Although it was not up for an Academy Award last weekend, I was thinking about Hangover II while getting ready to attend an Oscar party this past weekend. Warner Bros. Inc. (“Warner Bros.”) has again been sued over this movie. You may recall Steve Baird’s informative and entertaining post about the potentially tangled web of… Continue Reading
Monthly Archives: February 2012
How to respond to demand letters
Posted in Mixed Bag of NutsWhen I first started working in the legal profession, I was struck by the tone many lawyers used in their correspondence. While many fighters claim that they’re going to let their fists do the talking, lawyers tend to let angry-sounding adverbs do the heavy lifting. If you’re doing something our client doesn’t like, you better cease-and-desist. When?… Continue Reading
Shark Tank. Minnow Diligence?
Posted in Branding, Marketing, Television, TrademarksShark Tank Episode 301 (Money Fragrance) For those who haven’t seen or heard of it yet, Shark Tank is an ABC reality television series in which entrepreneurs pitch investment proposals to a panel of five wealthy and feisty ”sharks” — including these independent and successful investors: Robert Herjavec, Barbara Corcoran, Kevin O’Leary, Daymond John, and Mark Cuban…. Continue Reading
A Quick Note: Puffing with Pride
Posted in MarketingIf I may interrupt for one moment… It’s not every day that we get to sing the praises of our wonderful bloggers, so I’m intruding long enough to let you know that Steve Baird was named an “Attorney of the Year” for 2011 in a local magazine, Minnesota Lawyer. Lawyers who receive this honor are… Continue Reading
Social Media and Sharing: On Pins & Needles and Taking the Road Less Travelled
Posted in Guest Bloggers—Alan Bergstrom, Brand Insights The explosion of social media and its accessibility via the internet and mobile devices have given rise to a number of products that allow people to share a variety of things, including photos, websites, locations, and activities with their friends, family and others. Two of the more recent social sharing products… Continue Reading
Twittering Grievances May Be Expensive
Posted in Law Suits, Social NetworkingIn this day, when social media such as Facebook and Twitter is so quick and easy to use, people may forget that they are still held accountable for what they may write… and it may become expensive. Tweeting about what you are up to or how you feel normally may not raise an issue, but… Continue Reading
Is the OPEN Act the Answer to Online Piracy?
Posted in Mixed Bag of NutsThe Stop Online Piracy Act (“SOPA”) and Protect Intellectual Property Act (“PIPA”) have been put on hold. But the Online Protection and Enforcement of Digital Trade Act (“OPEN Act”) is moving its way through the U.S. House of Representatives. The OPEN Act would allow copyright holders to file complaints about copyright infringement on foreign websites… Continue Reading
MOM’s New Look
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Food, MarketingJust announced yesterday, Minneapolis based Malt-O-Meal has changed its name to MOM Brands. Malt-O-Meal which has been making cereal for almost a century, manufactures private label brands for a multitude of grocery retailers (as well as their own lines of hot and cold cereal and oatmeal) and today stands as one of the nation’s leading… Continue Reading
jcpenney, You Wore Me Down, Now I’ll Wear You.
