CERAMTEC GMBH v. COORSTEK BIOCERAMICS LLC - Before Lourie, Taranto, and Stark. Appeal from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. A utility patent may still be considered strong...more
Summary Trade dress is a powerful intellectual property (IP) tool that can be used to protect the distinctive non-functional “look and feel" of a product’s design, shape and/or 3D configuration.[1] Product manufacturers and...more
In this edition of The Precedent, we outline the recent federal circuit decision in CeramTec v. CoorsTek. ...more
This case examines the application of trademark functionality doctrine in the medical device industry, specifically addressing whether the pink color of ceramic hip components can be protected as a trademark. The case...more
Color trademarks have traditionally been difficult to obtain. Of the over 4 million trademark registrations, there were less than 1000 color trademarks as of 2019. To be eligible for trademark registration, a color must have...more
Join Sterne Kessler’s Global Trademark & Brand Protection team for our mid-year review webinar, when we will take a closer look at the latest developments in trademark law. From recent court decisions to industry-trends, our...more
The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court’s summary judgment grant in a trademark dispute, finding that the district court did not err in concluding that a subset of design elements lacked...more
The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit concluded that only notice of a preliminary injunction (PI) motion, and not perfected formal service, is needed to assert jurisdiction to issue an injunction. Whirlpool Corp. v....more
Thank you for reading the May 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss Taco Bell's attempt to cancel two TACO TUESDAY trademark registrations, and a precedential TTAB decision...more
Taco Bell’s recent efforts to liberate the phrase “Taco Tuesday” presents an opportunity to review the distinctions between marks that are generic and those that fail to function as a trademark....more
Louboutin v. YSL - Christian Louboutin (“Louboutin”), the designer of the famous red bottom shoes, filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against fashion house Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) claiming YSL infringed on its red...more
Addressing for the second time whether the design of a chocolate-dipped, stick-shaped cookie was eligible for trade dress protection, the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held again that the product configuration was...more
In Ezaki Glico Kabushiki Kaisha v. Lotte International America Corp., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit considered a trade dress infringement dispute between two confectioners. Ezaki Glico (“Ezaki”), a Japanese...more
The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit found that trade dress protection did not extend to the design of a chocolate-dipped, stick-shaped cookie, because the product configuration was useful. Ezaki Glico Kabushiki...more
On June 12, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit decided Bodum USA, Inc. v. A Top New Casting Inc., No. 18-3030, 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 17555 (7th Cir. June 12, 2019). The case, led by Vedder Price...more
Knock-offs and ‘copycat’ designs are nothing new to the fashion world. The rising demand for “fast fashion” and bargain hunting alike make knock-offs particularly attractive to the consumer’s insatiable appetite. This trend...more
I often get asked by clients to discuss the differences between design patents and trade dress. Both are intellectual property protections that protect similar aspects of a product—the appearance and aesthetic features. Last...more
In 2003 the U.S. Supreme Court in Dastar Corp. v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. emphasized that “[t]he rights of a patentee or copyright holder are part of a ‘carefully crafted bargain,’… under which, once the patent or...more
In a decision authored by Chief Judge Sharon Prost, the Federal Circuit held that while design patents covering product configurations – that is, “a product feature or a combination or arrangement of features” – can protect...more