Avoid The Halloween "Trick" Of An Intellectual Property Lawsuit

When cobwebs and tombstones start to show up in your neighborhood, probably something wicked is coming your way—except that one night of the year, on Halloween. Even though Halloween involves frightening things—haunted houses, the undead, tricks in response to no treats—it is ultimately about carefree fun. And there's candy! But if you are in a Halloween-related business, there is a genuinely scary side to the holiday—IP issues that, if ignored, could lead to a wicked lawsuit.

For example, in 2005, in the case Chosun International, Inc. v. Chrisha Creations, Ltd., the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit declared that elements of a (not very scary) Halloween costume could be copyrightable. Under the US Copyright Act, protection does not, in principle, extend to utilitarian or functional elements of the artist's original work and, therefore, does not extend to elements that enhance a costume's functionality qua clothing. However, in the case of Chosun's plush