Intellectual Property Lawyer and Business Consultant
The latest trademark brand dispute involves two snack food companies with compelling messages to damn the diets and move full speed ahead to binge eating perdition. The marks allegedly likely to confuse snackers are “Get Crackin’” owned by Wonderful Pistachios & Almonds LLC and Utz Quality Foods LLC’s “Get Snacking!” While Wonderful is known for its … More Snack Attacks
This week I was pleased to present another Intellectual Property Workshop for SCORE. My presentation usually covers Copyright and Trademarks. This evening, we discussed the “Monkey Selfie Case.” Briefly, a British wild-life photographer, David Slater, was attempting to photograph a macaque on the Indonesian Isle of Sulawesi. He claims to have done all the preparatory … More Copyright Still Takes A Human Touch
The Federal Circuit affirmed the Trademark Trial & Appeal Board’s “TTAB” refusal to register the stylized Mark ‘CHURRASCOS’ for restuarant services finding the term generic as used for a restaurant, because the word “refers to beef or grilled meat more generally” and that the term “identifies a key characteristic or feature of the restaurant services, namely, … More HOLY CHURRASCOS!
Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act prohibiting the federal trademark registration of disparaging marks was recently held to violate the 1st Amendment freedom of speech protections by the Federal Circuit Court in “In Re Tam.” The mark refused registration is the name of an Asian-American rock band called “The Slants.” Though the band’s lead singer, … More “Disparaging” Trademark Meets Commercial Speech Protections
On April 27, I had the pleasure speaking at the Ferguson Library in Stamford as part of SCORE’s “Intellectual Property: What You Need To Know” Program. SCORE’s Fairfield County Chapter is an excellent resource for entrepreneurs seeking advice and mentoring about business issues. Of course the takeaway from my part of the presentation was that … More IP Trademark Presentation Stamford, CT
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals recently held in Keeling v. Har that an unauthorized parody protected by ‘fair use,’ may itself be protected with respect to its original parodic expression and including any added compilations or arrangements to the work. The case involved Point Break Live “PBL,” a theatrical production based upon the movie, starring Keneau … More Copyright Also Protects An Unauthorized Parody
Originally posted on Statute of RyAnne:
There is this urban myth I hear all the time. “If I just “use a few seconds” of a song then it is fair use, and I do not need a license.” I deliberately chose the word “myth” because it is just that – a myth. As a very general…
Originally posted on Statute of RyAnne:
What’s not to love about a wedding? There are flowers, music, good food, it is expected you eat cake and also dance ridiculously. If I could choose any profession besides my own, I would be a wedding planner and have even been known to help friends from time to…
Originally posted on Statute of RyAnne:
Can you believe the year is half way over? It seems like one day I was bundling up wondering if the winter would ever end, and today I’m getting ready to celebrate the Fourth of July. The post this week is a look back over the hot topics and…
Originally posted on Statute of RyAnne:
We all learned in elementary school stealing is wrong. If it is not yours, then you cannot use it without asking permission. You cannot take someone’s crayons. You cannot go home with someone else’s baby doll. You cannot ride and take someone else’s bicycle. A simple concept even kindergartners…
William Tennant 
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