I ♡ Trademarks NewsletterIssue #430
Bri Van Til | April 29, 2025

Sign up for Alt Legal’s mildly humorous, pun-filled “I ♡ Trademarks” weekly newsletter to stay current on all things trademarks and IP.
Global IP Day!
In honor of World IP Day this past weekend, check out the latest episode of the TMA Talk Show.
The WTO ruled that China didn’t break its rules when Chinese courts blocked EU companies from enforcing wireless tech patents abroad. It did find that China failed to comply with its transparency rules, though.
In Malaysia and India, singers are raising alarms about AI deepfakes.
As of this month, Canada has adopted its new procedures and policies for opposition proceedings.
If you’re filing your global matters using WIPO, reach out to our support team to make sure you have access to our fabulous WIPO docketing tools.
Faux Real
Pink Floyd band member David Gilmour is telling a merch company “keep your hands off of my stack;” he’s suing them for trademark infringement.
In case you’re curious, steeply discounted postage stamps are not a thing; they’re counterfeit. Also, it seems like a lot of work and a lot of risk to counterfeit something that costs $0.73.
Some influencers on TikTok are having a blast exploiting the trade war to peddle counterfeit goods.
A Japanese court has ordered Amazon to pay around $244,000 for allegedly allowing the sale of counterfeit goods on its platform.
Updates
Former USPTO Director Iancu recently weighed in on Jack Dorsey’s “delete all IP” post we mentioned a couple weeks ago.
Also, Dorsey and Musk aren’t the only one calling for an end to IP: crypto firm Farside Investors recently tweeted a criticism of IP law based on a decades-old book.
Years after pulling out of Russia over the country’s invasion of Ukraine, McDonald’s has filed a trademark application in the country again.
A Dutch court is blocking a concrete brick company from using the word LEGO, despite the company’s defense that there wouldn’t be any actual confusion.
Professional Concerns
Which is a Better Debt Solution: taking this general counsel job or robbing a bank? Well, okay, if you could get away with it….
If you Blueit at your current job, work hard to do better as the AGC at Reddit. Sadly, I don’t think it works with any other colors. Greenit? Yellowit? Like from the top of my lungs?
Taking stock of your career may lead you to apply for this IP attorney job at Nasdaq.
ChatGPT isn’t hallucinating when it says you should apply for this litigation counsel position at OpenAI.
Have an open role on your team? Send a link to your job listing to [email protected], and we’ll publish it in our next newsletter.
Odds and Ends
INTA is releasing its intermediate TMA certificate course this fall.
How can an interviewee ensure their IP rights are protected if they share ideas during a job interview?
Sometimes coexistence agreements fail epically. Come to this webinar to learn about some examples of that and some principles for coexistence success.
Not to sound too spoiled, but I can’t imagine not having access to a trademark database I could just search myself. Learn about what trademark prosecution looked like just a few decades ago and how substantially it’s changed. Join us for the latest episode of Deboracle tomorrow!
Some people are upset because California’s bar exam apparently included some questions drafted by AI.