IP Blog
Trademarks
How Do You Draft a Consent Decree for Trademark Infringement to Account for Unknown Unknowns? The Sixth Circuit Says “The Usual Way” in Recent Ruling
In 1995, Amazon recently sold its first book and eBay was just getting off the ground. At that point, the idea of e-commerce marketplaces was in its infancy. It was unlikely that Jeff Bezos contemplated that I might be buying sunglasses, toothpaste, and an outdoor power tool in a single order while writing this blog (but I can, and I...
TTAB Requires Cross-Examination By Oral Deposition in CAPTAIN CANNABIS Battle
In a precedential decision in a cancellation proceeding, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board has ruled that Petitioner Laverne J. Andrusiek must cross-examine, by oral deposition, Respondent Cosmic Crusaders LLC’s witnesses who provided direct testimony via written declaration. Laverne Andrusiek v. Cosmic Crusaders LLC Andrusiek contends that he created a comic book character named “Captain Cannabis” in the 1970s,...
Pleading Removal of Copyright Management Information Under the DMCA (and a Related Trademark Claim)
In Fischer v. Forrest, 14 Civ. 1304 (PAE); 14 Civ. 1307 (PAE) (S.D.N.Y. Jan 13, 2015), the court denied a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss a suit alleging copyright and trademark infringements. Of particular interest in this post is the pleading required to state a claim for remove of Copyright Management Information (CMI) under the DMCA. Also of interest is...
Abandonment of Android Trademark Makes Google the Senior User
After the owner of a registration for the “Android Data” trademark alleged that Google infringed the mark, the Seventh Circuit has affirmed the district court’s entry of summary judgment, based on a finding that the “Android Data” mark had been abandoned. Specht v. Google, Inc., No. 11-3317 (7th Cir. April 4, 2014). Erich Specht’s application “to register the trademark “Android...