Cat Got Your Trademark

We’re all used to seeing the big Caterpillar industrial machines featuring the word CAT. The CAT mark has been easily recognizable at any construction site throughout America for decades. Because of the brand’s popularity, Caterpillar expanded its use of the CAT mark to include apparel, headwear, bags, and other accessories. Caterpillar sells its clothing through its website and prominent retailers such as Amazon, JCPenney, and Sears. Its products have been featured on national television programs, newspaper and magazine articles, online publications, and fashion and lifestyle publications. However, CAT may have some competition.

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Even a Former President Can Get into Hot Water With the USPTO

Donald Trump, a divisive figure in our current political climate, has faced a massive setback with his new social media network “Truth Social.” On August 2nd, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”)  denied Trump’s application to federally register (which grants federal protection of the trademark) the network’s name as a trademark. This is one of many setbacks that the former President has faced since leaving office. This relatively minor setback could potentially cause major re-branding issues for Truth Social further down the line if his appeal is unsuccessful. If Trump continues using the mark, he may be sued and will eventually have to change the name of his social media network or incur major legal fees.

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THE Trademark: How Ohio State University Got a Trademark on the Word “The”

The Ohio State University.” If you’re an avid watcher of NFL football like myself, you’ve heard former Ohio State football players utter that phrase in their pre-recorded introductions on NBC’s broadcasts of the games. So many Ohio State alums, both football players and non-football players alike, love identifying their school in that fashion.

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The Benefits (and Difficulties) In Protecting Trade Secrets in a Digital Age

When most law students think of protecting an invention or technology, they immediately jump to patents, which is a type of IP granted by the government to protect inventions. However, trade secrets are also a type of intellectual property that can protect technology. And, trade secrets can sometimes be more useful – and valuable – than patents. As we will see, companies are increasingly turning to trade secrets as a means of protecting their intellectual property. Some of the biggest IP litigation cases in recent years have involved trade secrets. Almost every company uses trade secrets to protect information. A downside to trade secrets however, is that they are sometimes difficult to protect. Continue reading “The Benefits (and Difficulties) In Protecting Trade Secrets in a Digital Age”

What Happens to Your Intellectual Property After You Die?

Every day someone is trying to protect their intellectual property rights. But what happens to these rights when you die? Do they simply cease to exist? Are they passed on? Can you leave your IP rights to a specific person? Well, the answers to these questions depend on two things. First, it depends on what type of intellectual property rights the deceased person had. Second, it depends upon whether the deceased IP owner specifically said who would receive the right. Continue reading “What Happens to Your Intellectual Property After You Die?”

“Righting” about Copyright, Part 2

I was excited to take the Intellectual Property Survey course at Loyola with Professor Ho in the fall of 2021. However, when the class got to the topic of copyright, I struggled with two topics in that area, one of which was “improper appropriation.” This dealt with a part of the copyright infringement test that determined whether there was substantial similarity between the two works at issue based only on their protectable expression as I discussed in “Righting about Copyright, Part 1.”

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Battle of Breweries – Trademark Style

One might think that if a company is well established, its intellectual property would be de facto protected. But that is not the case. Two of America’s most iconic companies, easily recognizable and hard to confuse, are currently in a battle over trademarks. These two companies are none other than Anheuser-Busch and Yuengling, two of America’s oldest breweries. Yuengling was founded in 1829 in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, Anheuser-Busch, on the other hand was founded in the late 1850s, in St. Louis, Missouri.  But recently these two giants of the industry have been warring over trademark rights. Continue reading “Battle of Breweries – Trademark Style”

“Righting” about Copyright, Part 1

Coming into law school at Loyola, I was really interested in learning about intellectual property (IP) law and possibly even making a career out of it. During my fall 2L semester, I had the chance to take my first IP course: the Intellectual Property Survey course. I was so excited to finally be able to study IP, and was eagerly anticipating the class.

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Devil Shoes and Trademark Blues

Now, I wouldn’t call myself a sneakerhead by any definition of the phrase, but certain shoes will forever pique my interest. The classic Jordan 1 silhouette has captivated me since I saw Space Jam as a kid and became entranced with the MJ legend. For decades after that seed of appreciation was planted in my head as a child, I never thought twice about sneaker style. I was more of a chukka guy, to be honest.

AirForce1s
Nike Air Force Ones: The picture I took at the thrift store to get my family’s opinion on whether I should by them. Attributed to Louay Meroueh

Fast forward to Summer 2019: I’m at a thrift store in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.  I’m browsing the shelves for a rare size 13 shoe that would be worth salvaging. I come across a pristine pair of Air Force Ones for $30. At that moment, my limited interests in sneakers burst open to include the entire Nike roster.

Fast forward a few more years: I’m a first-year law student reading about a devilishly controversial case involving another famous Nike sneaker.

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Nintendo’s IP: That’s No Pokémon, That’s My Pet!

If you were a child sometime in the last three decades, you’ve likely had some sort of a connection to the cultural juggernaut that is the Pokémon franchise. An intellectual property so well known that Microsoft Word has autocorrected my spelling of the word Pokémon three times now. My personal connection to the franchise has persisted throughout my life. As a seven-year-old, I scrounged together change to buy a pack of the trading cards at the local 7-11.  Later in life, I almost got robbed in a park while playing Pokémon Go at 2 AM in 2016 (true story).

Winston (Left) hanging out with Phoebe (right). Photo attributed to Louay Meroueh.

Most recently, I’ve begun to see Instagram ads for products not associated with Nintendo that draw from the vast pool of Pokémon nostalgia to push their products. One service in particular, called Pika Pika by Arianna, caught my eye. It’s a commission-based service that offers to draw your pet and insert them into a Pokémon card. The card looks like it could be used in the actual game. The picture of the pet is drawn in the style of a Pokémon. Typically, on every Pokémon card, there is a picture of the Pokémon and a list of abilities or moves that it can do.  The abilities that are listed on the Pika Pika card are creatively adapted in accordance with your pet’s personality. I have two pets myself, and I’ve thought about using this service on more than one occasion.

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