I know what you're thinking, but this inventor is not just talking about the usual method of swinging on a swing, which he himself notes has been "known for generations." It would be stupid to try to patent that. This…
A reader (Prof. Steve Kass) who was intrigued by yesterday's intellectual-property tale did a little research and uncovered some potentially relevant evidence. First, as you may recall, the plaintiff is seeking a declaratory judgment that it did not infringe on a…
1. A recently filed complaint contains the following statement: "U.S. Pat. D557,478 is a design patent for the ornamental design of a visor with simulated hair." 2. Said patent includes sketches of the proposed visor, to wit: 3. In the…
Me in 2010, on Stayart v. Yahoo: “Like many,” this opinion begins, “Beverly Stayart was curious about what she would find when she put her name into a search engine.” And like many, Beverly Stayart was not happy with what…
There's just something very wrong with this: I guess I'm worried that at some point it'll no longer be optional. Via Eurogamer.net and @Glinner.
Chubby Checker, a.k.a. Ernest Evans, a.k.a. the guy who sang "The Twist," is suing the makers and sellers of a smartphone app for Palm devices known as "The Chubby Checker" for trademark infringement. While possibly the most dramatic revelation resulting…
The inventor continued: The object of my invention is to provide a ball-bat which shall produce a rotary or spinning motion of the ball in its flight to a higher degree than is possible with any present known form of…
It’s only sort of a trick question.
This decision mostly speaks for itself: The mark at issue here has two parts: a literal element, consisting of the words COCK SUCKER, and a design element, consisting of a drawing of a crowing rooster. Since 1979, [the applicant] has…
As I mentioned the other day, many media outlets have been reporting incorrectly that Tim Tebow had been granted a trademark on the act of "Tebowing," not just the term. To some extent this may have been a misunderstanding of…