Intellectual Property

Who Invented Labor Day?

Labor Day – a U.S. federal holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September – is associated with the unofficial end of summer vacation and BBQ parties. While the origin of Labor Day in the United States is associated with labor unions, there is a dispute as to who first proposed a holiday to honor workers. One camp sides with

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Lip Sync For Your Brand? When Parody, Performance, and Trademark Law Collide in the Age of Social Media

Lip Sync For Your Brand? When Parody, Performance, and Trademark Law Collide in the Age of Social Media

Recent legal disputes involving drag performers and established brands have spurred discussion in legal and entertainment circles alike about the complex intersection of modern trademark law, activism, and values-driven branding. The ongoing high-profile a trademark lawsuit between Patagonia, a leading outdoor apparel company, and Pattie Gonia, a popular drag queen and environment activist, offers more than just colorful headlines. It

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Who Owns AI-Generated Content

Staking a Claim: Who Owns AI-Generated Content?

Generative artificial intelligence has quickly become a routine business tool. Employees use AI platforms to draft marketing materials, prepare reports, create presentations, write software code, develop product descriptions, and generate artwork. Independent contractors are increasingly relying on the same technologies to perform services for their clients. As the use of these systems expands, businesses are beginning to ask an important

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IP and AI Deepfakes: Can you really “Trademark Yourself?” Should You?

Artificial Intelligence can use online content from creators to produce various “new works” online, whether those original content creators are globally famous, locally famous, or anonymous. These new works might be “deepfakes,” parodies, funny memes, or advertisements meant to trade off the goodwill of another party. Are there really ways to stop others from using that content when the content

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AI and Life After Death

“Who Wants to Live Forever” was a song written by Queen for the film Highlander (1986). Who knew that in 2025 Meta in obtaining U.S. Patent No. 12,513,102 would provide a method of a virtual life after death. What once sounded like science fiction, or perhaps a rejected subplot from a dystopian television series, may become a virtual reality and

Read More »

Protect… Prevent… and Invent Again!

Our articles frequently focus on the mechanisms available to protect various forms of intellectual property (IP) and what types of IP can be protected with federal registration or a patent. But how can your client (the IP creator or owner) really prevent the theft of that protected IP – in the real world? How do you protect it once it

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springtime creativity

Springtime Creativity and Copyright

Spring is a season of renewal—and for many businesses, it is also a season of marketing. Retailers roll out Easter promotions, manufacturers introduce seasonal packaging, and service providers refresh branding for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, graduations, and spring religious holidays such as Passover and Shavuot. Florals, bunnies, pastel colors, and messages of gratitude suddenly appear everywhere. What many businesses do

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Demonstrations, Protests and Observations: Protecting your Creative Expression from Exploitation

Copyright protects the expression of an idea by its creators. Our clients create “stuff” all the time in the normal course of their business. They can also create this stuff when they are supporting social causes or communities or exercising their First Amendment rights. Does any of this “stuff” qualify for copyright protection? And can these creators stop others from

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Abstract Idea ≠ Patentable

An abstract idea and a patent attorney walk into a patent bar. The bartender says, “Sorry, we don’t serve abstract ideas.” The attorney replies, “That’s fine—we’ll just reduce it to practice.” Some of you may already get the punchline. If you don’t, read this short article and learn about “The REAL Ideas of Patent Law.” The Abstract Idea Patent attorneys

Read More »

Who Invented Labor Day?

Labor Day – a U.S. federal holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September – is associated with the unofficial end of summer vacation and BBQ parties. While the origin of Labor Day in the United States is associated with labor unions, there is a dispute as to who first proposed a holiday to honor workers. One camp sides with

Read More »
Lip Sync For Your Brand? When Parody, Performance, and Trademark Law Collide in the Age of Social Media

Lip Sync For Your Brand? When Parody, Performance, and Trademark Law Collide in the Age of Social Media

Recent legal disputes involving drag performers and established brands have spurred discussion in legal and entertainment circles alike about the complex intersection of modern trademark law, activism, and values-driven branding. The ongoing high-profile a trademark lawsuit between Patagonia, a leading outdoor apparel company, and Pattie Gonia, a popular drag queen and environment activist, offers more than just colorful headlines. It

Read More »
Who Owns AI-Generated Content

Staking a Claim: Who Owns AI-Generated Content?

Generative artificial intelligence has quickly become a routine business tool. Employees use AI platforms to draft marketing materials, prepare reports, create presentations, write software code, develop product descriptions, and generate artwork. Independent contractors are increasingly relying on the same technologies to perform services for their clients. As the use of these systems expands, businesses are beginning to ask an important

Read More »

IP and AI Deepfakes: Can you really “Trademark Yourself?” Should You?

Artificial Intelligence can use online content from creators to produce various “new works” online, whether those original content creators are globally famous, locally famous, or anonymous. These new works might be “deepfakes,” parodies, funny memes, or advertisements meant to trade off the goodwill of another party. Are there really ways to stop others from using that content when the content

Read More »

AI and Life After Death

“Who Wants to Live Forever” was a song written by Queen for the film Highlander (1986). Who knew that in 2025 Meta in obtaining U.S. Patent No. 12,513,102 would provide a method of a virtual life after death. What once sounded like science fiction, or perhaps a rejected subplot from a dystopian television series, may become a virtual reality and

Read More »

Protect… Prevent… and Invent Again!

Our articles frequently focus on the mechanisms available to protect various forms of intellectual property (IP) and what types of IP can be protected with federal registration or a patent. But how can your client (the IP creator or owner) really prevent the theft of that protected IP – in the real world? How do you protect it once it

Read More »
springtime creativity

Springtime Creativity and Copyright

Spring is a season of renewal—and for many businesses, it is also a season of marketing. Retailers roll out Easter promotions, manufacturers introduce seasonal packaging, and service providers refresh branding for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, graduations, and spring religious holidays such as Passover and Shavuot. Florals, bunnies, pastel colors, and messages of gratitude suddenly appear everywhere. What many businesses do

Read More »

Demonstrations, Protests and Observations: Protecting your Creative Expression from Exploitation

Copyright protects the expression of an idea by its creators. Our clients create “stuff” all the time in the normal course of their business. They can also create this stuff when they are supporting social causes or communities or exercising their First Amendment rights. Does any of this “stuff” qualify for copyright protection? And can these creators stop others from

Read More »

Abstract Idea ≠ Patentable

An abstract idea and a patent attorney walk into a patent bar. The bartender says, “Sorry, we don’t serve abstract ideas.” The attorney replies, “That’s fine—we’ll just reduce it to practice.” Some of you may already get the punchline. If you don’t, read this short article and learn about “The REAL Ideas of Patent Law.” The Abstract Idea Patent attorneys

Read More »

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