Revenge of The Prop Guy
Battle will be joined tomorrow in a British case in which a rebel prop designer will challenge George Lucas, emperor of the Star Wars universe, as to who owns the rights to the stormtrooper costumes used in the films. Andrew…
Intellectual Property
Egypt Says It Will Copyright Pyramids
The head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities told reporters on December 25 that the country’s parliament would likely pass a law requiring anyone who reproduces one of its famous monuments to pay royalties. Zahi Hawass said that the law…
Guitar Has-Beens v. Guitar Hero
On November 20, attorneys for the band The Romantics filed a complaint in federal court against Activision, the publisher of the game "Guitar Hero," claiming that the game infringes on the group’s rights to its own likeness. In the interest…
Taster’s Case Will Be Heard by California Supreme Court
Yesterday, the California Supreme Court granted review in Christoff v. Nestle USA Inc., the case involving a guy who noticed his face on a jar of Taster’s Choice 16 years after he had done a photo shoot for the company…
Sam Adams Willing to Discuss Use of “Sam Adams” by Sam Adams
Representatives of the Boston Beer Company, brewers of "Samuel Adams" beer, sent a letter last week to two radio hosts in Portland objecting to their registration of two Web addresses that used the name "Sam Adams" (also a company trademark). …
Please Do Not Read This Post
Sorry, I had hoped to spare you this, but you now may be subject to a lawsuit. It is not at all uncommon for attorneys representing a trademark or copyright holder to send a "cease-and-desist" letter to someone believed to…
Tool Sued
The New Orleans bureau has alerted me to a new lawsuit against the rock band Tool, filed in federal court in Louisiana. Tool, whose music is described as "heavy metal," "alternative metal," "art rock," "art metal," "progressive rock," "progressive metal,"…
Official on Trial for Corruption Reads Tearful, Plagiarized Apology
The former head of a state-owned power company in China, currently on trial for corruption charges, does not seem to have helped his case by reading a four-page apology letter in court this week. While the apology seems to have…
Seattle Attack Blamed on Karaoke, Coldplay
A 21-year-old woman was arrested and booked last Thursday after she assaulted a man during an karaoke performance. Witnesses reported the man was attempting the Coldplay song "Yellow" when the woman lost control and attacked him. Personally, I was surprised…
Court Reverses The Taster’s $15-Million Award
On June 29, the California Court of Appeal reversed the judgment for Russell Christoff in his lawsuit against Nestle’s. As I’ve written about before, Christoff, a former model, happened to be in a store one day in 2002 and saw…