Mealey's Intellectual Property : Mealey's : Legal News & Analysis

Mealey's Intellectual Property

December 17, 2024
PTAB Did Not Justify Combination Motive Finding In IPR, Federal Circuit Says

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel on Dec. 16 said the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) failed to properly explain one of its holdings at the conclusion of inter partes review (IPR) proceedings involving a patent involving data transmission; the panel vacated the PTAB’s finding that the patent’s claims were not obvious.
December 17, 2024
Special Master Appointed In Music Industry AI Copyright Suit

NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York overseeing a music industry copyright suit involving artificial intelligence appointed a special master to the case, saying outstanding issues related to electronically stored information require more attention than the court can provide and that the appointment will help resolve the litigation.
December 16, 2024
Publisher: High Court Must Reject Canadian Code-Maker’s Copyright Cert Bid

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a Dec. 13 opposition brief, a publication company tells the U.S. Supreme Court that the court should reject a petition for a writ of certiorari from a developer of Canadian legal codes and standards, arguing that the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals was correct to hold that the codes are effectively uncopyrightable “law” in Canada when it reversed a Texas federal judge’s grant of summary judgment in the Canadian developer’s favor.
December 16, 2024
Intel Didn’t Show Obviousness During Patent Review, Federal Circuit Says

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Affirming Patent Trial and Review Board (PTAB) findings issued after inter partes review (IPR), a Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel agreed that the Intel Corp. failed to show that challenged claims in another company’s patent were invalid as obvious.
December 13, 2024
Judge: Oil Company Can Remove Infringing Signage From Gas Station In Contempt

PHILADELPHIA — An oil and gasoline company will be allowed to remove and paint over signage at a Philadelphia gas station after a Pennsylvania federal judge held the gas station in contempt for failing to comply with a permanent injunction ordering the company remove signs bearing the oil company’s trademarks.
December 12, 2024
Federal Circuit: No Error In Denying Novartis Injunction To Halt Generic Entresto

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel declined “to second guess” a trial court’s factual findings in denying a preliminary injunction to Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. to halt the release of a generic version of the drug Entresto, finding that there was no “definite and firm conviction that a mistake” occurred.
December 12, 2024
Federal Circuit Affirms PTAB Claim Construction In Security Camera Patent Row

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) correctly held that multiple challenged claims in a company’s patent regarding a computer’s ability to detect individuals passing in front of a connected camera are unpatentable, a Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel held Dec. 11.
December 12, 2024
Va. Federal Judge Rules On Admissibility Of Dueling Trademark Valuation Experts

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A federal judge in Virigina ruled that an expert retained by a company suing its competitor for trademark infringement will provide testimony beyond the scope of a juror and denied a defense motion to exclude the testimony but found that a competing expert failed to properly explain his methodology for his conclusions and granted the plaintiff company’s motion to exclude in part.
December 12, 2024
Judge Enters Stipulated Injunction, Judgment In ‘MARS’ Trademark Dispute

LOS ANGELES — A federal judge in California entered a permanent injunction against defendant entities in a trademark dispute over the word mark “MARS,” the day after they filed a joint request with the plaintiff advertising agency for a stipulated judgment.
December 12, 2024
Petitioner In Patent Safe Harbor Row Asks High Court To Distribute Case

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A medical device company that told the U.S. Supreme Court that the Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals inappropriately expanded a safe harbor found in the Patent Act waived its right to a 14-day waiting period after an upcoming requested filing from the respondent medical company in the case, arguing that the case should be distributed for the high court’s Jan. 10 conference.
December 12, 2024
California Drink Shop Appeals Dismissal Of Trademark Complaint

LOS ANGELES — A plaintiff beverage store based in California and its owner appealed to the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Dec. 11 a California federal judge’s order dismissing the trademark infringement case it brought against a New York wine store; the judge held that the plaintiff failed to establish personal jurisdiction for the New York shop.
December 12, 2024
Federal Circuit Panel Mostly Upholds Inter Partes Review Invalidating LED Patents

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Although a Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel found that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) erred in treating a figure in a prior art reference as being drawn to scale, thus necessitating a partial reversal and remand of an inter partes review (IPR) decision, the panel otherwise affirmed the board’s finding that two claims of a light emitting diode (LED) patent owned by the University of California were invalid as obvious in light of prior art.
December 12, 2024
High Court Hears Arguments On Lanham Act Disgorgement Rules

