Insights

In BlueRadios, Inc. v. Hamilton, Brook, Smith & Reynolds, P.C., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit revived a patent malpractice claim and clarified when an attorney-client relationship may arise in joint patent prosecution. The decis… Read More

In a decision with practical significance for government contractors, subcontractors, and patent owners, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed summary judgment for AeroVironment in a patent case involving NASA’s Ingenuity Mars… Read More

Case: Illinois Tamale Company, Inc. d/b/a Iltaco v. LC Trademarks, Inc. and Little Caesar Enterprises, Inc., Nos. 24-3317, 25-1072, 25-1076 & 25-1112 (7th Cir. Jan. 16, 2026). The Seventh Circuit affirmed the denial of preliminary injunctive reli… Read More

Short answer: In Yonay v. Paramount Pictures Corp., the Ninth Circuit held that Top Gun: Maverick did not infringe the copyright in the 1983 article “Top Guns” because the film did not copy protectable expression. The court also held that Paramou… Read More

The March 25, 2026 House oversight hearing on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) underscored a practical point for businesses: patent and trademark policy at the agency remains in motion. The hearing focused on proposed Patent Trial and App… Read More

On January 29, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed summary judgment of noninfringement in favor of Hulu in a dispute involving streaming-media technology. In practical terms, the court concluded that no trial was needed b… Read More

The Federal Circuit has upheld a ruling by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB, or the Board) that certain claims of Viasat Inc.’s data error-correction patent are unpatentable as obvious. Viasat owns U.S. Patent No. 8,966,347 (the “’347 pa… Read More

The Federal Circuit has affirmed a ruling by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB or Board) that the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) correctly found claims in an Estech Systems IP LLC patent covering quality improvements to voice over inter… Read More