Tag Archives: Nominative Fair Use

Eight is Not Enough: Second Circuit Adopts Eleven Factor Nominative Fair Use Test in Certification Mark Case

Security ISCInternational Information Systems Security Certification Consortium (known as ISC2) is a non-profit organization that owns a registered certification mark for the term CISSP® (meaning “Certified Information Systems Professional”).  In 2010, ISC2 sued Security University, a for-profit company that provides training in this field, because Security University described its lead instructor as a “Master CISSP®” or a “CISSP® Master.”  Although these advertisements had disclaimers stating that the Security University classes were “not endorsed,… More

Summary Judgment Denied in Trademark Dispute over “National Association for the Abortion of Colored People”

naacp

Anti-abortion activist Ryan Bomberger of The Radiance Foundation thought  he had an unassailable First Amendment defense.  After all, his use of the phrase “National Association for the Abortion of Colored People,” in order to criticize the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), was in the context an on-line political dispute over abortion.  So when the NAACP threatened suit,… More