News & Publications

The United States Trade Representative on May 9, 2019, issued a notice that it is modifying the action being taken in its Section 301 investigation into China’s policies and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation. 84 Fed. Reg. 20459.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on May 1, 2019, upheld an arbitration award in a trademark dispute over the use of the mark “Bobov” within a Hasidic Jewish community. Landau v. Eisenberg, 2d Cir., No. 17-3963, 5/1/19.

The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on May 2, 2019, upheld the dismissal of Media Rights Technologies Inc.’s (MRT) copyright infringement claims against Microsoft Corp., ruling that MRT should have raised the claims in its 2013 patent infringement suit against Microsoft.

The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on April 17, 2019, affirmed a district court’s ruling that Unifrax I LLC, a global specialty fibers company, infringed DuPont’s patent for materials in thermal-acoustic blankets that are installed in airplanes. E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company v. Unifrax I LLC, Fed. Cir., No. 17-2575.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on April 26, 2019, reversed and remanded a “fair use” copyright decision, holding that Violent Hues’s unlicensed use of a commercial photographer’s photograph on their website failed all four factors of the fair use defense.

AIPLA co-sponsored two spectacular events in Washington DC in celebration of World IP Day.

AIPLA, AIPPI and FICPI jointly organized a high-level colloquium on Artificial Intelligence (AI) with a focus on AI and Patent, Copyright and Trade Secret protection in Turin, Italy on 28-29 March 2019.

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on April 25, 2019, released its annual Special 301 Report on the adequacy and effectiveness of trading partners’ protection of intellectual property rights and the findings of its Notorious Markets List, which highlights online and physical markets that reportedly engage in and facilitate substantial copyright piracy and trademark counterfeiting.

The Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology on April 24, 2019, announced 15 key findings from a final version of a new “green paper” on maximizing U.S. innovation from government-funded research.

The US Copyright Office on April 24, 2019, announced that Maria Strong will serve as Associate Register of Copyrights and Director of Policy and International Affairs at the United States Copyright Office, effective April 23, 2019.