In Horror Inc. v. Miller, the Second Circuit affirmed that Victor Miller had successfully reclaimed his rights in the screenplay for Friday the 13th by invoking the Copyright Act’s termination provisions, notwithstanding his assignment of those rights to a film production company in 1980. The Court reached that conclusion after finding that Miller’s assignment was made as an independent contractor, rather than as an employee.
Client Alert | October 5, 2021
LMG Life Sciences named Gibson Dunn as the “General Patent Litigation Firm of the Year” at its annual awards ceremony. In addition, three Gibson Dunn partners were named Litigator of the Year in their respective practices.
Firm News | September 23, 2021
In this webcast, an experienced team of national security, cyber-crime, and litigation practitioners at Gibson Dunn will share their experiences in investigating and defending companies that fall victim to theft of their trade secrets, and highlight a number of notable recent criminal prosecutions under the Economic Espionage Act and related statutes.
Webcasts | September 23, 2021
This edition of Gibson Dunn’s Federal Circuit Update summarizes new petitions for certiorari in cases originating in the Federal Circuit concerning the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s NHK-Fintiv Rule. This Update also discusses recent Federal Circuit decisions. Notably, starting with the September 2021 court sitting, the court has now resumed in-person arguments.
Client Alert | September 8, 2021
Best Lawyers® named 10 Gibson Dunn partners as the 2022 Lawyer of the Year in their respective practice areas and cities: Theodore Boutrous, Jr.
Firm News | August 19, 2021
Four Gibson Dunn partners were recognized by Who’s Who Legal in their respective fields. Who’s Who Legal Asset Recovery 2021 recommended Dubai partner Graham Lovett.
Firm News | August 13, 2021
Washington, D.C. partner Mark Perry and San Francisco associate Jaysen Chung are the authors of "Alice at Six: Patent Eligibility Comes of Age," [PDF] published by the Chicago-Kent Journal of Intellectual Property on August 2, 2021.
Article | August 4, 2021
This edition of Gibson Dunn’s Federal Circuit Update discusses recent Federal Circuit decisions concerning pleading requirements, obviousness, and more Western District of Texas venue issues. Also this month, the U.S. Senate voted to confirm Tiffany P. Cunningham to be United States Circuit Judge for the Federal Circuit and Federal Circuit Judge Kathleen O’Malley announced her retirement.
Client Alert | August 2, 2021
Gibson Dunn lawyers discuss developments at the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit for June 2021, including the Supreme Court’s decisions in Arthrex and Minerva Surgical.
Client Alert | July 6, 2021
New York partner Jane Love was named to Managing IP’s Top 250 Women in IP 2021, which recognizes the “senior female IP practitioners in private practice who have performed exceptionally for their clients and firms in the past year.” The list was published July 1, 2021.
Firm News | July 1, 2021
Today, the Supreme Court upheld the doctrine of assignor estoppel in patent cases, concluding in a 5-4 decision that a patent assignor cannot, with certain exceptions, subsequently challenge the patent’s validity.
Client Alert | June 29, 2021
On June 8, 2021, in Oakwood Laboratories LLC v. Thanoo, the Third Circuit “endeavored to clarify the requirements for pleading a trade secret misappropriation claim under the Defend Trade Secrets Act” (DTSA).
Client Alert | June 24, 2021
On June 21, 2021, the Supreme Court held 5-4 that the absence of Executive Branch review of decisions rendered by Administrative Patent Judges (APJs) of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) violates the Appointments Clause, and that the proper remedy is to sever a statutory provision so that the Director of the Patent and Trademark Office may review PTAB decisions.
Client Alert | June 21, 2021
Washington, D.C. partner Howard Hogan and New York associate Laura Mumm are the authors of "How Trade Dress Law Has Evolved During COVID," [PDF] published by Law360 on June 11, 2021.
Article | June 14, 2021
On June 11, 2021, the Second Circuit issued its decision in 1-800 Contacts, Inc. v. FTC, an appeal of an administrative litigation brought by the Federal Trade Commission against 1-800 Contacts. The decision—which rejected the FTC’s claim that several trademark settlements by 1-800 Contacts violated the antitrust laws —found that the trademark settlement agreements at issue were “typical” and procompetitive, and provides crucial guidance for parties considering settling trademark disputes.
Client Alert | June 14, 2021
Gibson Dunn lawyers discuss developments at the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit for May 2021.
Client Alert | June 8, 2021
Gibson Dunn was recognized by IAM Patent 2021 among the top patent practices nationally and in California, New York, Texas and Washington, D.C. The guide additionally named 15 Gibson Dunn partners to its list of the “world’s leading patent professionals”: Dallas partner Mark Reiter, Los Angeles partners Wayne Barsky and Jason Lo, New York partners Benjamin Hershkowitz, Josh Krevitt, Jane Love, Brian Rosenthal, Daniel Thomasch and Robert Trenchard, Orange County partners Kenneth Parker and William Rooklidge, Palo Alto partner Carrie LeRoy, San Francisco partner Karen Spindler, and Washington D.C. partners Brian Buroker and Mark Perry.
