Last week the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that generic domain names are eligible for trademark protection. A generic domain name includes a general word describing the business followed by ".com" or other top-level domains (such as ".org" or ".net). Previously, the U.S....
Kansas City Intellectual Property Blog
Supreme Court Bonus: PTO v. Booking.com
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Innovate. Adapt. Overcome.
By Chandler Schmidt In the strangeness and uncertainty of the pandemic and resulting global shutdown, the old familiar proverb rings true: necessity is the mother of invention. The COVID-19 outbreak has birthed innovation everywhere: from teleconference lectures,...
SCOTUS Rules Willfulness Not Required to Recover Trademark Infringer’s Profits
By Dianne Smith-Misemer The U.S. Supreme Court has clarified that a trademark infringement plaintiff need not show willfulness to recover defendant's profits, resolving a long circuit split on the issue. The plain language of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1117, makes no...
Copyright Slam Dunk?
By Kyle Mendenhall Lebron James is being sued for copyright infringement after posting a cropped photograph of himself on Facebook. The original photograph was taken by professional photographer Steve Mitchell, who has registered the photograph with the U.S. Copyright...
Patent and Trademark Deadline Extensions for COVID-19 Related Delays
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ("PTO") announced that it is extending the time to file certain documents or fees if a person is unable to meet the deadline due to the COVID-19 pandemic.Certain deadlines related to Patent or Trademark prosecution falling between...
A message from Hovey Williams LLP
Information about COVID-19 (coronavirus) and its impact are now evolving on a daily basis. We are monitoring the COVID-19 situation closely and will follow recommendations from the WHO, CDC, and other health and governmental organizations.At [nap_names...
Email Addresses of Applicants Now Required in Trademark Filings by Blair Barbieri
The U.S. Trademark Office has released its new Examination Guide (available here). Among other changes, the new rules require applicants and registrants to provide an email address, with limited exceptions.Effective February 15, 2020, applicants, registrants, and...
IP strategies for strengthening your new idea
Often the biggest problem for building a business around a new idea or invention is not coming up with the initial concept but developing a strategy that enables it to flourish in the marketplace. Once an inventor has the idea, need to consider the landscape in the...
Patent trolls target small business
Patent trolls are patent assertion entities who buy up patents from bankrupt businesses, auctions and inventors for pennies on the dollar. They traditionally would then use these purchases to go after large corporations and sue for infringement. They do not engage in...
Ban on offensive trademarks ruled unconstitutional
We discussed the issue of the immoral, scandalous or deceptive trademarks back in January when the Supreme Court announced it would hear the case involving the FUCT clothing line’s attempt to trademark its brand and products since 2012. The case (Iancu v....
