Signed into law at the end of 2022, the SECURE 2.0 ACT of 2022 includes provisions that, in general, favor and promote employee ownership through Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs).

ESOPs have long been favored in legislation on a bipartisan basis, and it seems that entrepreneurs and business owners will be able to count on their availability to use as a unique succession planning tool.

In Brief: Calculating royalty damages for patent infringement isn’t easy; even against a bratty, no-show defendant.

In Brief:  As we enter awards season, it’s time to acknowledge those who achieved infamy in the world of Intellectual Property.

In Brief:  Each year, a new crop of creative works go into the public domain. This year, works created from 1927 go into the public domain. The class motto is “The Best Things in Life are Free".

In Brief:  Reaching back into IP history, we find that “A Trap for Santa” was at the heart of an IP dispute in the early 1900s.

In Brief:   Parody is permitted but not always available for registration as a trademark.

In Brief:  An unrecorded trademark assignment is as good as no assignment at all.

In Brief:  A patent infringer is not liable for damages incurred before notice of plaintiff’s patent rights.

In Brief:   Copyright termination rights don’t apply to royalty assignments.

In Brief:  An author has a right to terminate a copyright transfer after a certain number of years.

In Brief:  Abandoned trademarks may have a life beyond abandonment.

In Brief:   A picture is worth a thousand words but using it may not pass the fair use test.

In Brief:  Holding a lot of patents that extend the life of an original patent isn’t’ a monopoly.

In Brief: Copyright in fireworks text messages is invalid.

In Brief:  Misappropriation of a trade secret requires more than just being in the supply chain.

In Brief:   A famous trademark doesn’t have to tolerate a trademark parody.

In Brief:  Competing eyelash booster trademarks don’t create a likelihood of confusion.

Fiduciaries who handle investments for self-directed 401(k) plans are increasingly exposed to liability for their investment decisions. Those fiduciaries, including employers and individuals charged with investment selection, are being second guessed in court actions for the investment funds they select.

Although the courts are divided, there are some guidelines that plan fiduciaries need to consider when reviewing their plan's mix of mutual funds offered for participant investment.

In Brief:   Web scraping publically available information isn’t computer fraud.

In Brief:  A court’s fix of an obvious error in patent claim language can’t be used as a defense to willful patent infringement.

In Brief: The Digital Millennium Copyright Act’s safe harbor protects Pinterest from copyright infringement for photographs appearing next to ads.

In Brief:  “The” can be a trademark.

In Brief:  The first sale of a patent is determined by contract law.

In Brief:   A work that is created for commercial purposes is not protected by the Visual Artists’ Rights Act.

In Brief:  David’s beer brand wins over Goliath’s beer brand.