Posted in Mixed Bag of Nuts—Ellie Drotning, Graphic Designer When I hear a well-known brand has redesigned its mark, I’m like a kid on Christmas morning. For a graphic designer with a particular penchant for logos and branding, a new logo is like a gift I can’t wait to tear open. But when I got my first look at J…. Continue Reading
A Tale of Two Elephants
Posted in Guest Bloggers—Nancy Friedman, chief wordworker, Wordworking If you’re a serious bargain hunter or antique collector in the San Francisco Bay Area, your calendar is blocked out every year in early March for the region’s biggest flea market: the Oakland Museum of California’s White Elephant Sale, or “WES.” The sale started modestly more than 50 years ago… Continue Reading
BIG GINGER Trademark Dispute
Posted in Branding, Food, Infringement, Law Suits, Marketing, TrademarksTwin Cities quasi-celebrity Kieran Folliard grabbed headlines this week by suing the owners of Jameson Irish Whiskey, Pernod Ricard, for trademark infringement. Folliard is well known in the Twin Cities for founding a chain of pubs, including Cooper, Kieran’s Irish Pub, The Liffey, and The Local. Of these, The Local serves a locally well-known drink… Continue Reading
Ignorance Isn’t an Excuse That Holds Up in Court
Posted in Marketing(but I’m sure it’s blissful, while it lasts) By now, our non-lawyer readers have read at least one post that’s made them rethink some advertising campaign or marketing strategy. Right? We are creative, and although we know pretty much everything else, it’s not like we interpret legalities. (Not that we’d want to, either. It doesn’t… Continue Reading
Louboutin Red-Sole & Surrounding Contrast: An Implied Trademark Limitation
Posted in Articles, Branding, Fair Use, Infringement, International, Law Suits, Marketing, Mixed Bag of Nuts, Non-Traditional Trademarks, Sight, TrademarksThe Louboutin lacquered red sole trademark is the subject of great debate in the trademark world, fashion industry, popular news media, and among law school academics and friends of the court. I’m just not seeing it. I really don’t see a viable trademark claim here for Louboutin. Not for the reasons found by the district court — I… Continue Reading
I’m Dye-ing to Know
Posted in Advertising, Non-Traditional Trademarks, SightFor those of you who frequent DuetsBlog, you’ll know that color trademarks are a common topic of discussion. Steve Baird posted an excellent and thought provoking post just recently discussing Louboutin’s efforts to litigate the boundaries of its rights in the color red. It is generally accepted that color trademarks can receive protection upon obtaining ”secondary meaning” (i.e…. Continue Reading
Creepy. Distasteful. But not at all surprising. The Blue Ivy Trademark.
Posted in Branding, Guest Bloggers, Mixed Bag of Nuts, TrademarksBrand valuation and kids: Jay-Z, Beyonce and The Blue Ivy brand
Louboutin Red: Blending Into the Background
Posted in Branding, Fair Use, Infringement, Law Suits, Non-Traditional Trademarks, Sight, TrademarksA purely hypothetical puzzle, but I’m wondering, would Christian Louboutin have a viable trademark claim if Yves Saint Laurent sold women’s shoes in boxes bearing the above seemingly random grid of letters, each letter having equal type, style, font, color and emphasis? For those of you who answered with a strong “of course not,” I suspect your answer must change if selected… Continue Reading
Does the Trademark Office Need a Trademark Attorney?
Posted in Counterfeits, Infringement, SoapBox, TrademarksA few times each year, clients will call or write and inquire about some official-looking correspondence they’ve received about a trademark registration or application. That happened this week, and here’s the top portion of the official-looking correspondence (redacted): You can see the full page here. If you read the fine print, this letter from the… Continue Reading
Crack Pie, Compost Cookie, and Other Delicious Trademark Registrations
Posted in Food, TrademarksOn a recent trip to New York City, I found myself at the infamous Momofuku Milk Bar selecting some interesting delicacies. For anyone who hasn’t been, Momofuku Milk Bar can best be described as a bakery, but it’s unlike any bakery I have ever been to, and you’re talking to one lady who loves baked… Continue Reading
Changing Your Brand Color: No More Golden Arches?
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Famous Marks, Food, International, Marketing, Non-Traditional TrademarksLast year I had a running discussion on color trademarks. I blogged about the issues surrounding the protection of a color as a non-traditional trademark, the impact of industries clustering around a particular color, and the concern that functionality may impede protection of a color trademark. Need a refresher? Check here, here, here, and here…. Continue Reading
Tebow Rising? Still?
