By Hindy Dym
Simba Toys GmbH & Co. K.G v. European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and Seven Towns Ltd. (Case C-30/15 P, November 10, 2016)
The Court of Justice of the European Union (“ECJ”) recently issued a final decision in a ten-year dispute surrounding the trademark protection of the Rubik’s Cube. More
Combit Software GmbH v. Commit Business Solutions Ltd. (Case C-223/15) (September 22, 2016)
In a recent decision, the Court of Justice of the European Union (“ECJ”) determined that when an EU trademark court prohibits use of a sign that creates a likelihood of confusion in one part of the EU,More
By Robin N. Baydurcan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan v. China Trademark Review and Adjudication Board, with the third party QIAODAN Sports Company, Supreme People’s Court 2016
In December 2016, former Chicago Bulls basketball phenom Michael Jordan obtained an unprecedented victory in cancelling several third-party registrations for “Jordan” in Chinese characters,More
By Karen Lim
On November 24, 2016, changes to Quebec’s signage laws went into effect requiring businesses to add French-language descriptors or slogans to storefront signage displaying non-French trademarks. The amendments are intended to ensure the presence of French on storefronts that display non-French trademarks,More
By Maritza C. Schaeffer
Titan Enterprises (QLD) Pty Ltd v. Cross, Federal Court of Australia(Case No. [2016] FCA 1241, October 19, 2016)
Section 229 of the Australian Trademarks Act 1995 (“Section 229”) defines the scope of privileged protection for communications with registered trademark attorneys. More
By Allison Strickland Ricketts
Effective March 21, 2017, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) plans to implement a post-registration audit program to obtain additional evidence of use of registered marks. The Office’s notice of final rulemaking can be viewed at www.gpo.gov.More
By Emily Weiss
Wise F&I, LLC, et al. v. Allstate Insurance Co., Consolidated Opp. No. 91226028 (T.T.A.B. Sept. 23, 2016)
In Wise F&I, LLC v. Allstate Insurance Co.,
Consolidated Opp. No. 91226028 (T.T.A.B. Sept. 23,More
By Leo Kittay
Emerald Cities Collaborative, Inc. v. Roese, No. 2016-1703, 2016 WL 7210145 (Fed. Cir. Dec. 13, 2016) (not precedential)
The Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Emerald Cities Collaborative, Inc. v. Roese provides a reminder that any agreement to assign a pending intent-to-use trademark application will be closely scrutinized to determine whether the transfer violates the statutory prohibition against trafficking in inchoate marks. More
In re Driven Innovations, Inc., Ser. No. 77073701 (Fed. Cir. Jan. 4, 2017) (not precedential)
The U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently reversed a Trademark Trial and Appeal
Board (“TTAB”) decision in which the Board upheld a Section 2(e)(1)
descriptiveness refusal for the DOTBLOG mark. More
By Jessica Vosgerchian
Christian Faith Fellowship Church v. adidas AG, 120 U.S.P.Q. 2d 1640 (Fed. Cir. 2016))
On appeal by Christian
Faith Fellowship Church (the “Church”), the Federal Circuit reversed a judgment
by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board cancelling the Church’s trademarks for
failure to use them in commerce before registration. More