On April Fool’s Day many years ago, an online gaming store modified its Terms of Use, adding the following clause: By placing an order via this Web site…, you agree to grant Us a non transferable option to claim, for now and for ever more, your immortal soul. Should We wish to exercise this option, you agree to surrender your [...]
Federal regulators are cracking down on the use of “off-channel” communications, such as text messaging, WhatsApp, Signal, and other messaging platforms, to the extent that those messages are not maintained in compliance with legal requirements for data retention. What should you, as an employer, do about this crackdown? First, your business needs a policy requiring all electronic workplace communications to [...]
Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the mind. Examples include artwork, computer software, novels, logos, music, and technological inventions. Although it’s intangible, IP is often more valuable for a business than its tangible assets, such as equipment and inventory. Nearly every business has some form of IP. Trade Secrets The Uniform Trade Secrets Act, which has been adopted by [...]
We frequently get questions from our clients about requests for payment of registration, publication, or renewal fees for corporate, domain name and intellectual property filings. Requests may also be received for monitoring fees or the preparation of minutes. The scam requests typically look like invoices or letters, often containing false due dates or threats about loss of rights if you [...]
Businesses often want to have a trademark that describes what they’re selling, but in order to be protectable, a trademark must be “distinctive.” This means it must be used to identify the source of the product or service. Courts classify marks into categories of distinctiveness. The most distinctive marks are those that are arbitrary or fanciful. Examples include EXXON for [...]
Just as COVID-19 lockdowns were beginning, Netflix released the wildly successful Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness television series. The documentary, often described as a “train wreck,” is about big-cat owners Joe Exotic, Carole Baskin, and Doc Antle, focusing on the events leading up to Joe Exotic’s conviction for paying a hitman to murder Carole Baskin. During the lockdowns, tattoo-shop [...]
A Canadian judge recently ruled that a farmer's thumbs-up emoji constituted approval of a contract a grain buyer had drafted, signed, and texted to him. The grain buyer’s message said, “Please confirm flax contract.” The farmer replied with the thumbs-up emoji, but never delivered the grain. Although the farmer argued that his thumbs-up emoji indicated only that he had received [...]
The state of California has long prohibited noncompete agreements in the employment context. It defines noncompete agreements broadly, and even nonsolicitation clauses are unenforceable. In other words, under California law, employees are not only free to directly compete with their previous employers immediately after termination of employment, but they can also directly solicit the customers they worked with in their [...]
Last month, in Thaler v. Perlmutter, the District of D.C. reiterated that the US copyright laws protect only works created by humans. The plaintiff, Stephen Thaler, owns a computer system called the “Creativity Machine.” He sought to register the copyright in a work of art generated by the machine. On the application, he listed the Creativity Machine as the author [...]
This summer, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued updates to its Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. It also updated its practical business guidance, FTC's Endorsement Guides: What People are Asking. While the general idea hasn’t changed - endorsements must reflect the honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experience of the endorser – the revised guidelines provide [...]
