When I moved to Minneapolis four years ago, I mentioned in passing that there was a noticeable lack of Wal-Marts in the suburbs surrounding the Twin Cities. I don’t have a particular affinity for shopping at Wal-Mart, it was just a casual observation. Still, the friends I was with at the time gasped. Eyes wide… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: copyright infringement
Just Rewards?
Posted in CopyrightsWhat if a car thief stood before a judge and said, “Yes, I know I’ve stolen thousands of cars and broke the law, and I’m ready to make some reparations to the owners. But I think you should grant me permission to take all the cars I want in the future so that it wouldn’t… Continue Reading
The Nine-Word Copyright Opinion: Costco v. Omega
Posted in CopyrightsThe Supreme Court heard the appeal of Costco v. Omega, a copyright decision from the Ninth Circuit regarding the application of the first-sale doctrine to a foreign manufacturer who did not manufacture the goods in the U.S. or sell the goods directly to Costco. The outcome? The Supreme Court’s entire decision (available for viewing here) consisted of nine… Continue Reading
Sorry, Plaintiff, You Might Not Recoup All of Your Damages
Posted in CopyrightsDo these designs look identical to you? They do to Urban Bratz. Urban Bratz, owner of a copyright registration for its design, filed suit in the Northern District of Illinois against Spencer Gifts claiming copyright and trademark infringement among other causes of action. You can read the complaint, filed August 24, here. Specifically, Urban Bratz… Continue Reading
Politically Entertaining
Posted in Copyrights, Fair Use, InfringementAs Election Day, November 2nd, is fast approaching, I thought it would be timely to do a piece on politicians and how they periodically run afoul of the copyright laws. Over the past few years, there have been several political candidates accused of using copyrighted material in their campaigns, and “fair use” tends to be… Continue Reading
Van Halen Sues Nike
Posted in Copyrights, InfringementLast month, Eddie Van Halen’s company, ELVH, Inc., filed a lawsuit against Nike for copyright infringement. The complaint alleges the above-depicted model of Nike’s Dunk Low shoes infringe his copyright in the red, white and black striped Frankenstein guitar design. The lawsuit is seeking not only profits from Nike’s sale of the shoes and damages, but also the… 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...