Licensing Law Lawyers in the USA

The International Intellectual Property Institute (IIPI) and United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) examined the use of specialized intellectual property courts around the globe. After reviewing the intellectual property laws and regulations of over 190 countries, the “Study on Specialized Intellectual Property Courts” concludes that although intellectual property rights (IPR) courts may vary worldwide, they all offer the distinct advantage of an informed and capable judiciary.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office recently published final rules governing derivation proceedings. The new patent proceedings are designed to ensure that a person will not be able to obtain a patent for an invention that he or she did not actually invent once the new first-inventor-to-file system launches.

A former Motorola employee has been sentenced to four years in prison for trade secret theft. Hanjuan Jin’s sentence is one of the harshest in the history of criminal trade secret theft prosecutions.

While the jury delivered a partial verdict in the copyright infringement phase of the Oracle v. Google trial, there is arguably still no clear winner. Because the jury did not decide the issue of fair use, Google is seeking a mistrial.

Apple Inc.’s recent blockbuster $1.05 billion verdict in its patent infringement lawsuit against Samsung Electronics Co. may not translate into victories overseas. Apple and Samsung have patent litigation currently pending on four continents, and each company has been able to claim some measure of success in recent weeks.

As MySpace seeks to regain its relevance in the ever-changing world of social media, it may be able to rely on the momentum of a recent intellectual property victory over Apple. The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board recently denied Apple’s bid to trademark its famous music icon after determining it was too similar to a mark already registered by MySpace. Both marks depict a double musical note in an orange rectangle.

The copyright infringement litigation pitting startup Aereo against several major broadcasters is now underway. Because the decision could shake up how consumers get their television, the media and technology industries are closely watching the case.

As trademark attorneys, we are hopeful that a new rule proposed by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection will help trademark owners prevent counterfeit goods from entering the U.S. market. The Intellectual Property Rights Interim Final Rule would allow the agency to share information about potentially infringing products with trademark holders.

If you use Twitter and other social media websites, you have likely seen some questionable content pass through your feed. As highlighted by recent arrests in the United Kingdom, social media users may actually be breaking online privacy laws in some circumstances.

Smart phone maker Research in Motion recently demonstrated the importance of conducting trademark research before committing to a name for your product. Less than two months after the maker of the Blackberry devices announced that its new operating system would be called BBX, the company was forced to alter course. It will now be called BlackBerry 10.