Tag Archives: ipnews

When Consent Isn’t Enough – The TTAB’s Decision in In re Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla



A consent agreement can be a powerful tool to overcome a USPTO likelihood-of-confusion refusal—but only if it’s done right. In this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub Tobin attorneys Scott Hervey and Richard Buckley discuss the TTAB’s precedential decision in In re Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla, where the Board rejected a one-page consent agreement as a “naked consent” insufficient to overcome a Section 2(d) refusal. Continue reading When Consent Isn’t Enough – The TTAB’s Decision in In re Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla

Protecting Fictional Characters: Copyright and Trademark Strategies



Can a car, a superhero, or even a cartoon sidekick be protected by copyright? In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Matt Sugarman break down how fictional characters earn legal protection — and when they don’t.
 
From DC Comics v. Towle (the “Batmobile” case) to Carroll Shelby Licensing v. Halicki (the “Eleanor” case), Scott and Matt explore the three-part test for character copyrightability, how trademark rights can extend protection, and what creators and studios can do to safeguard their most valuable IP assets.

Continue reading Protecting Fictional Characters: Copyright and Trademark Strategies


George Santos vs. Jimmy Kimmel: Why the 2nd Circuit Sided with Comedy



Former Congressman George Santos sued Jimmy Kimmel after the late-night host used Cameo videos in a comedy segment called “Will Santos Say It?” Santos claimed copyright infringement and fraud, but both the District Court and the Second Circuit said Kimmel’s use was fair use. In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Tara Sattler break down:
 
● How Kimmel obtained the videos using fake Cameo accounts
 
● Why the District Court dismissed Santos’s case
 
● How the Second Circuit reinforced that criticism and satire are protected under fair use
 
● Why Santos’s contract and fraud claims also failed
Watch this episode on YouTube.

Anthropic Settles AI Training Case for $1.5 Billion +



The Anthropic settlement shows just how costly copyright missteps can be in AI development. Anthropic has agreed to a $1.5B settlement after a court found that keeping a permanent library of pirated books was not fair use—even though training its AI model on those same works was.
 
On this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub attorneys Scott Hervey and Matt Sugarman discuss the ruling, the settlement, and what it means for future copyright claims against AI companies.

Continue reading Anthropic Settles AI Training Case for $1.5 Billion +