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Features

Northern District of California Holds Vanity License Plates Are Not Government Speech Image

Northern District of California Holds Vanity License Plates Are Not Government Speech

Grace Tuyiringire

California DMV regulations excluding plaintiffs' personalized plates were like the PTO trademark registration restrictions of SLANTS and FUCT — restrictions struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court for violating the First Amendment.

Features

The Dark Side of Licensing: How to Prepare for the Audit Image

The Dark Side of Licensing: How to Prepare for the Audit

David Schnider

The audit clause itself is not something to be feared. It is a necessary means for the licensor to protect its interests and to guard against unscrupulous licensees. But it is a mistake to think that the clause is there solely to prevent malfeasance.

Features

From the PTO to the FDA: What to Consider When Branding Clinical Trials Image

From the PTO to the FDA: What to Consider When Branding Clinical Trials

Brandon Leahy Susanna Lichter & Eva Yin

The legal implications of branding generally arise initially for companies during the process of selecting a company name and any initial product or service names. For drug development companies, however, careful consideration should also be paid to the implications of branding a clinical trial.

Columns & Departments

IP News Image

IP News

Howard Shire & Shaleen J. Patel

PTAB to Follow Nautilus Standard of Definiteness

Features

Exercising Restraint: Federal Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Declaratory Judgment Action Under Abstention Doctrine Image

Exercising Restraint: Federal Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Declaratory Judgment Action Under Abstention Doctrine

Rudy Kim & James Hancock

The Federal Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a declaratory judgment action based on the "abstention doctrine," despite the declaratory judgment plaintiff's insistence that the underlying contract dispute required resolution of patent validity and claim scope that were within the federal courts' exclusive purview.

Features

Looking Ahead to Avoid Spoliation Sanctions Image

Looking Ahead to Avoid Spoliation Sanctions

Daniel J. Melman & Sarah Benowich

A recent Federal Circuit decision denying a petition for a writ of mandamus should serve as a cautionary tale and reminder for corporate entities regarding the critical importance of preserving documentary evidence in a timely and appropriate manner.

Features

USPTO Sets Precedent on Collective Patent Defense Groups with RPX Ruling Image

USPTO Sets Precedent on Collective Patent Defense Groups with RPX Ruling

Scott Graham

It took two years and a last-minute substitution of judges for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to rule that RPX Corp. was too close to a dues-paying member to bring a patent validity challenge.

Features

A Look at the EU's Latest Proposal for Regulating Online Content Image

A Look at the EU's Latest Proposal for Regulating Online Content

Linda A. Thompson

The DSA is intended to reset the rules around online content moderation and to reframe the responsibility of platforms for illegal content uploaded to their websites.

Columns & Departments

IP News Image

IP News

Joshua R. Stein & Jeff Ginsberg

Federal Circuit: Post-Employment Assignment Clause Void Under California Law Federal Circuit No New Trial for Improper "Pennies on the Dollar" Rhetoric

Features

Unseating Inelegant Notions of Product Design Functionality Image

Unseating Inelegant Notions of Product Design Functionality

Jonathan E. Moskin

In Blumenthal Distributing, Inc. v. Herman Miller, Inc., the 9th Circuit considered whether or not the or not the best-selling piece of furniture ever is functional.

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