Posted in BrandingSome of you may remember that I recently authored a post calling Tim Tebow a Garbage Pail Kid. The thesis of my post was that in the world of personal branding, Tim Tebow was significantly closer to a fad than an enduring symbol likely to yield dividends from significant endorsement investments. After Tebow’s miraculous (lucky) playoff win… Continue Reading
Chevy Silverado Super Bowl Ad
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Fair Use, False Advertising, Food, Loss of Rights, Marketing, Television, TrademarksAbsorbing all the television commercials in between football action on the field can be as much fun on Super Bowl Sunday as the actual game itself, at least for trademark and marketing types, especially when your favorite team isn’t even on the field. One of my personal favorites from this past weekend’s Super Bowl XLVI was the… Continue Reading
Insuring a Great Super Bowl Trademark Fight
Posted in Advertising, Almost Advice, Articles, Branding, Fair Use, Infringement, Law Suits, Marketing, TrademarksSo, tomorrow is the big day, the big game, or whatever else other intimidated advertisers might call it. I just want to find the best deal on a flat screen television today! But, more to Mike Masnick’s point on Techdirt about the NFL’s reputation as a “trademark bully,” and his challenge to advertisers — “It’s the Super Bowl…. Continue Reading
When Social Media Campaigns Backfire: McDonald’s Edition
Posted in MarketingWe all know when a social media campaign backfires. It’s splashed all over our news channels. (Society seems to enjoy trainwrecks. McDonald’s recently jumped on that train—though probably not totally aware of it. Here’s what happened: McDonald’s used a hashtag (#MeettheFarmers & then #McDStories) to incite followers to tweet their McDonald’s experiences. Among the top… Continue Reading
Not a Merchandising Masterpiece
Posted in Television, TrademarksOne of my favorite shows on TV right now is Downton Abbey. No mere period drama, this Masterpiece Theatre presentation has become something of a sleeper sensation, partly for its swooning melodrama and partly for its (some would say romanticized) illustration of the English class system, following the upstairs-downstairs lives of the denizens of a… Continue Reading
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Duets Blog Authors
Steve Baird
Just so you know, I'm all about brands and the law, both professionally and personally. I regularly annoy family and friends in retail stores by focusing on product labels—not to buy the product, but to read the fine print and ask, "Who owns these brands" and "Did they really register those marks?" More...
Dan Kelly
You can call me a “non-traditional” attorney, which is a polite way of saying that I did not attend law school straight out of college. I spent five of my first six years after college as a junior high school teacher. The other year I worked as an engineer for a large corporation. More...
Sharon Armstrong
Voted most likely to become an actress while in pre-school, I don’t think I surprised anyone by becoming a lawyer, the steadiest professional gig open to those with a flair for the dramatic. More...
Brent Lorentz
Although I wish I could say my path to the law was the result of a lifelong dream or calling, it was more the result mere curiosity and an affinity for leather-bound books. More...
Catlan McCurdy
Having long been told by my parents that I could do or be anything I wanted, I chose at the age of 10 to become an attorney, as it was the career that would most likely lead me to my goal of becoming the first woman POTUS.More...
Tiffany Blofield
Although my initial career path was to be one of the Supremes (not the musically talented ones with platform shoes and sequins, but rather, the nine wearing sensible shoes and pressed black robes in DC), I will likely stay in Minnesota as I have never lived anywhere else. More...
Brad Walz
My law career started on the ice…as a defensive hockey player (we’re not talking professionally…and if I were, I probably wouldn’t have gotten into law). More...
Susan Perera
Born into the world with an aptitude for science and an affinity for art I found my career path quickly chosen for me. More...
Derek Allen
In hindsight, writing about creativity and the law may have always been in the cards for me. I began training for a career in litigation at an early age by finding ways to disagree with pretty much anyone about pretty much anything. In my longest-running “case,” I argued with my middle school math teacher, Mrs. Jabs, for the better part of four years over whether, even if I got the right answer, I had to show my work to get full credit. More...
Laura Gutierrez
An attorney I am not. Though told to become one, I don't possess those qualities needed to be an effective one (I lack confrontation skills, and although I can write a great argumentative essay, I can’t argue outside a sheet of paper). More...