Recent rulings of importance to you and your practice.
February 29, 2008ALM Staff | Law Journal Newsletters |
Congress Considers New Net Neutrality Bill
Judge Cuts Court Award in Internet Defamation CaseFebruary 28, 2008Samuel Fineman, Esq.Copyright Infringement/Rule 12(b)(6) Motion
Record Labels and Their Lawyers/Malicious Prosecution
Songwriter Royalties/State Levy Statute
Video Games/ Celebrity Trademarks
UPCOMING EVENT: SXSW Music Conference 2008 CLE ProgramFebruary 28, 2008Stan SoocherThe Court of Appeal of California, Second District, decided that any interests in Superman copyrights or termination rights held by Laura Siegel Larson, daughter of Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel, were her separate property, rather than community property of her marriage.
February 28, 2008Stan SoocherAs a child, Geoffrey Gerber grabbed comic books out of his dentist's treat bag after checkups. As an intellectual-property partner at Husch Blackwell Sanders, he grabs comic books ' key elements now in a substantial portion of his practice ' out of his litigator's case. 'There's a tremendous amount of comic-book litigation out there,' says Gerber, who practices in St. Louis for the newly merged firm. He adds that comic books, which hit it big in the 1930s as mainstream media, are 'fairly new media' in the scope of entertainment.
February 28, 2008Marcia CoyleCommentary: As 2013 Approaches, Artist Termination Right Faces Record Labels' Work-For-Hire Argument
It's time to start thinking about work for hire again. Technically, 2013 is the first year qualified recording artists may exercise the termination right that will result in reversion to them of the copyrights in their sound recordings from their record labels. There is no doubt about it: Whether referred to hyperbolically as a 'time bomb' or more benignly as a 'leak' in the record company's vaults, how the sound recording work-for-hire problem is resolved will have enormous financial and political impact on both record labels and recording artists.
February 28, 2008Jay RosenthalRecent rulings of interest to you and your practice.
February 28, 2008ALM Staff | Law Journal Newsletters |There is a general distrust and downright loathing of referees in the sports world. In the legal industry, however, lawyers are learning that the referee can be a powerful ally in deterring litigation and resolving cases early and successfully. While the legal profession will always have its fair share of Bobby Knights and John McEnroes, the referee appears to be gaining the upper hand.
February 28, 2008Chad StarkeyRecent news of importance to you and your practice.
February 28, 2008ALM Staff | Law Journal Newsletters |In a proceeding before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ('TTAB'), if your adversary is a foreign entity with no employees in the United States, can you compel an oral deposition of the entity in this country? 'No,' says the TTAB, through its Manual of Procedure ('TBMP'). 'Yes,' says the Fourth Circuit, relying on '24 of the Patent Act, 35 U.S.C. '24 in Rosenruist-Gestao E Servicos LDA v. Virgin Enterprises Ltd., 511 F.3d 437 (4th Cir. 2007).
February 28, 2008John M. Cone