Firm News | June 1, 2021
Orange County of counsel Anne Brody is the co-author of "Courts Are Aligning Patent Fraud, Inequitable Conduct Claims," [PDF] published by Law360 on May 18, 2021.
Article | May 19, 2021
The Daily Journal named Century City partner Wayne Barsky among its 2021 Top Intellectual Property Lawyers. His profile was published on April 21, 2021.
Firm News | April 21, 2021
On April 5, 2021, the Supreme Court held 6-2 that Google’s use of the Java interface in the Android platform falls within the fair use doctrine.
Client Alert | April 5, 2021
Gibson Dunn lawyers discuss developments at the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit for March 2021.
Client Alert | April 5, 2021
Gibson Dunn lawyers discuss developments at the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit for February 2021.
Client Alert | March 3, 2021
Gibson Dunn, Orange County partner Kenneth Parker and Washington, D.C. partner Howard Hogan were named to the World Trademark Review 1000: The World’s Leading Trademark Professionals 2021 edition for Enforcement and Litigation in the Washington, D.C. metro area and California metro area.
Firm News | February 17, 2021
The Am Law Litigation Daily named New York partner Josh Krevitt and Palo Alto partner Stuart Rosenberg as its Litigators of the Week for scoring a complete victory for Fitbit in a high-profile, high-stakes patent case against Fitbit at the U.S. the International Trade Commission.
Firm News | February 17, 2021
Palo Alto partner Mark Lyon is the co-author of "ITC Section 337 Patent Investigations: Overview," [PDF] published by Thomson Reuters Practical Law in February 2021.
Publications | February 10, 2021
This edition of Gibson Dunn’s Federal Circuit Update summarizes the three pending Supreme Court cases originating in the Federal Circuit and key filings for certiorari review. We address the Federal Circuit’s updates to its Oral Argument Guide and its new procedures for handling highly sensitive information. And we discuss other recent Federal Circuit decisions concerning the validity of assignment agreements, motions to transfer from the Western District of Texas, waiver, forfeiture, and venue for ANDA cases.
Client Alert | February 1, 2021
We are pleased to present Gibson Dunn’s eighth “Federal Circuit Year In Review,” providing a statistical overview and substantive summaries of the 130 precedential patent opinions issued by the Federal Circuit between August 1, 2019 and July 31, 2020.
Client Alert | January 11, 2021
Gibson Dunn lawyers report on recent intellectual property law developments relating to the COVID-19 pandemic as of January 2021, and provides updates on various developments covered in previous alerts.
Client Alert | January 8, 2021
On December 27, 2020, President Trump signed the bipartisan COVID-19 relief and government funding bill, which incorporated the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act of 2020. Known as the CASE Act, it contains various revisions to the Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101 et seq., with the goal of creating a new avenue for copyright owners to enforce their rights without having to file a lawsuit in federal court.
Client Alert | December 28, 2020
On December 22, 2020, Congress passed the content of a pending bill, H.R. 6196, the “Trademark Modernization Act of 2020,” as part of its year-end virus relief and spending package. Among other things, the Act seeks to create more efficient processes to challenge registrations that are not being used in commerce, including by establishing new ex parte proceedings. The Act also seeks to unify the standard for irreparable harm with respect to injunctions in trademark cases, in light of inconsistencies that have emerged across federal courts after the Supreme Court’s decision in eBay v. MercExchange, LLC, 547 U.S. 388 (2006).
Client Alert | December 22, 2020
German publication Kanzleimonitor 2020/2021 listed Gibson Dunn among the top 50 law firms in Germany recommended by in-house lawyers. In the categories of Stock Corporation and Corporate Governance Law, Munich partner Ferdinand Fromholzer was one of two most recommended lawyers, Munich of counsel Silke Beiter was frequently recommended, and the firm was ranked among the top 10 in Germany.
Firm News | November 5, 2020
Benchmark Litigation US recognized Gibson Dunn in eight national litigation practice areas in its 2021 edition and named 66 partners as Litigation Stars and Future Stars across the U.S.
Firm News | October 16, 2020
Washington, D.C. partners Howard Hogan and Lucas Townsend and associate Max Schulman are the authors of "Where Does Judge Barrett Fall on IP Issues?" [PDF], published by Bloomberg Law on September 30, 2020.
Publications | October 6, 2020
LMG Life Sciences named the firm's win in Mayne Pharma v. Merck Sharpe & Dohme as a Patent Impact Case of the Year. LMG Life Sciences announced the award at its annual awards presentation on September 23, 2020.