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on Dec. 11 regarding a Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decision affirming a $43 million disgorgement award entered in a real estate company’s favor in a trademark infringement dispute with an entity it said infringed its marks, with the parties sparring over whether the Fourth Circuit and a Virginia federal court were correct to include profits from entities affiliated with the alleged infringer in damages calculations.
December 11, 2024
PTAB’s Unpatentability Finding In Mobile Tech Dispute Upheld By Federal Circuit

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) was correct to rule in favor of multiple communications technology companies that sought inter partes review (IPR) of a now-expired mobile communications patent, a Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel held Dec. 10; the panel affirmed PTAB’s finding that the challenged claims were unpatentable as obvious.
December 11, 2024
OpenAI Challenges Ruling Denying Evidence Of New York Times’ AI Use

NEW YORK — OpenAI Inc. objected to a magistrate judge’s decision denying the company access to evidence of how the New York Times Co. uses artificial intelligence, saying the ruling permits the newspaper company to speak “out of both sides of its mouth” by allowing it to seek billions of dollar in damages while embracing the same technology it denigrates.
December 10, 2024
Federal Circuit Affirms Construction Of ‘Merchants’ Claim In Patent Dispute

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Delaware federal judge did not err when holding that the claim term “merchants” should be limited only to those who sell goods, not services, in a patent dispute involving e-commerce platforms, a Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel held, affirming the judge’s finding of noninfringement.
December 10, 2024
No Infringement Of Rosacea Medication Patent, Federal Circuit Agrees

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A panel in the Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals said that a Third Circuit judge overseeing district court proceedings in Delaware was correct to hold that a defendant biopharmaceutical company’s abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) did not infringe the plaintiff company’s patents on medications for the skin condition called rosacea.
December 10, 2024
5th Circuit Rejects Rehearing Petitions From ISP, Labels In Copyright Fight

NEW ORLEANS — The Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals rejected petitions for rehearing from parties on both sides of a copyright infringement suit, standing by its October decision to affirm a Texas federal jury’s finding that an internet service provider (ISP) was vicariously liable for copyright infringement by failing to prevent the piracy of plaintiff music labels’ copyrighted works but to reverse the judge’s holding that the ISP was separately liable for infringement for each of more than a thousand songs.
December 09, 2024
Federal Circuit Upholds Sanctions In Stun Gun Design Patent Dispute

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A federal judge in Arkansas reasonably awarded sanctions against a plaintiff company and its attorney in a patent infringement dispute involving a design patent for electrodes for stun guns, the Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals held Dec. 6, saying that the district court did not err when holding that the company’s past history of filing meritless suits against other entities shows a pattern of bad faith.
December 09, 2024
3rd Circuit: Default Judgments Improper In Bacon Grease Copyright Case

PHILADELPHIA — A Pennsylvania federal judge inappropriately granted default judgment in a copyright infringement suit only two hours after the plaintiff company moved for it, thereby failing to give the defendants appropriate notice, the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals held in one of two appeals stemming from two orders declining to reverse entries of default judgment.
December 06, 2024
Infringement Claims Over Tank Level Design Patent Survive Dismissal

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The defendant in a patent infringement lawsuit saw its motion to dismiss partly granted by a Florida federal judge, who found that a design patent holder did not plausibly allege false advertising, deceptive trade practices or false marking claims related to ornamental components of a tank monitoring system.
December 06, 2024
Some Claims Obvious In Circuit Package Patent Row, Federal Circuit Says

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a patent infringement dispute between manufacturers of semiconductors, the Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Dec. 5 affirmed findings from the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) that some claims in the relevant patents are ineligible as obvious while other claims are patent eligible, handing mixed results to both the appellant and cross-appellant companies.
December 06, 2024
Drug Patent Holder Breached Covenant Not To Sue From Earlier Infringement Suit

WILMINGTON, Del. — In the latest chapter in an long-running dispute over the pharmaceutical colchicine, a Delaware federal judge found that a patent owner’s infringement suit against the maker of a generic version of the drug breached a covenant not to sue that was contained in an agreement that resolved a previous lawsuit between the two companies.
December 06, 2024
Federal Circuit: No Infringement By Meta Of Data Storage Patent

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A New York federal judge did not err in granting summary judgment in a patent dispute between social media company Meta Platforms Inc. and a company that accused it of infringing patents related to methods of storing data chronologically, a Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel said, affirming the judge’s holding that the evidence did not show that Meta’s product satisfied the patents’ claim limitations.
December 06, 2024
Injunction Justified In Energy Drink Trademark Fight, 11th Circuit Says

ATLANTA — An 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel said a Georgia federal judge did not err in granting a preliminary injunction in a trademark infringement dispute between two manufacturers of dietary supplements over two alternative spellings of the word “cranked” in relation to energy drink products.