Alt Legal IP News – Issue #216
Bri Van Til | November 25, 2020
I’m So Disney
– Disney just applied for a trademark for BOBA FETT, signaling that the character might make it into The Mandalorian.
– Does MILLENNIAL FALCON, sought for music and entertainment services, infringe on Disney’s rights?
– Alan Dean Foster is accusing Disney of improperly ceasing to pay him royalties for his work on the Star Wars and Alien franchises.
– Disney has filed a Brief in Opposition in The Moodsters v. Disney, in which they argue that copyright protection for characters should only extend to those that are “well-delineated,” not “stock, generic, or vaguely-defined characters” like the ones at issue in the suit.
Ethical Considerations
– Here are some answers to common ethical questions.
– Two attorneys are being sued for copyright infringement and fraud for allegedly getting a client’s login credentials for the Center for Workplace Compliance and then illegally downloading more than 2000 pages of content to help other clients.
– For information on the USPTO’s ethical guidelines, check out this recording from Alt Legal Connect. Use the code “newsletter” for a discount.
The Future
– India, South Africa and other developing nations have proposed suspending IP protections related to COVID cures and vaccines, but the WTO has not yet reached an agreement on the matter.
– How can patent licensing help save the planet?
Professional Concerns
– This IP counsel position might be Harman, but it might also be awesome!
– The time is running out to apply to be music licensing counsel at TikTok.
– It might be Impossible to get this job as IP transactions counsel.
– Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath—which I always think of as a complete sentence—is looking for a trademark prosecutor.
– WeWork—which is actually a sentence—needs an IP paralegal.
– Nestle is looking for some 1Ls for this internship. It sounds like a sweet gig.
– 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
– Whether you’ve been practicing virtually for ages or are still getting accustomed to this new way of working, come to our last webinar of the year, where Merlyne Jean-Louis will teach you how to make your virtual practice a success in real life.
– The New York Times is suing Time for trademark infringement. Only time will tell which will be the victor.
– The now infamous Giuliani press conference is about to be memorialized by a new beer, Four Saisons Total Landscaping. For more craft beer puns (and great information, too) check out this recording of Seth Gardenswartz’s webinar.
– From TOMPA BAY to RISE AND SHINE to BLACK LIVES MATTER, these trademarks have made headlines recently.
– This series looks at petitions that were timely filed but were still dismissed as moot because of a delay on the USPTO’s end.