Michael Jordan and New Balance Trademark Cases Provided with Permissions by: Vivien Chan & Co. Newsletter of May 2020 Click Here to View Newsletter! For current information as to how US trademarks are faring in China, see these two articles from a personal friend, Vivien Chan, who has one of the largest IP firms in…
Written by: Lawrence A. Maxham August 2020 Here is yet another reason to file your trademarks early, in every country in which you are now or likely will within the next ten years, be doing business. The following is a cautionary tale of timing in filing a trademark. Many countries have a “first-to-file” law…
At the outset, patents are valuable business assets. They may have different values or levels of value depending upon many factors. In order for a business to determine whether or not to go forward with the patent process, several factors need to be considered. Many businesses invest in their patent portfolio in order to protect…
New Balance, the athletic shoe and apparel company based in Massachusetts, won a landmark victory in a trademark infringement case in China. Three Chinese shoemakers have been ordered by the Chinese IP Court in Beijing to pay 10 million yuan ($1.5 million US) to New Balance for infringing the slanted “N” logo. This appears to be…
THE SUPREME COURT SPEAKS At the end of November 2000, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit decided the now infamous Festo Case. This case stated that a narrowing amendment to any claim limitation created an absolute bar to any equivalents for that claim limitation under the doctrine of equivalents. Thus, at least in…
A DEFENDANT’S OWN PATENT MAY NOW BE USED AS EVIDENCE OF NON-INFRINGEMENT Contrary to popular belief, the fact that company Y patented its own product does not mean that the same product does not infringe the patent of company X. This is because of the nature of the patent grant itself. A patent affords the…
