Heitner Legal
In a significant ruling on June 29, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court addressed the case of Abitron Austria GMBH v. Hetronic International, Inc. (No. 21-1043). The Court’s decision clarified the extraterritorial reach of two provisions, sections 1114(1)(a) and 1125(a)(1), under the Lanham Act. This landmark case determined that these provisions, which prohibit trademark infringement, apply […]
Per Steve Berkowitz, the NCAA announced that it plans to appeal the recent decision of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold a 2019 decision by Judge Claudia Wilken. This appeal would be reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court if selected. As leading sports law expert Darren Heitner pointed out, this is far […]
The Supreme Court of the United States has ruled that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) improperly denied the registration of Booking.com as a trademark based on the theory that it is a generic term. The main holding by the highest court is that just because a name (like “booking”) is generic, that […]
Are states completely immune from federal copyright infringement actions brought by individuals? That question was just answered by the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Allen, et al. v. Cooper, Governor of North Carolina, et al. Frederick Allen recorded videos and captured photographs of a shipwreck off the coast of North Carolina. He registered those works […]
HOLY FUCT! The U.S. Supreme Court previously decided that it would hear a case that involves the refusal of a trademark application for the word “FUCT” in conjunction with its use on apparel. On June 24, it issued its opinion and determined that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office should not be able to refuse […]