Insights on Trademark & Unfair Competition Litigation

In refusing registration of the color green for “chloroprene medical examination gloves,” the Federal Circuit adopted — for the first time — a legal test for genericness of color marks.

National Football League (NFL) Hall of Famer Terrell Owens recently filed a lawsuit in Illinois state court against TMZ, accusing the news and media company of unauthorized use of his trademark, GETCHA POPCORN READY.

Ford is seeking to stop an aftermarket restoration company from the alleged unauthorized use of the Bronco trademark and trade dress in connection with the rebuild of modern Ford Broncos. The case raises questions of whether brands are doing enough to maintain rights in iconic designs in an increasingly hot marketplace for vintage-inspired goods.

To plead, or not to plead. That is a question trademark infringement plaintiffs will need to carefully consider with their legal counsel when deciding which parties to name as defendants in a lawsuit and which legal arguments and facts to assert in a dispute with a company that has many affiliates.

Gemini Data, Inc., a data analytics company that leverages artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, has filed a federal complaint against Google LLC in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, alleging that Google’s adoption and continued use of GEMINI in connection with its AI chatbot tool infringes Gemini Data’s trademark rights.

Social media has revolutionized the ways in which brands target and market to consumers and the value of successful social media pages has become increasingly recognized, resulting in disputes over the ownership of these “assets.”

ArentFox Schiff is pleased to announce that 20 practices and 20 attorneys have been ranked by The Legal 500 United States 2024 guide, including two Tier 1 rankings in Intellectual Property – Patents: Prosecution and Finance – Restructuring: Municipal.

The world of music often sees as much drama in the courtroom as on the stage. One fight that frequently results in protracted, expensive, and bitter legal disputes is over ownership of a band or group name.

ArentFox Schiff has been recognized with 53 top rankings in the 2023 edition of US News – Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms.”

The 2020 edition of Legal 500 US has rated 43 Arent Fox LLP attorneys as national leaders in their field. In addition, 14 of the firm’s practice areas were ranked among the best in the country.

The 2018 edition of Legal 500 US has rated 50 Arent Fox LLP attorneys as national leaders in their field. In addition, 18 of the firm’s practice areas were ranked among the best in the country, including new recognition for the firm’s Trademark Litigation and White Collar groups.

Not only do decisions from the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board now, in some circumstances, have a preclusive effect on federal litigation, the US District Court for the District of Delaware recently granted a motion to stay a federal court action pending the outcome of a TTAB proceeding.

Court has granted partial summary judgment in a trade dress infringement and unfair competition case involving alleged knock-off bottle.

In a ceremony hosted on March 15, 2018 in New York City, Arent Fox LLP was named Managing Intellectual Property’s Trademark Prosecution Firm of the Year for the Northeast region.

Arent Fox LLP’s Trademark practice has been recognized as one of the best in the country by World Trademark Review.

The US Court of Appeals ruled that Lanham Act’s statutory ban on “immoral or scandalous” trademarks violates the First Amendment and is thus unconstitutional.

On June 17, 2017, the Supreme Court struck down the disparagement clause of Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act on the grounds that it violates the First Amendment of the Constitution. Matal v. Tam, 582 U.S. ____ (2017). 

An Illinois federal court recently awarded the Canadian retailer Moose Knuckles a $52 million default judgment related to claims of trademark infringement, counterfeiting, and cybersquatting by 26 Chinese defendants.

In a non-precedential ruling, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB or Board) held that the mark 100 PERCENT WINE for wine is likely to be confused with CENTO PER CENTO for wine in light of a likelihood of confusion analysis which included applying the doctrine of foreign equivalents.

Arent Fox LLP’s Trademark practice has been recognized as one of the best in the country by World Trademark Review.

The producer of popular Netflix television series “House of Cards” has been sued in federal court on claims of trademark infringement for its use of the trademark HOUSE OF CARDS.

Costco is defending a trademark infringement lawsuit over its sale of Anne Cole swimwear, an iconic line of women’s swimwear that has been sold in the US for over 30 years.

In an opinion of potentially sweeping effect, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently held that a key provision of the Lanham Act was unconstitutional under the First Amendment.

A federal judge in the Southern District of Ohio recently issued a temporary restraining order in a dispute between the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and former members of the now-inactive NAACP, Cincinnati Branch (“the Cincinnati Branch”).

Law360 recently quoted Fashion Law leader Tony Lupo after Michael Kors joined several other luxury fashion companies in taking a new step in fighting widespread counterfeiting by targeting landlords who facilitate the trademark infringement.