Alt Legal IP News – Issue # 196
Bri Van Til | July 08, 2020
Food Fight!
– Australia has seen a surge in patents applications for meat alternatives.
– What IP is available to protect food truck recipes?
– Sticking with the recent trend of dismissing food and beverage mislabeling complaints based on unreasonable customer expectations, the SDNY dismissed a class action suit against TGI Friday’s whose lead plaintiff claimed the company’s licensed “Sour Cream & Onion Potato Skins” chips implied they are healthier than normal chips.
– Trademark applications suggest that Buffalo Wild Wings wants to be “THE OFFICIAL BAR OF ESPORTS.”
Diversification
– The confusion over the Black Lives Matter Global Network and the Black Lives Matter Foundation highlights the importance of trademark registration and enforcement.
– What can businesses do to support the Black Lives Matter movement?
– What is the state of LGBTQIA+ inclusion in the IP sector, and how can it be improved?
– Why should you increase diversity at your firm, and how can you effect change in your own organization?
That’s Just, Like, How I Fee
– The Ninth Circuit has expanded its definition of the fee-shifting provision in the Copyright Act and found that attorneys’ fees can be awarded in copyright infringement cases.
– If a trademark infringement suit is deemed frivolous but the “perceived wrongs were deeply felt,” should the plaintiff be ordered to pay attorneys’ fees for the defendant? Nah.
– The Supreme Court has asked the 4th Circuit to reconsider whether Booking.com should have to pay the USPTO’s attorneys’ fees in light of their victory and the recent Peter v. NantKwest Inc. decision.
– According to the Federal Circuit Court, a plaintiff’s history of filing infringement suits can be used to determine or influence awarding of attorneys’ fees.
Professional Concerns
– If you took the position of lead commercial counsel at Slack, do you think they’d call you the leading Slacker?
– This Bazaar place has an opening for commercial counsel; Snowflake is looking for a unique individual to be their corporate counsel; and all things considered, NPR could be a great place to be counsel.
– The Department of Defense is looking for an attorney-advisor. Would that make you a defense attorney?
– If you have the energy to apply, Redbull is looking for counsel.
– Yum Brands is looking for counsel. Go get Yum, tiger!
– Have an open role on your team? Send a link to your job listing to community@altlegal.com, and we’ll publish it in our next newsletter.
Odds and Ends
– The heirs of Arthur Conan Doyle are suing Netflix for copyright infringement because the character of Sherlock Holmes is too nice. Yeah, really. It’s interesting; check it out.
– A law firm’s culture is evident even to outsiders, and it affects client experiences.
– A copyright infringement lawsuit alleges that Amazon Prime displayed movies without the owner’s authorization.
– Scammers have allegedly stolen the identity of an attorney and used her name to file trademark applications.
– The WWE has renewed their trademark for Cody Rhodes, despite the fact that he no longer performs for the organization; however, he has said he’s not upset about the action.