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• Kawhi Leonard v. Nike Inc.: How copyrights can trump trademarks? By Rick Mescher    On Monday, May 3, 2019, in the midst of the NBA finals, Kawhi Leonard of the Toronto Raptors filed a lawsuit against Nike, Inc. (Nike) in the US District Court Southern District of California. The complaint asks the Court for a declaration that Kawhi is the sole author of the “KL2” logo, that his use of that logo does not infringe the rights of Nike, and that Nike committed fraud in its copyright application. The “KL2” logo is... More
• China’s draft measure on cross-border personal information transfer By Diana Lingyu Jia    On June 13, 2019, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CMA, 国家互联网信息办公室), an office that serves as China’s central internet regulator and censor, released the draft Measures for Security Assessment of Cross-border Transfer of Personal Information (the Measure, 个人信息出境安全评估办法) for public comment. Following is a brief analysis on how this Measure, if adopted, could affect U.S. entities doing business in China or doing business with Chinese entities.  Network Operator If a U.S. entity is a network owner, administrator or service provider... More
• Status of CBD products under Ohio law; Emerging issues in intellectual property related to cannabis business: Part 2 By Noor Bahhur and Frank Tice    In Part 2, we cover the key Intellectual Property issues that are emerging in this arena. Read part 1 here. United States Patent and Trademark Office update Following the enactment of the Farm Bill, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has officially issued guidelines when reviewing trademark applications for CBS and hemp-derived goods and services. This is a big step for the cannabis industry as for many years, entities have tried, unsuccessfully, to legally protect their... More
• Status of CBD products under Ohio law; Emerging issues in intellectual property related to cannabis business: Part 1 By Noor Bahhur and Frank Tice    Two emerging issues related to commercial cannabis are taking center stage for industry stake holders in Ohio: Current legal status of hemp and cannabidiol (CBD) based products under state law How intellectual property rights will be protected We will walk through both the background and current status related to these issues in this two part series. Background: Hemp and CBD legal status in Ohio Until recently, federal law did not differentiate hemp from marijuana meaning both were considered “marihuana” (the... More
• A “Boost” for copyright protection in the fashion industry: Kanye’s Yeezy sneakers to receive copyright registrations By Rick Mescher    On May 8, 2019, the Review Board of the U. S. Copyright Office issued a decision stating that Yeezy 350 Boost Version 1 and Yeezy 350 Boost Version 2 sneakers each include copyrightable subject matter. The Adidas Yeezy sneakers are a collaboration between Adidas AG and Kanye West which has been wildly popular and as a result has been frequently knocked off by imitators. So it is not surprising that Adidas AG pursued copyright protection for these sneakers.... More
• Verify your wires! By Jack Beeler    The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center has released its 2018 annual report, which includes statistics that internet-enabled theft, wire fraud and exploitation were responsible for a staggering $2.7 billion in financial losses in 2018. If you are involved in transactional work, this can happen to you. Reports detail an increasingly common story of wire fraud accompanying large sum transactions. The story line often includes a spoofed email invoice in connection with closing, which instructs one party to wire closing related... More
• Riding the waves of U.S. data privacy legislation By Donna Ruscitti    Much has been written about the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Commentators have touted the EU’s supposedly superior data protection regimen. But don’t lose focus on what is happening within the U.S. and the implications for U.S. companies that may not be focused on GDPR requirements. Even companies that are GDPR focused may not meet the upcoming requirements. At least three significant privacy legislation fronts in the U.S. bear mentioning: The 2008 Illinois Biometric Protection Act (BIPA) and the... More
• The United States Patent and Trademark Office’s intellectual property attaché program offers valuable resources to guide U.S. businesses in navigating IP systems abroad By Bill Storey    The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) offers valuable IP-related business resources through an intellectual property (IP) attaché program. The program is structured to generally improve IP policies, laws and regulations abroad for the benefit of U.S. businesses and stakeholders, while providing country-specific IP-related materials and services to teach and inform. However, the program also makes representatives available who can act as points of contact for U.S. businesses to guide actions and to provide interactions with foreign... More
• Pilot program for PCT applications streamlines examination and search procedures By Bill Storey    On July 1, 2018, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) began a 3-year pilot program known as The PCT Collaborative Search and Examination Pilot (CS&E) Program, to streamline examination and search procedures for patent examiners in multiple countries. The program is a coordinated effort with patent offices from around the world, together known as the IP5 offices. Specifically, participating International Search Authority (ISA) members include the USPTO, European Patent Office (EPO), Japan Patent Office (JPO), Korean... More
• Ohio passes new law providing safe harbor to businesses suffering a data breach and amends Ohio law to allow records and contracts secured by blockchain technology By Ryan Graham    Implementing a cybersecurity framework may begin to pay off for companies doing business in Ohio. As anyone following data privacy litigation knows, litigation stemming from data breach incidents can prove to be extraordinarily burdensome and expensive. Ohio is the first state to pass a law that will limit a business’s exposure in data breach litigation if the businesses has voluntarily adopted an identified cybersecurity framework. In terms of the particulars, Ohio recently passed S.B. 220, which provides an affirmative... More