The Briefing by Weintraub Tobin

This week on the Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss a dispute between rapper Ice Cube and Robinhood over the trading app’s use of Ice Cube’s image in a newsletter. Watch this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

This week on the Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the naming rights agreement between the Los Angeles Clippers and Intuit whereby the Clippers agreed to name their new $1.8 billion arena in Inglewood, California, the Intuit Dome. Watch this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

This week on The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss a trademark infringement lawsuit filed by 1-800 Contacts that accuses Warby Parker of buying search-engine keywords for “1-800 Contacts” to misdirect customers to its competing online store. Watch this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

In this week’s episode of the Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the Cleveland Indian’s attempt to rebrand as the Cleveland Guardians, and the complications that arose surrounding the new trademark. Watch the episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

In this week’s episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss an intellectual property dispute between the San Diego Gulls Hockey Club and ECHL, Inc. Watch the full episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

In this week’s episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss a defamation lawsuit filed by a former Manhattan prosecutor against Netflix over her portrayal in the “When They See Us” series. Watch the full episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.  

In this week’s episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss a legal dispute between the Prince estate and an Ohio-based winery over the rights to the trademark “Purple Rain.” Watch the video episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

In this week’s episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the NCAA’s recent policy change which allows college athletes to monetize their NIL, as well as potential downsides to the new policy. Watch the full episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

In this week’s episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the NCAA’s decision to petition a trademark held by a urology office due to its alleged likeness to its own trademarks, ‘March Mayhem’ and ‘March Madness.’ Watch the video version of this episode on Weintraub’s YouTube channel, here.

In this week’s episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss lawsuits over identifiable tattoos on professional athletes featured in video games, and who owns the copyright to body art. Watch the video version of this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel here. Cases discussed: Solid Oak Sketches, LLC v. 2K Games, Inc. Alexander v. Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. Bill Graham Archives v. Dorling Kindersley, Ltd. Darabont v. AMC Network Entm’t, LLC

In this week’s episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the Ninth Circuit ruling on the trademark aspects of Dr. Seuss “mashups.” Watch the video version of this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel here. Listen to part one of this topic here. Watch the video version of part one here. Cases discussed: Dr. Seuss Enterprises v. Penguin Books USA Dr. Seuss Enterprises v. Comic Mix LLC Mattel Inc. v. MCA Records Inc. VIP Products LLC v. Jack Daniels Properties Inc.

In this week’s episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the Ninth Circuit ruling on the copyright aspects of Dr. Seuss “Mashups.” Watch the video of this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel here. Listen to part two of this topic here. Watch part two of this topic here. Cases discussed: Dr. Seuss Enterprises v. Penguin Books USA Dr. Seuss Enterprises v. Comic Mix LLC

In this week’s episode of the Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss recent news stories reporting that police officers played copyrighted music during filmed encounters, ostensibly to keep the videos from being uploaded to the Internet. Scott and Josh discuss how copyright law, the DMCA, and fair use apply to this tactic. Watch the video of this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here. Scott’s article on this topic on the IP Law Blog can be read here. Case discussed: Lenz v. Universal Music Group

In this bonus episode of the Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the stringent trademark enforcement protection for Olympic symbols, words, and phrases as well as recent lawsuits that have reinforced that protection. Watch the video version of this episode on Weintraub’s YouTube channel, here. Lawsuits discussed: San Francisco Arts & Athletics, Inc. v United States Olympic Committee USOPC v Puma  

This week on the Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the copyright lawsuit over a Black Mirror episode starring Miley Cyrus, the plot of which filmmaker Geoffrey Blair Hajim said was lifted from his film Strange Frame: Love and Sax. Watch the episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

In this week’s episode of The Briefing by The IP Law Blog, attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the trademark litigation between Nike and a custom shoe maker, MSCHF (pronounced “Mischief”). In Nike Inc. v MSCHF Product Studio, Inc. Nike sued MSCHF over unauthorized versions of the Nike Air Max 97 featuring satanic imagery. The shoes were tied into marketing by Rapper Lil Nas X, and all 666 pairs created by MSCHF were sold. View the video recording of this episode on the Weintraub Tobin YouTube channel, here.

In this week’s episode, attorneys Josh Escovedo and Scott Hervey discuss an update to the litigation over Andy Warhol’s series of portraits of the artist Prince (Andy Warhol Foundation v Goldsmith). They provide a recap of last week’s episode, which covers the Second Circuit decision in favor of Goldsmith, the photographer whose image Warhol used to create the Prince Portraits, and the holding that Warhol’s renditions were not transformative enough to be fair use. That decision overturned a lower court decision in favor of the Warhol Foundation. This week, Scott and Josh discuss the possible impact of the Supreme Court fair use decision in Google LLC v Oracle America, Inc., including the Andy Warhol Foundation’s petition to the Second Circuit for review of the Goldsmith decision. Watch the video version of this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here. Listen to part one of this topic, here. Watch part one of this topic, here.

In this week’s episode, attorneys Josh Escovedo and Scott Hervey discuss the litigation over Andy Warhol’s series of portraits of the artist Prince (Andy Warhol Foundation v Goldsmith). Their discussion covers the Second Circuit decision in favor of Goldsmith, the photographer whose image Warhol used to create the Prince Portraits, and the holding that Warhol’s renditions were not transformative enough to be fair use. The decision overturned a lower court decision in favor of the Warhol Foundation. Production Note: This episode includes a discussion of the high-profile litigation between the artist Shepard Fairey and the Associated Press over Fairey’s iconic “Hope” poster of then-presidential candidate Barack Obama. Throughout the episode, Scott and Josh mispronounce Fairey’s last name as “Farley.” They offer apologies to listeners and to the artist. Watch a video version of this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here. Listen to part two of this topic here. Watch part two of this topic here.

