intellectual property law Archives

Oct 24, 2018

Border Protection for U.S. Intellectual Property

While the country is embroiled in heated political debate involving immigration and the appropriate means by which to protect U.S. borders, few if any disagree that many U.S. intellectual property owners are being swamped by infringing goods, counterfeits and knock-offs from other countries. Other than the U.S. district courts where infringement cases are often instituted, the combined powers of the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”), a bureau of the Department of Homeland Security, can be powerful allies for intellectual property owners seeking to protect their intellectual property from infringing imports. The ITC… Read more

Oct 17, 2018

Service of Process on Evasive Defendants

Service of Process for Evasive Defendants

On September 15, 2018, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida granted an order authorizing service of process by electronic mail in a trademark infringement case where the plaintiff was unable to make personal service due to evasive conduct by the Defendants, according to SGR partner Bruce McDonald, representing the plaintiff. See Transamerica Corp. v. TransAmerica Multiservices Inc. et al., No. 1:18-cv-22483 (S.D.Fla.). While the federal courts have granted motions for “substituted service” in cases of fictitious and anonymous websites registered to individuals and entities ostensibly located overseas, this was the first known federal court decision authorizing electronic… Read more

Sep 25, 2018

Bruce McDonald Appointed to IP Court Advisory Council

Undeterred by tensions between the United States and Russia, SGR partner Bruce McDonald continues to attend meetings of the Advisory Council to the Intellectual Property Court of the Russian Federation, established in 2013, in his capacity as the only American and one of only four Westerners on the 67-member body. Mr. McDonald was appointed to the Intellectual Property Court Advisory Council after delivering a presentation at the Russian Supreme Commercial Court in April 2013, in Russian, comparing and contrasting the American experience involving the separation of powers in constitutional governance with the separation of judicial power in the Russian judicial… Read more

Sep 4, 2018

Intellectual Property Implications in Business Decisions

As a business owner, it is important to research any intellectual property concerns before proceeding with an idea, especially when it concerns the intellectual property rights of well-known companies in the entertainment industry. On August 29, 2018, the United States District Court for the Central District of California granted a preliminary injunction to Disney that barred Redbox from selling individual download codes that were initially included within combo packs. Disney sells combo packs which include a DVD and/or Blu-ray disc version of a movie as well as a piece of paper that has a download Code that can be redeemed… Read more