Intellectual Property & Technology Blog Posts From December 2018

• Blog: The Other Shoe Drops: CA Appellate Court Holds Non-Solicitation of Employees Restrictions Also Unenforceable
  Date: December 21, 2018 Title: The Other Shoe Drops: CA Appellate Court Holds Non-Solicitation of Employees Restrictions Also Unenforceable
  Summary: Since 2008, California courts have refused to enforce non-solicitation of customer provisions in employment contracts. On November 1, 2018, in AMN Healthcare, Inc. v Aya Healthcare Services, Inc., the California Court of Appeal for the Fourth Appellate District expanded this concept to include non-solicitation of employees restrictions (also known as anti-raiding provisions) as well....
• Blog: “Blurred Lines” Final Judgment May Signal Paradigm Shift for Entertainment Copyright Law
  Date: December 19, 2018 Title: “Blurred Lines” Final Judgment May Signal Paradigm Shift for Entertainment Copyright Law
  Summary: In March 2018, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rendered a landmark decision in the copyright infringement litigation surrounding Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke’s song, “Blurred Lines.” The appellate court upheld a 2015 jury verdict finding that ”Blurred Lines” infringed Marvin Gaye’s copyright to the 1977 hit “Got to Give it Up” because the two songs were too similar. ...
• Blog: Federal Circuit Warns Patent Holders to Reconsider Cease and Desist Letters
  Date: December 11, 2018 Title: Federal Circuit Warns Patent Holders to Reconsider Cease and Desist Letters
  Summary: Sending a cease and desist letter to a patent infringer should never be taken lightly. In particular, patent-related demand letters can have a profound impact on both substantive and procedural strategic decisions. In its recent decision in Jack Henry & Associated et al v. Plano Encryption Technologies, LLC, the Federal Circuit determined that the mere sending of a cease and desist letter could force the sender to litigate the issues outlined in the letter in the home court of the accused infringer....
• Blog: 2018 in review – Inter Partes Review Developments, Part 2 of 2
  Date: December 11, 2018 Title: 2018 in review – Inter Partes Review Developments, Part 2 of 2
  Summary: Following the Oil States decision in which the Supreme Court invoked the public rights doctrine to protect the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s (PTAB) authority to invalidate patents by inter partes review (IPR), the Federal Circuit used a similar line of reasoning to determine whether tribal sovereign immunity could bar this form of patent review....
• Blog: 2018 in review – Inter Partes Review Developments, Part 1 of 2
  Date: December 07, 2018 Title: 2018 in review – Inter Partes Review Developments, Part 1 of 2
  Summary: In one of the most heavily anticipated, and in some ways controversial, decision of the year, the Supreme Court ruled in Oil States Energy Services v. Green’s Energy Group to uphold the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s (PTAB) authority to invalidate patents by inter partes review....
• Blog: Welcome to Lewis Brisbois’ IP & Technology Law Blog
  Date: December 05, 2018 Title: Welcome to Lewis Brisbois’ IP & Technology Law Blog
  Summary: The realm of Intellectual Property and Technology law can be tough to keep up with. The 10 millionth US patent was issued in June 2018. Valuable IP and strong branding are coveted business assets for both established and start-up companies, nationally and internationally. In recent years, the amount of IP and patent litigation has soared, and the rapid pace of technological development will only see these cases increase as companies seek to protect and defend their creative assets. ...