In this week’s episode, attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the process of clearing titles for Film and Television shows. They discuss recent high-stakes litigation around entertainment titles, including Stouffer v. National Geographic Partners LLC, Jon Astor-White v. Daniel Strong (Empire), and the “Honey Badger” case. Watch this episode on YouTube here. Watch a previous episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog discussing the Empire litigation, here. Read an article Scott wrote on how the Empire litigation extended the permitted use of third-party trademarks on The IP Law Blog, here. Read an article on The IP Law Blog about the “Honey Badger” case, here.

Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss two topics in this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog. First, they talk about GEO Group’s defamation lawsuit against Netflix over the show “Messiah,” which was just dropped. Then, at 8:20, they move on to New York’s new post-mortem Right of Publicity law. Watch this episode on Weintraub Tobin’s YouTube channel. For more information on the New York statute, read Scott’s post on the IP Law Blog: I See Dead People…Filing Lawsuits in New York.

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Peloton petitions to establish that SPIN and SPINNING are generic terms and can’t be trademarked. Josh and Scott discuss Peloton bringing a case against Mad Dogg’s trademarks and how they are now generic. Watch this episode on YouTube, here. Read Scott Hervey’s article about the topic on the IP Law Blog.

In this second of two episodes on this topic, Weintraub Tobin attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss defamation lawsuits in movies and TV that deal with “Inspired by” characters. Watch this episode on Weintraub’s YouTube channel, here. Listen to part one of this series here. Read Scott Hervey’s blog post about this topic on the IP Law Blog.

This episode is part one of a two-part series of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog in which Weintraub Tobin attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss defamation lawsuits in movies and TV that deal with “Inspired by” characters. Watch this episode on Weintraub’s YouTube channel, here. Listen to part two of the series here. Watch part two of the series here. Read Scott Hervey’s blog post about this topic on the IP Law Blog.

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott and Josh discuss the possible legal issues celebrities face when they post images of themselves that they did not take. Watch this episode on Weintraub’s YouTube channel, here. Read Scott Hervey’s article about this topic on the IP Law Blog.

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Weintraub Tobin IP attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss a recent decision by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board involving winemaker Delicato Vineyards and a hard cider maker from Virginia. Delicato Vineyards, which owns the trademark GNARLEY HEAD for wine, opposed the registration of GNARLED ORCHARD for hard cider. Watch this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, intellectual property attorney Scott Hervey talks with co-host Josh Escovedo about Josh’s article “The Ninth Circuit Affirms Ruling that COMIC-CON isn’t Generic for Comic Conventions.” Watch this episode on Weintraub’s YouTube channel, here. Read Josh’s article on the IP Law Blog.

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Weintraub Tobin attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss copyright litigation around the “Jersey Boys” — a musical and movie about The Four Seasons– involving an unpublished biography by one of the band members. Watch this episode on Weintraub’s YouTube channel, here.

On this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Weintraub Tobin IP attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss Josh’s article “Navigating the Hazy Intersection of Federal and State Law on Cannabis and Advising Clients on Protecting Their Trademarks.” Watch this episode on Weintraub’s YouTube channel, here. Read the full article on The IP Law Blog, here.

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Weintraub attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss Scott’s article covering the merits of filing a Short Form Copyright Assignment. Watch the video of this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here. Read the full article on the IP Law Blog, here. ​

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Weintraub Tobin IP attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss Scott’s article on a copyright dispute between a photographer and Buzzfeed. Watch the episode on Weintraub’s YouTube channel, here. Read the full article on the IP Law Blog, here: “Second Circuit Frames Novel Issue of Photographer’s Claim of Copyright Infringement and DMCA Violation”

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Weintraub attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the copyright dispute over the TV show “Empire” Watch this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here. Case discussed: Jon Astor-White v. Daniel Strong.

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, co-hosts Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the changes in intellectual property law stemming from the recently passed COVID-19 stimulus bill. Watch the episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here. Read a related article by Weintraub attorney Jessica Corpuz on the IP Law Blog.

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Weintraub Tobin IP attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the streaming platform Twitch, which has found itself in the middle of a conflict regarding the use of music by live streamers on the platform. Watch this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Weintraub IP attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss a case involving the Australian boot company UGG. Watch this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

Sushi Nozawa LLC, owner of the popular sushi destination Sugarfish, is challenging the HRB Experience LLC over use of the term “Hand Roll Bar.” In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss the lawsuit, including descriptive versus generic terms, secondary meaning, and the potential strategies of the parties. Watch this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss Tiffany & Co’s lawsuit against Costco for selling Tiffany-like rings and using the word Tiffany on nearby signage, claiming trademark infringement and unfair business practices. Watch the episode on Weintraub’s YouTube channel, here.    

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Weintraub attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss Josh’s article for the IP Law Blog, “Dogs, Whiskey, and Intellectual Property: Need I Say More?” Jack Daniel’s Properties, Inc. has petitioned the Supreme Court of the United States for certiorari following an unfavorable ruling from the Ninth Circuit in the matter of VIP Products LLC v. Jack Daniel’s Properties, Inc. In that case, VIP Products sued Jack Daniel’s after receiving a cease-and-desist letter concerning its Bad Spaniels Silly Squeaker dog toy. The toy is intentionally similar to the famous Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7 whiskey bottle but is clearly intended to be a joke. Watch the episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here. Read the full article here. ​  

In this episode of The Briefing by the IP Law Blog, Weintraub attorneys Scott Hervey and Josh Escovedo discuss NFL athlete Russell Wilson and ITU applications. Watch the episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel, here.