News

“A low level of protection for trade secrets and IP theft in a number of countries, notably in China and India” have caused “irreparable harm to European businesses” said the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, in its “Report on the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights in third countries” released on January 8, 2020.

The addition of a generic top-level domain (gTLD) to an otherwise generic term can, under certain circumstances, create a protectable trademark, the American Intellectual Property Law Association said in an amicus brief filed with the Supreme Court on January 13, 2020.

The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on January 9, 2020, held that statutory damage awards are not available when a defendant infringes in one way before the copyright was registered and another way after registration.

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on January 7, 2020, vacated and remanded a lower court ruling which held that Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLC, an integrated specialty pharmaceutical company, didn’t infringe Amgen Inc.’s patent for the kidney disease drug Sensipar.

The US District Court for the District of Massachusetts on January 6, 2020, awarded a summary judgment victory to Prince’s estate on its claims that unauthorized concert recordings posted to YouTube infringed the late musician’s copyrights.

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on January 6, 2019, reversed a Patent Trial and Appeal Board ruling that held claims of a Koninklijke Philips NV keypad patent valid.

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on December 18, 2019, vacated and remanded a Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) decision which invalidated SRAM’s improved bicycle chainring patent for obviousness.

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on December 12, 2019, held that a garage door opener patent didn’t cover openers without a motion detector in a wall unit because the detector’s placement in a wall unit constituted the patent’s invention.

The US District Court for the District of South Dakota on December 11, 2019, canceled trademark registrations for the word “Sturgis” in light of Walmart and others’ success defeating the trademark owner’s related infringement claims.

The AIPLA Newsstand is on hiatus today to celebrate Christmas Eve.

The Precedential Opinion Panel (POP) concludes that, at institution, a petitioner must identify with particularity sufficient evidence to establish a reasonable likelihood that an asserted reference was publicly accessible before the critical date of the challenged patent and thus qualifies as a printed publication.

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on December 16, 2019, affirmed a district court ruling that awarded Health In Motion LLC and Leisure Fitness Equipment LLC attorneys’ fees and expenses after the parties petitioned the court for fee reimbursement in a patent infringement suit.

The US Patent & Trademark Office announced that it will delay the effective date of its mandatory electronic filing rule change from December 21, 2019 to February 15, 2020.

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board on December 11, 2019, designated three decisions as informative.

The US District Court for the District of Massachusetts on November 27, 2019, granted CarMax Auto Superstores, Inc.’s motion to dismiss in patent infringement action concerning a “virtual phone” interface that makes it easier to access smartphones while driving.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) cannot recover the pro rata salaries of its legal personnel under § 145 of the Patent Act, the Supreme Court held December 11, 2019. Peter vs. NantKwest, Inc., U.S., No. 18-801, 12/11/19.

The US Copyright Office on December 9, 2019, announced that Register of Copyrights Karyn Temple will be leaving the Copyright Office on January 3, 2020, to accept a new position with the Motion Picture Association.

The Arizona Court of Appeals on November 26, 2019, reversed and remanded a trial court ruling which unsealed testing information concerning an alleged defect in a Goodyear tire model.

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on November 22, 2019, determined that LifeScan, Inc., the renowned leaders in blood glucose monitoring, did not infringe Phama Tech Solutions, Inc.’s patents for home blood glucose monitors.

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on November 22, 2019, held that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) incorrectly invalidated part of a wireless network patent when it used prohibited evidence as the basis for its conclusion.