Posts Tagged: "trademark modernization"

Holiday Gifts for IP Owners: Several Significant IP Bills Passed Last Minute by Congress

Late Monday evening, Congress passed a massive omnibus budget bill to avert a federal government shutdown and provide critical COVID-19 relief. But that is not all – much to the surprise of the intellectual property world, the last-minute bill included several pieces of legislation, previously thought to be sidetracked in light of the current lame duck administration, that will alter the landscape of trademark, copyright and patent law as we know it. The changes include a Trademark Modernization Act that restores the rebuttable presumption of irreparable harm when a Lanham Act violation has been proven, allowing brand owners to more easily obtain injunctions, and the creation of a copyright small claims tribunal within the Copyright Office.

Megan Bannigan & David Bernstein & Jeffrey Cunard

December 23, 2020

Senator Thom Tillis: If IP Stakeholders Can’t Find Consensus, Congress Can’t Help

Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) arguably has more pressing issues to focus on than intellectual property at the moment, as the nation scrambles to find solutions to the many economic and health crises caused by the coronavirus pandemic and COVID-19. And yet, Tillis has somehow managed to remain focused on IP, with recent movement in the areas of copyright and trademark modernization, as well as exploration into the implications of Allen et al. v. Cooper, Governor of North Carolina, et al. I recently had the opportunity to catch up with Senator Tillis on the record, discussing his interest in intellectual property, the status of patent eligibility reform, the COVID-19 outbreak, copyright modernization, trademark modernization and the harm done by counterfeiting. Without further ado, here is my conversation with Senator Thom Tillis, Chairman of the Senate IP Subcommittee.

Gene Quinn

May 5, 2020