Alt Legal IP News – Issue #94
Hannah Samendinger | June 26, 2018
Baltimore, Chicago, & NYC
– This 87-year-old inventor has over 250 patents to his name (he stopped counting) and is still going strong.
– Anish Kapoor, the sculptor who made Cloud Gate, is suing the NRA for copyright infringement for featuring the sculpture in an ad.
– The case between MoMa and MoMaCha is still ongoing. MoMaCha has filed for a preliminary injunction after undergoing a voluntary redesign and including a disclaimer on signage.
A Look Back
– We are halfway through 2018, so here is a look back at the top 7 trademark rulings so far this year.
– These brands had some of the best tech ads of the last 35 years.
– Last week marked the 4th anniversary of Alice v. CLS Bank, a case that has impacted software innovation. A controversial 40-year-old decision relating to software patents still has the potential to influence the future of software patents post-Alice.
Vulgarity, Pricks, & Trolls
– This is an interesting long read on the sudden rush of vulgar trademark applications following the Tam decision.
– A cactus seller and tattoo artist had a dispute about the right to use prick in their business names. Check out the opinion here.
– Will the new Canadian Trademark Act amendments open the doors for more trademark trolls and squatters?
Odds and Ends
– Van Gogh became one of the world’s most famous painters through willful imitation of Japanese art, which provides an interesting look at how “imitation lurks even in ‘original’ work.”
– According to the Bankruptcy Code, trademark lawyers are not intellectual property lawyers. This has caused a circuit split on the rights of a trademark licensee when the licensor declares bankruptcy.
– The earliest surviving copyrighted motion picture is of a sneeze.
– Coca-Cola and Dr. Pepper are in the midst of a heated battle over the distinctiveness of “Zero.”
– IP + Pride Month: LGBTQ individuals have made meaningful contributions to the field of science, some doing so while hiding their identities in the workplace.