Big Mac Blunder: McDonald’s Loses European Trademark Rights for Famous Burger By Nicholas J. Krob Last month, the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) issued a surprise decision revoking fast food giant, McDonald’s, “BIG MAC” EU trademark registration in its entirety. The decision was the latest development in an ongoing battle between McDonald’s and Irish fast food restaurant Supermac’s. McDonald’s trouble started in 2014 after they opposed Supermac’s trademark application […] Continue Reading →
Jury Orders Mongols Motorcycle Club to Forfeit Trademark By The Mongols Nation motorcycle club was recently convicted of violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act (RICO) resulting in a California federal jury ordering the motorcycle club to forfeit its trademarked logo based on links between the image and the criminal activities carried out by the group. The imagine incorporates the motorcycle club’s […] Continue Reading →
“Hottest Fashion Brand in the World” Sues Children’s Clothing Company for Trademark Infringement By Nicholas J. Krob In December 2018, high-end streetwear fashion label Off-White filed a lawsuit in the Southern District of New York against children’s clothing company Brooklyn Lighthouse, claiming the Brooklyn company infringed upon Off-White’s trademarks and trade dress. Off-White’s products typically retail between $150 and $2,500 and feature “distinctive graphic and logo-heavy apparel designs.” Such graphics include the […] Continue Reading →
Toe Caps, Stripes, and Bumpers: Federal Circuit Revives Converse Sneaker Dispute By Nicholas J. Krob While Christian Louboutin has shown that trademark rights may extend to colors used on a shoe, can the design of a shoe itself also be protected? As the Federal Circuit made clear last week, the answer is yes. For years, sneaker giant Converse, Inc. has sought to protect its brand by claiming trademark rights in […] Continue Reading →
Bloody Shoes: Christian Louboutin Wins Battle Over Non-Traditional Trademark By Nicholas J. Krob “These expensive, these is red bottoms, these is bloody shoes.” Does this line, from Cardi B’s breakout single “Bodak Yellow,” call to mind a particular fashion brand? If not, the following line from Lil Uzi Vert’s “The Way Life Goes” might help you out: “My Louboutins new, so my bottoms they is redder.” For over […] Continue Reading →
The “Sweet and Musky” Smell of Play-Doh: Hasbro Awarded Non-Traditional Trademark By Nicholas J. Krob When you think of trademarks, what comes to mind? Is it golden arches atop a fast food restaurant? Perhaps the image of a partially-eaten apple emblazoned on the back of a phone or computer? Or maybe it’s the scent of sweet, slightly musky, vanilla fragrance, with slight overtones of cherry, combined with the smell of […] Continue Reading →
ZERO-ing in on the Right Legal Test for Genericness By Blog Staff In Royal Crown Co. v. The Coca-Cola Co., the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) vacated a decision of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) dismissing Royal Crown’s opposition to the registration of Coca-Cola’s trademarks for soft drinks and sports drinks with the term ZERO. The CAFC concluded that the […] Continue Reading →
State Agency-Sponsored Pizza? TTAB Rules on New Jersey Turnpike Authority’s Trademark Opposition By Nicholas J. Krob Do you often find yourself asking which highway management state agency has the best pizza? Or do you ever show up to a pizza chain, disappointed it isn’t a highway management state agency? If not, a recent decision by the USPTO Trademark Trial and Appeal Board will likely make some sense to you. In 2014, […] Continue Reading →
Just Because It’s Nanoscale, Doesn’t Mean It’s Not a Big Deal By Jonathan L. Kennedy Nanotechnology has been taking innovation by storm for decades now and its only increasing its footprint. This is reflected in the growing number of granted patents and published applications directed to nanotechnology inventions. For example, according to StatNano (an organization that monitors and publishing information regarding nanotechnology global developments), more than 20,000 granted patents and […] Continue Reading →
The Plant Naming Conundrum … Protecting Your Plant Varieties in the Short and Long Term By Christine Lebron-Dykeman Development of a new plant cultivar or varietal often requires substantial research and development. These costs can be recovered, however, if a breeder is able to successfully market, sell and/or license the resulting product, while maintaining exclusive ownership rights therein. There are, of course, a variety of intellectual property protection schemes available to maintain those […] Continue Reading →