Too Much Trademark “Melodrama”: Court Sanctions Author for Fraudulently Registering Book Publisher’s Trademark . . . and Then Using the Registration to Claim Publisher Is a Trademark Infringer
The burden of showing fraud in a trademark filing is ever-evolving but always high. A similarly high standard applies when it comes to meeting the “exceptional case” requirement for an award of attorneys’ fees for the prevailing party. Nevertheless, some cases involve such obvious wrongdoing that the burdens can be met before discovery even opens.
Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons: Supreme Court Applies First Sale Doctrine to Foreign-published Books Despite Publisher’s Geographic Import Restrictions
In the recent case of Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, the Supreme Court held that the first sale doctrine, codified in Section 109(a) of the Copyright Act, applies to copyrighted works manufactured overseas. Kirtsaeng, a Thai national studying mathematics in the United States, made himself thousands of dollars reselling textbooks on eBay that had
Central Park Five: Judge Blocks City’s Subpoena
Renowned documentary filmmaker Ken Burns and his film company, Florentine Films, won a significant legal victory recently as a Magistrate Judge ruled that they do not have to produce unused material from his documentary The Central Park Five to New York City. On February 19, 2013, Magistrate Judge Ronald Ellis ruled that Burns and Florentine
CDAS Client Katherine Applegate Wins Newbery Medal for Outstanding Children’s Book
Our whole firm joins CDAS partner J. Stephen Sheppard in congratulating our client Katherine Applegate on winning the Newbery Medal for her novel “The One and Only Ivan,” published by Katherine Tegen Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Children’s Books. Regarded as one of the most prestigious awards in publishing, the Newbery Medal is awarded annually
Facebook Introduces Graph Search, Privacy Challenges Possible
Facebook recently unveiled “Graph Search,” an innovation designed to help users find and connect their friends by their interests, shared history, and past activity on the social networking platform. The new feature, which will begin beta testing soon, greatly expands the search capabilities of the Facebook platform in a move some commentators speculate may help
What 2013 May Ring In For New Copyright Legislation
2012 was a quiet year for any new copyright legislation that could affect those engaged in the creation, production and distribution of entertainment media. With the elections behind us, this could change in 2013. The Copyright Office has indicated that it is interested in tackling several issues that were identified as office priorities in a
Nancy E. Wolff Moderates “What Libraries Can Do Under Copyright” Panel, Part of CSUSA 2013 Mid-Winter Meeting
CDAS partner Nancy E. Wolff will moderate the panel “What Libraries Can Do Under Copyright,” part of the Copyright Society of the U.S.A.’s 2013 Mid-Winter Meeting, on Friday, February 15, 2013, from 9:00am – 10:30am. (The full CSUSA 2013 Mid-Winter meeting will take place from Thursday, February 14 through Saturday, February 16, 2013, at the
Kenneth N. Swezey Co-moderates “E-Books: The Sequel – Rights, Wrongs and Realities” at 2012 NYSBA EASL Fall Meeting
Kenneth N. Swezey will co-moderate the panel “E-Books: The Sequel – Rights, Wrongs and Realities” as part of the New York State Bar Association, Entertainment, Arts & Sports Law section’s 2012 Fall Meeting, on Thursday, November 15, 2012 in New York City. The full meeting runs from 3:30pm to 6:45pm, followed by its reception at
Google Settles Book Scanning Lawsuit With Publisher Group
On October 4, 2012, Google reached a settlement in the Google Books case with the publisher plaintiffs, which include The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., Pearson Education, Inc., Penguin Group (USA) Inc., John Wiley & Sons, Inc., and Simon & Schuster, Inc. The Association of American Publishers (AAP) represented the publishers in the settlement, resolving its seven-year
Nancy E. Wolff – “What You Need to Know About Copyright”
CDAS partner Nancy E. Wolff joins the panel “What You Need to Know About Copyright, Licensing and Image/Footage Usage Trends” presented by Visual Connections, Wednesday, October 24, 10am, at The Altman Building, 135 West 18 Street, New York City. The panel will discuss a variety of copyright issues including fair use, orphan works, royalty free,