Monthly Archives: May 2017

Registration v. Application: A Copyright Circuit Split

Registration is not required for valid copyright ownership, but it is required before you can bring a copyright infringement lawsuit. Section 411(a) of the Copyright Act provides that:

No civil action for infringement of the copyright in any United States work shall be instituted until . . . registration of the copyright claim has been made in accordance with this title. In any case,… More

Watch: Protecting Product Configurations, Packaging, and Designs

What In-House Counsel Needs to Know

Product configuration and packaging play an integral part in consumer choice and can often set a particular product apart from its competition on the store shelf. Because companies heavily invest in creating unique product designs and packaging that encourage brand association, business owners should also consider protecting those investments as intellectual property.

Peter SullivanNatasha Reed and Jenevieve Maerker presented a webinar offering guidance for in-house counsel regarding the different types of intellectual property that may protect product configurations and packaging in the United States,… More

A Gem On The Mediterranean – 10 Things To See And Do While Attending The INTA Annual Meeting In Barcelona

Barcelona may be my favorite city in the world.  It is certainly a top contender.  Because one of my dearest friends is a native Barcelonian, I’ve been fortunate enough to have visited multiple times, and I have also had one of the best tour guides you could hope for.  So when I found out that the 2017 International Trademark Association (INTA) Annual Meeting (May 20 -24) was being held in BCN (a common abbreviation for the city and its airport),… More

10 Trademark Cases About Yo Mama

Anna Jarvis led the efforts to establish the first official celebration of Mother’s Day in 1908, during which she honored her own mother, Ann Maria Reeves Jarvis, a Civil War-era social activist. But about a dozen years after that first celebration, Anna Jarvis had become the holiday’s most vocal opponent. Why? Commercialization. The floral and greeting card industries had already taken over her idea,… More

French Court Finds Jeff Koons Appropriated Copyrighted Photograph That “Saved Him Creative Work”

Jeff Koons is a well-known U.S. sculptor. In 2013, one of his “Balloon Dog” sculptures was purchased for $58.4 million dollars, the highest price ever paid at auction for a work by a living artist. Koons is also famous for having faced several copyright infringement lawsuits in the U.S. and other countries.

On March 9, 2017, the Paris District Court determined that Koon’s one meter-tall porcelain sculpture,… More

Foley Hoag Intellectual Property Department Welcomes Marion Cavalier

We are delighted to announce that Marion Cavalier has joined the firm as an associate in our Paris office.  Marion’s practice encompasses patent, trademark, copyright and commercial litigation.  Marion also advises clients on data protection, defamation, privacy and contract. Her experience spans a broad range of industries with particular emphasis on the technology, media and telecommunications sectors.

We sat down with Marion to ask her about her practice and her views on some of the IP issues of the day.… More