I ♡ Trademarks NewsletterIssue #495
Bri Van Til | September 08, 2026
Apparely Infringing
Three merchants in India were found to have sold counterfeit Nike products and fined about $3k. In my head, they were sitting around wondering if they should sell those products, and then they thought: Just do it. And so they did. And now they’re in trouble.
The family of Sir Conan Doyle has successfully defeated a trademark application for DR. WATSON for clothing.
An Etsy seller’s t-shirts with designs including the word BRUH were removed for trademark infringement, but the seller alleges the rightsholder is squatting. He’s like: Do you even squat, bruh?
After a 6-year legal battle, Lamar Jackson’s trademark for ERA 8 for apparel has been rejected. The application was opposed by New Era, who alleged that the mark infringed theirs. However, the TTAB never settled that dispute; the case was decided on procedural grounds. He seems to have fumbled the appeal.
AI, Robot
Unbundling usage rights from AI training rights—as this company announces in its press release that it’s doing—is likely to become pretty common going forward.
Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA) is banning AI-produced music from its charts. I guess people were like ARIA going to let the AI take over the charts, and they said no.
Sony Music and Warner are suing Anthropic for the AI company’s allegedly “brazen campaign of illegally torrenting, scraping, and downloading copyrighted works.”
The Indian Copyright Office has found that while the famous Stephen Thaler may qualify for a copyright for his AI-produced art, DABUS (the tool he wrote that created the art) cannot.
Anthropic says AI labs are using stolen credentials and dark-web marketplaces to illegally access Claude for distillation.
A Different Approach
A few inventor advocacy organizations sued the USPTO, alleging that the language on patent covers (the first page of each issued patent) is misleading, but the CAFC found that the org lacked standing because their only injury was having “diverted resources” to help educate inventors.
An attorney in India tried to argue that product packaging constituted artistic works, so a shopkeeper allegedly selling counterfeit Apple accessories was infringing the company’s copyrights. The judge wasn’t buying that since the case was, at its core, a trademark dispute.
South Korea is shifting the country’s strategy to emphasize creating value. You could say they’re looking for a cash register.
Professional Concerns
If you get this IP administration manager position, I bet you’ll start turning Carpmaels in the front yard.
Next time your boss Starz getting on your nerves, you should consider applying for this VP of legal affairs position.
This IP paralegal position is listed publicly, so I guess they aren’t keeping it Husch hush.
Do yourself a Faegre and check out this trademark paralegal position.
Have an open role on your team? Email us at [email protected], and we’ll try to get it in our next newsletter!
Odds & Ends
Bad Bunny didn’t just win his first Emmy; he also last week defeated allegations of copyright infringement.
CU Boulder has buffed up its IP policies, and the protections it offers students and faculty seem beneficial.
A Belgian anti-immigration group announced its “IKEA Plan,” using IKEA-style logos and imagery to promote tightening immigration policy. Not surprisingly, the furniture store is having none of that. I’m betting IKEA can build a good case for trademark infringement.
Chelsea FC sent a cease and desist to Chelsea AI Ventures, alleging likelihood of confusion with the dominant soccer team’s trademarks, despite both being named after the same neighborhood in London. The software company decided to pitch the idea of exclusively using their full name and changing their color scheme so that it doesn’t match that of the team