Sep 29, 2016 | Intellectual Property law, News
In 2015, the Federal Circuit held that “the disparagement provision of [trademark law is] unconstitutional…. We recognize that invalidating this provision may lead to the wider registration of marks that offend vulnerable communities…. But much the...
Sep 22, 2016 | Intellectual Property law, News
Original US Government works are not subject to copyright. The law is about as clear as it can be: Copyright protection under this title is not available for any work of the United States Government, but the United States Government is not precluded from receiving...
Sep 20, 2016 | Intellectual Property law, News
The America Invents Act (“AIA”) turned five years old last week. At the time of its adoption, independent inventors were hyper-focused on the switch from “First to Invent” to “First to File”. For example, NPR did a piece where they...
Sep 12, 2016 | Intellectual Property law, News
Inventors are commonly the target of scams, so much so that the USPTO has issued specific guidance, invention promotion companies are subject to mandatory disclosure requirements, and Congress has passed a law prohibiting “Improper and deceptive invention...