Thinking Outside The Box

Universal Music Group's lawsuit against DistroKid raises a critical question about AI disclosure in consumer markets: when does the use of artificial intelligence become material information that must be disclosed to consumers? The case centers on allegations that DistroKid distributed mass-generated AI music while creating the impression it was created by legitimate human artists, potentially violating existing consumer protection laws even without specific AI disclosure requirements.

The U.S. Copyright Office recently released a report on the human authorship requirement for materials to qualify for copyright protection.

Bristol-Myers Squibb and Ono Pharmaceutical have filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Amgen over its proposed nivolumab biosimilar ABP 206, asserting seven patents related to OPDIVO. The complaint follows earlier inter partes review challenges and patent dance negotiations that narrowed the dispute to specific claims covering the antibody sequence, cancer treatment methods, and dosing regimens.

The USPTO has released its latest economic impact report on IP-intensive industries, announced a new community engagement office in North Carolina, and issued several administrative updates including relief for Japanese applicants affected by a severe earthquake. The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has also designated new precedential and informative decisions addressing obviousness-type double patenting and Markush groupings.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced on January 14, 2025, a new Artificial Intelligence (AI) Strategy which provides a vision for how the USPTO can encourage accountable AI innovation.

The U.S. government has filed a Statement of Interest of the United States of America under 28 U.S.C. § 517 in the Southern District of New York multidistrict litigation over OpenAI’s use of copyrighted works to train large language models. The filing appears to be the federal government’s first direct intervention in the wave of artificial intelligence (AI) training copyright cases, and it advises the court to treat model training (separate from use of AI to generate outputs) on copyrighted text standing alone as a highly transformative fair use under current law.

In recent video game news, gaming giant Nintendo filed and settled a lawsuit against the developers of the popular Nintendo Switch emulator, Yuzu.

The Seventh Circuit's 2024 decision in Motorola Solutions v. Hytera Communications established that the Defend Trade Secrets Act can reach conduct outside the United States and permit recovery of damages based on worldwide sales. District courts have begun applying this precedent, expanding the potential scope of liability for cross-border trade secret disputes. The ruling raises important questions about how minimal a US connection may be before federal trade secret protection no longer applies.

As artificial intelligence reshapes corporate marketing, .ai domain names have become prime digital real estate worth millions. A recent WIPO ruling in a high-profile dispute between a combat sports brand and a domain investor reveals critical lessons about trademark rights, bad faith claims, and the limits of domain seizure policies in the booming AI domain market.

After 12 years of litigation, the Ninth Circuit has finally ruled in the epic trademark dispute between Jack Daniel's and VIP Products over the "Bad Spaniels" dog toy parody. The court's decision establishes crucial new standards for proving dilution by tarnishment, requiring brand owners to demonstrate mark-specific fame and actual reputational harm rather than relying on offensive associations alone.

On September 13, the International Trade Commission announced that Monica V. Bhattacharyya has been named a USITC Administrative Law Judge.

On December 5th, the USPTO issued new guidance on subject matter eligibility declarations and also updated subject matter eligibility guidance in the MPEP.

Speedy 5G, Emerging Tech to Spur More Patent Cases at ITC.

The meeting addressed the increasing risk of copyright violations, as AI technology allows the creation of text or images closely resembling original works.

A question that is often asked is why there are so many lawyers? The question is often paired with questions about why lawyers spend so much time on seemingly insignificant tasks...

On Monday, September 16, 2020, the USPTO issued a press release announcing the launch of "a major initiative aimed at expanding invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the United States."

The European Patent Office has released its April 2026 Guidelines for Examination, introducing significant changes to procedural and substantive patent law. Key updates include modifications to the PACE acceleration program, new claim interpretation standards following the G1/24 decision, relaxed novelty requirements for products placed on the market under G1/23, and refined guidance on further medical use claims under Article 54(5) EPC.

The USPTO's new Director Review Process is reshaping patent proceedings at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, with recent decisions showing how patent owners can successfully challenge unpatentability findings for dependent claims.

On May 31, 2022, the ITC issued a Notice of Investigation in Certain Pneumatic Compression Devices and Components Thereof (Inv. No. 337-TA-1316).

Recently Judge Connolly, Chief Judge of the District Court of Delaware had an opportunity of deciding three motions for summary judgment filed by CareDX...