Los Angeles, CA – Jeffrey Campbell is taking an aggressive approach to protecting its shoe designs by recently suing Forever 21 for allegedly copying six of its shoe designs. Last week, Jeffrey Campbell filed a new design patent and trade dress infringement and unfair competition lawsuit against Steve Madden for…
Los Angeles, CA – This “Sonic The Hedgehog” video game copyright infringement claim appears to arise from an independent contractor’s contributions that were not properly acquired by or assigned to Sega. If you don’t have a written agreement with an independent contractor, for example your website designer, the independent contractor…
Los Angeles, CA – Following the trend of fashion designers filing trade dress infringement lawsuits to protect designs not covered by copyright law, Jeffrey Campbell is suing Forever 21 for allegedly copying six shoe designs. Like Givenchy v. BCBG and Marc Jacobs v. Christian Audigier before it, Jeffrey Campbell is…
The USPTO Trademark Attorney refused Davide Mebane’s intent-to-use trademark application to register the Spoons Yogurt design mark on the Principal Register for “frozen yogurt” based on the likelihood of confusion with the previously registered Big Spoon Yogurt design trademark for “retail frozen dessert store services featuring frozen yogurt” under 15…
Los Angeles, CA – Marge Carson, Inc.’s furniture copyright infringement case, originally filed in North Carolina, has been transferred to the Central District of California via stipulation of the parties after a jurisdictional spat. Now that the procedural issues have been addressed, the focus can turn the substance of Marge’s…
Santa Ana, CA – Apparel and footwear manufacturer DC Shoes, Inc. owns several USPTO registered trademarks for DC Shoes logos and DCSHOECOUSA. DC Shoes contends that through its widespread use and advertisements of its products, the marks have become famous. Owning trademarks, however, doesn’t mean you should always sue purported…
The Trademark Examining Attorney refused Jewelry Supply, Inc.’s trademark application to register jewelrysupply.com on the Principal Register as merely descriptive for the following services: online retail store services featuring jewelry boxes, jewelry findings, jewelry displays, jewelry repair kits, tools for making jewelry, beads, magnifiers, craft kits, crystals, and educational material,…
Los Angeles, CA – DC Comics is the owner of the Batman franchise and has numerous copyright registrations for works ranging from comic books, action figures, toy Batmobiles, to movies and TV shows. It also owns numerous USPTO registered trademarks including the word marks Batmobile, Gotham City, and Batman; in…
Los Angeles, CA – Inhale, Inc. filed a copyright infringement suit against Starbuzz Tobacco for allegedly copying Inhale’s hookah water pipe’s three-dimensional design. Smoking device designs are apparently a hotbed of intellectual property where, “as a result of its endeavors, Inhale has created and owns valuable intellectual property in the…
The Ninth Circuit reversed the district court’s ruling and found that Montz’s idea submission/breach of implied-in-fact contract claim was not preempted by the Copyright Act. Montz v. Pilgrim Films & Television, Inc., __ F.3d __ (9th Cir. 2011) (en banc). In 1981, Larry Montz, a parapsychologist, came up with an…