News
Cases and rule changes, explained for the people they affect.
Now and then we write an update when something happens that a founder, creator, or inventor should know about.
After Romag: the new reality of trademark law, and why clearance searches are the smartest money you’ll spend
Since Romag, you don’t have to infringe on purpose to lose your profits. A documented clearance search is the good-faith evidence that matters.
Bad Spaniels: what the Supreme Court actually decided about the Jack Daniel’s label
A dog toy, a parody defense, and a unanimous Court: when you use someone else’s mark as your own brand, parody is a factor, not a free pass.
Newly expanded SBA loans available under the CARES Act
The Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loans, explained for small employers: eligibility, forgiveness, and how to apply.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act)
A section-by-section overview of the $2.5 trillion relief package: small business loans, unemployment expansion, stimulus payments, and tax changes.
Gugliotta & Gugliotta announces trademark monitoring services
Two annual watch subscriptions to help clients police their marks before infringement erodes them.
Gugliotta & Gugliotta announces comprehensive trademark clearance search packages
Tiered search options, from federal-only to a full comprehensive search across the USPTO, all fifty states, and common-law sources.
How far do trademark protections extend? We’re about to find out.
Ohio State filed to register the word THE for clothing. Whether a bare article can acquire secondary meaning is now the examining attorney’s problem.
Foreign trademark applicants will soon require U.S. attorneys
The USPTO proposed requiring foreign-domiciled applicants to use licensed U.S. counsel, aimed at a wave of subsidized and often fraudulent filings.
Sharing photos on Twitter is copyright infringement: a new interpretation of the “server test”
A federal judge held that embedding a tweet containing a copyrighted photo can infringe, breaking with a decade of practice built on the server rule.
A small claims copyright tribunal: one small step for art, one giant step for artists?
The CASE Act would create a Copyright Claims Board so independent creators can enforce their rights without a $270,000 lawsuit.
How Star Wars could fundamentally rewrite copyright law
Disney sued Redbox for reselling digital download codes. A federal judge said Disney’s tying of disc and code was copyright misuse.