This question was posed to me during a recent interview. Is it possible to patent something that is used for an illegal purpose or is used with an illegal substance, or is there a prohibition against such patents? Is patent…
Several months ago, Slowtwitch.com erupted over an altered image that had been discovered of pro triathlete Hillary Biscay. The original image showed Biscay running during an Ironman-branded race with a jersey that bears a small blue decal. That decal is…
Kim Manwaring is a Phoenix neurosurgeon who invented a number of medical devices in his garage-turned-laboratory. He was profiled in the Arizona Republic this weekend, and I thought it was a great story of the and hard work and creative…
The Ironman trademark (the second link is to one of the many Ironman registrations) is an extremely valuable trademark to the World Triathlon Corporation. The WTC works to protect its unauthorized use (though sometimes I do question their authorized use)….
An assignment can be filed with a patent application to immediately convey control of the patent application to the assignee. This is frequently necessary where the inventor is an employee of a company that will be controlling the patent application….
Before the end of last year, I wrote about obtaining trademark protection in a series of works. I used books as an example: while you normally cannot register the title of a single book, when you develop a series of…
I received my latest bit of trademark happenings from this weekend’s Saturday Night Live Weekend Update, not a colleague’s blog. Skee-Ball, Inc., the owner of Skee-ball games filed suit against a company that runs Skee-ball tournaments under the moniker “Brewksee-Ball.”…
Trademark rights in a book title are not ordinarily available. Trademark protection doesn’t extend to titles of single pieces. Even massive sales of a single work cannot create the necessary source-indicating quality that a trademark requires. So if your book…
I hear too many people saying, “I’ve got this great idea. If I could just get it patented, I’d make a million dollars.” A patent isn’t a ticket into a life of luxury. It doesn’t mean squat if you don’t…
An invention must be of the appropriate subject matter to be eligible for a patent. Appropriate subject matter includes, by statutory definition, a machine, article of manufacture, composition of matter, or process. For most inventions, the determination regarding whether the…