Firm News | September 30, 2020
Best Lawyers® named 13 Gibson Dunn partners as the 2021 Lawyer of the Year in their respective practice areas and cities: Frederick Brown – San Francisco – Trademark Law Lawyer of the Year, Jessica Brown – Denver – Employment Law – Management Lawyer of the Year, Christopher Dillon – San Jose – Corporate Law Lawyer of the Year, Baruch Fellner – Washington, D.C. – Litigation – Labor and Employment Lawyer of the Year, Stewart McDowell – San Francisco – Banking and Finance Law Lawyer of the Year, Peter Modlin – San Francisco – Litigation – Environmental Lawyer of the Year, Kenneth Parker – Orange County – Litigation – Patent Lawyer of the Year, Doug Rayburn – Dallas – Securities/Capital Markets Law Lawyer of the Year, Douglas Smith – San Francisco –
Firm News | August 20, 2020
New York partners Joseph Evall and Richard Mark and associate Amanda First are the authors of "Don't Count On PREP Act To Defend Pandemic IP Infringement," [PDF] published on July 2, 2020.
Publications | July 2, 2020
On June 30, 2020, the Supreme Court held 8-1 that under the Lanham Act, the combination of an otherwise generic term and a top-level Internet domain (such as “.com”) can create a protectable mark if consumers recognize the mark as a brand name.
Client Alert | June 30, 2020
This Alert reports on recent intellectual property law developments relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, as of June 26, 2020.
Client Alert | June 26, 2020
Gibson Dunn was recognized by IAM Patent 2020 among the top patent practices nationally and in California, New York, Texas and Washington, D.C. The guide additionally named 15 Gibson Dunn partners to its list of the “world's leading patent professionals": Dallas partners Tracey Davies and Mark Reiter, Los Angeles partners Wayne Barsky and Jason Lo, New York partners Benjamin Hershkowitz, Josh Krevitt, Jane Love, Brian Rosenthal, Daniel Thomasch and Robert Trenchard, Orange County partner William Rooklidge, Palo Alto partner Carrie LeRoy, San Francisco partner Karen Spindler, and Washington D.C. partners Brian Buroker and Mark Perry.
Firm News | June 17, 2020
This Alert reports on recent intellectual property law developments relating to the COVID-19 pandemic. First, we describe new initiatives launched by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) and the United States Department of Energy (“DOE”) compiling helpful information for intellectual property stakeholders seeking to combat the pandemic.
Client Alert | June 12, 2020
Gibson Dunn lawyers report on recent intellectual property law developments relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, as of May 28, 2020.
Client Alert | May 28, 2020
On May 21, 2020, the U.S. Copyright Office (the “Office”) released a nearly 200-page report (the “Report”)[1] suggesting changes to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (17 U.S.C. § 512) (“DMCA”), which governs how online service providers (OSPs) police potential online copyright infringement. The report was the result of a multi-year study of the DMCA—the first comprehensive study by the Office on the DMCA’s operation—and was prepared to analyze whether the DMCA’s safe harbor provisions are successfully balancing the needs of OSPs and copyright holders, “particularly in light of the enormous changes that the internet has undergone in the last twenty-plus years.”[2]
Client Alert | May 22, 2020
Gibson Dunn reports on the steady pace of patent litigation and patent review filings during the COVID-19 pandemic, and notes that some aspects of ongoing patent litigation are also proceeding as usual.
Client Alert | May 13, 2020
On April 27, 2020, a divided Supreme Court held in Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, Inc. that Copyright protection does not extend to the annotations contained in Georgia’s official annotated code. The “government edicts” doctrine, the Court held, puts Georgia’s annotations outside the reach of copyright protection because they are created by an arm of the Georgia legislature acting in the course of its legislative duties.
Client Alert | May 7, 2020
This edition of Gibson Dunn’s Federal Circuit Update summarizes the three Supreme Court decisions in cases originating in the Federal Circuit decided in April and key filings for certiorari review, as well as other developments from the court.
Client Alert | May 6, 2020
Institutions around the world continue to grapple with the intellectual property implications associated with their efforts to facilitate the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of COVID-19.
Client Alert | April 28, 2020
On April 23, 2020, the Supreme Court unanimously held that under the Lanham Act, proof of willful trademark infringement is not a precondition to a mark holder’s recovery of the infringer’s profits.
Client Alert | April 23, 2020
On April 20, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court held 7-2 that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s decision whether a petition for inter partes review is time-barred is not judicially reviewable.
Client Alert | April 20, 2020
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, organizations around the world are grappling with the intellectual property implications associated with encouraging the rapid distribution of personal protective equipment (PPE) and the development of COVID-19 pharmaceutical treatments to help fight the virus.
Client Alert | April 14, 2020
Many companies have retooled (or are considering retooling) their businesses to meet the rising demand for personal protective equipment (“PPE”), ventilators, and other products or services to address the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, on April 2, 2020, the President ordered the Department of Health and Human Services to use its authority under the Defense Production Act (“DPA”) of 1950, as amended, 50 U.S.C. §§ 4501 et seq., to facilitate the supply of materials for the production of ventilators by several companies operating in the United States.
Client Alert | April 8, 2020