark Ownership ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
Amendments to the Charter of French Language (Charter) scheduled to come into force on June 1, 2025 will have major implications on trademark owners doing business in Quebec, Canada. This doesn’t just impact Canadian...more
If a company terminates one of its officers, does that person or his ex-employer own the corporate social media accounts that person used? Specifically, if the officer’s posts directly or indirectly promoted the company’s...more
A case involving the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)’s refusal to register the trademark TRUMP TOO SMALL for tee shirts has made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court. The justices recently agreed to a USPTO request to...more
The U.S. Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision, vacated a decision by the Ninth Circuit that in effect barred trademark infringement and dilution claims against the use of a trademark that parodies the plaintiff’s trademark....more
6/29/2023
/ Cease and Desist ,
Dilution ,
First Amendment ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Jack Daniels Properties Inc v VIP Products LLC ,
Lanham Act ,
Likelihood of Confusion ,
Parody ,
Rogers Test ,
SCOTUS ,
Trade Dress ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademarks
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued an alert regarding a new scam targeting trademark owners. Scammers are calling trademark owners claiming they work for the USPTO. Many of them use “spoofed”...more
Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 against the Andy Warhol Foundation in a copyright dispute over a portrait of Prince that Warhol created using a photograph by another artist, Lynn Goldsmith.
"The court's opinion...more
6/9/2023
/ Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts Inc v Goldsmith ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Litigation ,
Derivative Works ,
Fair Use ,
Fine Art ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
SCOTUS ,
The Copyright Act ,
Transformative Use
As we previously reported in our October IP Alert, starting on December 3, 2022 the period for responding to office actions issued against most trademark applications was reduced from 6 to 3 months with the option of...more
Starting on December 3, 2022 the window for filing responses to office actions will be shortened from 6 to 3 months. Applicants will have the option to obtain one three-month extension for a fee of $125. Applications filed...more
On December 27, 2020, President Trump signed the COVID-19 relief and government funding bill, which incorporated The Trademark Modernization Act of 2020 (“TMA”) and the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act of...more
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) has announced that, effective January 2, 2021, it is increasing certain fees it charges to file trademark applications, maintain trademark registrations, petition the...more