Attorneys Granted Motion for Increased Fees in “Happy Birthday” Copyright Suit

Recently a California U.S. District Judge found that Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. did not hold a valid copyright on the song “Happy Birthday To You‚¬, and the song was held to be in the public domain. As part of the judgment, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. was ordered to pay $14 million to reimburse members of the class […]

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USPTO Offers New Pilot Program for After Final Responses

The USPTO has implemented the “Post-Prosecution Pilot”referred to as the “P3 Program.”The goal of the program is to reduce the need for appeals by providing a more robust after final, pre-appeal program. The P3 Program essentially blends two existing programs: the After Final Consideration Pilot and the Pre-Appeal Brief Conference Pilot. The After Final Consideration […]

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“Stairway to Heaven” Holds on to Iconic Riff

One of the most iconic rock songs of the 20th Century came under fire earlier this summer for allegations of copyright infringement. The estate of Randy Wolfe, guitarist for Spirit on the song “Taurus,”brought a copyright suit against Led Zeppelin, frontman Robert Plant, and guitarist Jimmy Page alleging infringement of a guitar riff that opens […]

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Federal Circuit Remands Treble Damages CAse after Supreme Court Decision

In the Striker-Halo decision, the Supreme Court addressed the standard for awarding treble damages for patent infringement, finding the existingSeagate standard was “unduly rigid”and “impermissible encumber[ed] the statutory grant of discretion to trial courts.”In order to award treble damages, theSeagate standard required clear and convincing evidence that the infringer acted despite an objectively highly likelihood […]

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