Friday, August 28, 2009

"I Have A Dream"

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Today marks the 46th anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" speech. The public speech was given on August 2...
Wednesday, August 26, 2009

So You Think You Have An Intent To Use, Do You?

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The recent TTAB precedential opinion in Honda Motor Co., Ltd. v. Friedrich Winkelmann renews established teaching concerning an intent to us...

Philo Taylor Farnsworth’s Electric TV

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On this date in 1930, the U.S. Patent Office issued two patents to Philo Farnsworth, one for a television system and the other for a televis...
Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Who Defines a Trademark Design?

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A recent precedential opinion from the TTAB reinforces the practical difficulty in defining -- at times -- a design trademark. In In re Pha...

The TMEP: Not Fully Linked, And Not Lovin' It

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The PTO's web-published Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure (TMEP) is an enjoyable convenience and offers considerable guidance in t...
Sunday, August 23, 2009

Out on the Twentieth

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Today is the 20th anniversary of Pete Rose's "settlement" with Bart Giamatti and Major League Baseball. On this date in 1989, ...
Friday, August 21, 2009

Happy Birthday, Christopher Robin

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On August 21, 1920, Christoper Robin was born in Chelsea to Alan Alexander and Dorothy Milne. A.A. Milne had been a writer for the humorous ...
Wednesday, August 19, 2009

"All Natural" Labeling Laws

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Last week's opinion from the Third Circuit underscores the difficulty faced by manufacturers to comply with the plethora of product lab...
Tuesday, August 18, 2009

No Legal Fees For You (in a Patent Case)

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The Federal Circuit’s decision last week in a patent appeal points out the difficulty that a prevailing defendant has in obtaining reimburse...

Happy 19th Birthday

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On this date 89 years ago, one-half of the U.S. population gained the legal right to vote. Prior to August 18, 1920, only men were entitled ...
Monday, August 17, 2009

More Opposition to the Google Book Settlement

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The National Writers Union voted last week to oppose the Google Book Settlement. The NWU is a labor union that represents its members who ar...
Friday, August 14, 2009

Oregon, My Oregon

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Congress created the Oregon Territory on this date in 1848. The area covered the present states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and parts of M...
Thursday, August 13, 2009

Lester William Polsfuss

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Les Paul, the Wizard of Waukesha (Wisc.), passed away today. Paul's guitar performance, inventiveness and styling over the past 80 years...

An Infringing Building Offers No Indemnity

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A recent case suggests the need for caution in dealing with building plans. A builder acquired a set of plans from a plan developer in order...
Tuesday, August 11, 2009

California, Here I Come

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The Ninth Circuit decision last Wednesday relating to Internet copying cracks a hole in Internet jurisdiction authority. The case of Brayton...
Monday, August 10, 2009

Poor Petey

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This blog is, of course, about copyrights, trademarks and patents and not about baseball. But I made a few recent blog entries about basebal...

New PTO Director Has A Heck Of A Job

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David Kappos was confirmed by the Senate last week as the new head of the Patent and Trademark Office. He comes to the PTO from IBM, where h...
Sunday, August 9, 2009

A Sunday in August

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It's a beautiful day outside. Stop surfing the Internet. Go to a baseball game. See you back tomorrow! These are the saddest of possible...
Saturday, August 8, 2009

Justice Sotomayor and IP

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The new 111th justice has minimal IP background. She worked with some IP issues as a young law associate in private practice in New York. He...
Friday, August 7, 2009

And if you believe that one, I've got a radio station for sale!

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Current times are tough for the radio industry. It used to be that all a radio station had to worry about were teenagers pushing pre-set but...