AD-ttorneys@law – Dec. 9, 2022

The Board dismissed this petition for cancellation of Roman Atwood's registration for the mark SMILE MORE for various goods (stickers, backpacks, shirts) and for retail store service featuring clothing, denying petitioner's claim that the term fails to function as a mark.

The Federal Circuit reaffirmed that the 1907 Supreme Court decision in Kessler v. Eldred is binding precedent that controls a preclusion analysis unless and until the Supreme Court overrules it.

Intellectual property is central to almost everything we do, as businesses or individuals. As a result, intellectual property rights are important assets to most modern businesses.

Top global brands, famous content creators, and media moguls know the best protection they can secure for their products is Pryor Cashman representation.

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 USPTO has released new templates and guidance for AIA trial proceedings, announced key appointments including a Chief AI Officer, and published updated procedures for patent applications and subject matter eligibility declarations. Director Squires delivered multiple addresses emphasizing the constitutional importance of intellectual property rights while the agency expanded its community engagement efforts and international collaboration through WIPO's Global IP Assignment Platform pilot program.

A business decides to file a trademark. Someone on the team searches for a familiar online legal-services brand, clicks the first result, and lands on a site with a similar-sounding name, a polished design, five-star reviews, and a low flat fee. The application gets filed. Months later the business learns the “service” was not who they thought it was, the filing was signed by someone with no authority to sign it, and the USPTO has suspended the application along with hundreds or thousands of others from the same shop.

On Oct. 7, 2026, at 18:00 UTC, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) will publish every new generic top-level domain (gTLD) application proceeding in the 2026 new gTLD Round, including who applied...

Is this AI-generated, or is it real? As generative AI tools have become increasingly capable of creating realistic images, videos, and audio, they have also made it easier to impersonate real people without their consent. In response, states are increasingly adopting laws that impose civil and criminal liability for certain AI-generated content that replicates an individual’s identity, likeness, voice, or other personal attributes.

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

The SEC has announced the creation of a new enforcement team focused on auditing-related misconduct, signaling heightened scrutiny of auditors and potential SOX violations.

Last week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced charges against four individuals for their roles in Trade Coin Club (TCC)...

Companies selling subscriptions have been busy navigating compliance with the Federal Trade Commission's Negative Option Rule, which is scheduled to go into effect July 14.

On March 24, 2026, Washington State Governor Bob Ferguson signed HB 2225 into law. HB 2225, effective January 1, 2027, introduces mandatory safeguards for artificial intelligence companion chatbots...

A clearly defined carve‑out perimeter grounded in how the target business actually operates is essential to reducing execution risk and enabling a workable stand‑alone or integration plan.

Automatic renewals, more commonly referred to as subscription services, have become a household topic (or maybe just in ours?) of advertising law enforcement.

On Oct. 9, 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a subpoena enforcement action in California against an investment trust that failed to respond to an investigative subpoena...

A new California law requires written contracts when engaging most solo independent contractors. The written contracts must contain certain types of information.

On March 6, FinCEN announced a historic enforcement action against Canaccord Genuity LLC, a registered broker-dealer, assessing an $80 million civil money penalty for willful violations of the BSA.

Beginning on April 19, 2017, individuals and companies planning to export to or re- export from Hong Kong will need to obtain certain paperwork prior to shipping.