Would you spend over a thousand dollars on a pair of sneakers? There are plenty who would -- a pair of Adidas Yeezy’s comes with a price tag of $1,000 or more. For those who are less flush, the market has become flooded with knock-off fakes. These are promoted via comments and sponsored ads on sites like Facebook and Instagram.

Take a look at what's happening at the May Intellectual Property Section Executive Meeting. Thank you to our Secretary, John Bishop, Cohen Garelick & Glazier PC, for this month's minutes!

The California burger chain In-N-Out has sued Denver-based Smashburger for trademark infringement claiming that its use of TRIPLE DOUBLE for a burger infringes its DOUBLE DOUBLE, TRIPLE TRIPLE and QUAD QUAD marks for burgers. 

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) makes it illegal to bypass software that prevents the copying of protected work in many situations. But the EFF says that violates the right to freedom of expression by limiting what people can do with things they have purchased. It is now suing the US government.

The two most precious resources for any small-business owner are time and money. That’s why when the subject of intellectual property comes up, many owners run in the other direction. They see images of expensive lawyers and use that as an excuse to ignore the topic, reasoning that it is a problem for big companies to worry about.

Trademark practitioners will tell you the U.S. Trademark Office has a deadwood problem – and they do not mean the Trademark Office has an addiction to watching the HBO television series.

In an effort to maintain a more accurate registry of active trademark registrations, the USPTO is proposing a new streamlined cancellation proceeding. 

Read a message from the 2017 chair, Joel Tragesser, Quarles & Brady LLP. 

The IndyBar has some updates that you may want to share with your section members or colleagues. Please note: some of these opportunities have fast-approaching deadlines.

If you have any questions, please contact Kim Ferguson at kferguson@indybar.org.

Take a look at what's happening at the May Intellectual Property Section Executive Meeting. Thank you to our Secretary, John Bishop, Cohen Garelick & Glazier PC, for this month's minutes!