Cyrus Sanai Image

Cyrus Sanai

is admitted to practice law in California, various federal courts and is an English solicitor (non-practicing). A UCLA School of Law graduate and Harvard University alumnus, Sanai practices in the areas of internet, international and intellectual property transactions and litigation. Sanai – whose first professional love is journalism – has also written for Slate, The Washington Post, Mirabella, the Chronicle of Higher Education, and has been published in various legal journals and treatises on issues such as international bankruptcy and stare decisis.

Recent Articles by Cyrus Sanai

A Case Study in Protecting Internet Quiz IP

Along with cat memes, TikTtok videos and electoral manipulation, the Internet is enriching people’s lives with the instant quiz. Whether seeking to gauge one’s resemblance to a Game of Thrones character or satisfaction with an online purchase, the instant online quiz, questionnaire or survey is a powerful mechanism for businesses, governments and nonprofits to learn about potential customers, constituents and supporters. As with anything that can create value, a lawyer’s advice will eventually be sought to learn how to protect the client’s brands and works from appropriation and misuse by third parties. The protectability of a quiz as a species of intellectual property is now before the Southern District of New York in the case of Metabeauty, Inc. v. HelloAva, Inc., et. al., a lawsuit filed by my client Metabeauty, Inc. against a venture-backed online platform that recommends skincare and cosmetic products.