IP News
Highlights of the latest intellectual property news and cases from around the country.
Features
IP Finance and Law: Four Vignettes
Intellectual property is an asset class and patents, prominent members of that class, are call options on the economic value of the covered technology. Because patent value can be substantial, and because the values of companies can be significantly impacted by the value of IP assets, the intersection of finance and patent law is increasingly common. In particular, here are four vignettes in which they intersect.
Federal Circuit Decisions Clarify Requirements for Lost Profits Damages
In two recent decisions, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ("Federal Circuit") elaborated on the standards to be used when considering whether to award lost profit damages to a patent owner who has successfully shown validity and infringement. Both decisions were released by the Federal Circuit on Dec. 4, 2003. (<i>Ferguson Beauregard/Logic Controls, Div. of Dover Res., Inc. v. Mega Sys., LLC,</i> 350 F.3d 1327 (Fed. Cir. 2003); and <i>Utah Med. Prods., Inc. v. Graphic Controls Corp.</i>, 350 F.3d 1376 (Fed. Cir. 2003)). These cases should provide direction to patent owners, defendants, and their counsel when attempting to assert or defend against lost profits claims.
Thorough Prior Art Searching and Careful Claim Drafting after Festo and Johnson & Johnston
In 1963 the Supreme Court noted that patent applications "constitute one of the most difficult legal instruments to draw with accuracy." (<i>See Sperry v. Florida Ex. Rel. Florida Bar</i>, 373 U.S. 379, 383 (1963)). Recent decisions by both the Supreme Court and the Federal Circuit have made this task even more difficult. In particular, the Supreme Court's 2002 decision in <i>Festo v. Shoketsu Kinzoku Kogyo Kabushiki Co., Ltd.</i> (535 U.S. 722) and the Federal Circuit's 2003 <i>Festo</i> remand decision, as well as the Federal Circuit's 2002 <i>Johnson & Johnston</i> (285 F. 3d 1046) (344 F. 3d 1359) decisions, all had significant narrowing effects on the doctrine of equivalents.
Features
Asymmetry and Invalid Arbitration Clauses
In the world of franchising, mandatory arbitration contract provisions have become <i>de rigueur</i>. In principle, agreements to arbitrate favor neither party; as a practical matter, however, franchisors and franchisees have quickly learned about the real-life advantages and disadvantages of including an arbitration clause in a franchise contract. Generally, these clauses are included in franchise contracts because they tend to favor the franchisor — the party that, in most cases, usually has the bargaining power to impose terms and conditions on the weaker party, the franchisee. There are very few, if any, reported cases in which a franchisee challenging the validity of an arbitration clause has been shown to have requested or demanded that an arbitration clause be included in the franchise agreement.
Features
News Briefs
Highlights of the latest franchising news from around the country.
Features
Court Watch
Highlights of the latest franchising cases from around the country.
This Ain't Your Average Hamburger Joint: Making a Mountain Out of a UFOC Designed to Fit a Molehill
What happens when your client wants to build a mountain? Literally. And franchise the concept. That's exactly the challenge presented by the WaterSnoGo proposed franchise under development by M-O-H INCORPORATED.
Features
Making Your Network Work
Ask any attorney in a specialized practice area to identify their most effective sources of new business, and you'll probably hear "referrals from other lawyers" listed as one of the best ways of meeting profitable new clients. One increasingly popular method of generating referrals from lawyers in other geographic areas is to participate in a law firm network or association.
Features
Television Advertising for Business Law Firms
Advertising has been a consistent and critical component of Minneapolis-based Leonard, Street and Deinard's marketing plan for years. Currently a 180-attorney firm, in 1998 Leonard, Street and Deinard was one of the first business law firms in the Twin Cities to introduce a print advertising campaign, which ran primarily in local business and legal publications. As we looked to 2004, we knew we had to do something to break through the clutter. At the same time, we wanted to maximize the impact of our advertising communications while minimizing costs. Our advertising agency returned with an ambitious plan. They recommended that we no longer advertise in business and legal publications, instead concentrating our media buy in two new areas: a print media buy in the local business daily newspaper, and a television ad campaign. To say we were taken aback by the second recommendation is an understatement.
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