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Pending continuation applications advantageously provide flexibility to tailor patent claims as infringing products enter the market. Historically, it has often been advantageous to file such applications without fees and utilize extensions of time to essentially “buy” time before an examiner acts...
On April 15, 2025, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) informed the public that, effective May 13, 2025, the USPTO will be accelerating the process for issuing patents. Currently, the time between Issue Notification and Issue Date averages around three weeks. However, with the...
What You Need to Know: • Instead of filing multiple applications claiming different aspects of an invention but not sharing a single priority chain, patentees should strive to file highly comprehensive applications that consider as many features and aspects of the invention as possible. Such a...
The rise of dupes and counterfeits in influencer marketing highlights the need for transparency and vigilance. As companies like Amazon and Nike aggressively pursue legal action, influencers and brands must prioritize ethical practices to protect their reputations and avoid legal pitfalls. This...
Generative AI (GenAI) is transforming the business landscape, unlocking new possibilities for innovation, productivity, and efficiency. As with any major shift, GenAI comes with its own risks, particularly in intellectual property (IP) and legal compliance which organizations must navigate to fully...
With the process for requesting Director Review formally codified as of October 31, 2024, the evolving landscape of intellectual property law continues to be shaped by another avenue of decision-making from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Among the developments in the second...
In May 2022, a jury in the Circuit Court for Fairfax County, Virginia awarded Appian Corp. (apian) in excess of $2 billion in damages from Pegasystems, Inc. (Pegasystems) for misappropriating Appian’s trade secrets in violation of the Virginia Uniform Trade Secrets Act (VUTSA). This award was the...
An invention disclosure form is a document used to capture detailed information about a new invention or discovery. The first step in the patent application process, the form plays a crucial role in protecting intellectual property. A well-crafted invention disclosure form will create an accurate...
Introduction On June 18, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) unanimously agreed to submit a comment supporting a recent proposed U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“PTO”) rule that would mandate the disclosure of all settlement agreements made between parties appearing before the Patent Trial...
With the recent emergence of Name Image Likeness (NIL) compensation, alumni associations focused on raising funds to compensate student athletes have been on the rise. But alumni associations in some form or another have been around as long as some of the oldest colleges and universities in the...
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued its proposed final rule (the “Rule”) banning the use of future noncompete agreements for all workers, including senior executives, 89 FR 38342. Noncompete agreements have long been a valuable tool in a company’s toolbox to mitigate the...
Michael Jackson, Bob Dylan, Sting, David Bowie, Stevie Nicks, Bruce Springsteen, and now KISS. What do they all have in common? They have all sold their music catalogs in the past 10 years. Jackson and Springsteen reaped the biggest rewards at over $500M each. Catalog sales have become big business...
The use of artificial intelligence (AI) to create various forms of media raises interesting legal issues relating to the protection of intellectual property. Generative AI is being used to create songs that have vocals and other characteristics that mimic the sound and style of famous musicians. In...
With the recent emergence of Name Image Likeness ("NIL") compensation, alumni associations focused on raising funds to compensate student athletes have been on the rise. But alumni associations in some form or another have been around as long as some of the oldest colleges and universities in the...
Within the last year ‘ChatGPT’ has become a household name. Some may even know that a company called OpenAI created the chatbot service based on artificial intelligence. What you may not know is that OpenAI applied to register the term “GPT” as a trademark, and that application was recently rejected...
Maryland’s intermediate court created new and binding precedent for cases related to misappropriation of trade secrets under the Maryland Uniform Trade Secrets Act (“MUTSA”). In the reported opinion of Ingram, et al. v. Cantwell-Cleary Co., Inc., the Appellate Court of Maryland held that customer...
"Innovation continues across industries at a rapid pace. Many companies maintain highly valuable trade secrets and private data that provide them with a competitive market advantage. The rapidly evolving technological landscape, however, leads to new and more sophisticated threats to a company’s...