Ron Coleman on the law affecting brands, the Internet & free speech
The National Law Journal, understandably skeptical about the U.S. News rankings, does its own analysis. UPDATE: Huh! And they aren’t the only ones: For many prospective lawyers, the best strategy may be a careful evaluation of the regional job market in the area of the country where they want to work. If they are not competitive for admission into a national law school — or are sure they are not interested in corporate law —…
Originally posted on May 29, 2014. Had a delightful lunch with a couple of very interesting lawyers yesterday. It would have been perfect if they hadn’t both lingered over salad nicoise while I sat there attacking my steak au poivre. I too love salad nicoise, but this was a legitimate IRS-approved T&E write-off luncheon! And one does so need the protein, as will be evident about halfway through this post. At one point, one of my companions... Read more
This was first posted on May 7, 2008. Irvin Robbins, the co-founder of the Baskin-Robbins ice cream chain, died yesterday. Here’s how much time has passed since just about the time your blogger was born, in ice cream marketing years: When the Beatles were to arrive in the United States in 1964, a reporter called to ask whether Baskin-Robbins was going to commemorate the event with a new flavor. Robbins didn’t have a flavor planned... Read more
No “free speech absolutist” I, I like defamation as a cause of action when you can prove its elements, and I’m glad to see it hasn’t been completely eliminated by judges who raise the bar plaintiffs must overcome to impossible heights on imagined constitutional grounds. Maybe it helps if the plaintiff himself is a judge. Well, that works for me, too, as long as the next guy can take advantage of the precedent, and the... Read more
As Lara Pearson puts it: For the past 3 days my in-box has been lighting up at a blistering pace with news alerts about every trademark attorney’s favorite celebrity infant – Blue Ivy Carter (whose mere existence somehow warrants a section on Huffington Post). According to the headlines, the brown eyed babe’s celebrity parents –Beyonce and Jay-Z – ”lost” their fight to protect BLUE IVY . . . as a federally registered trademark that is. Lara then does a great job summing... Read more
First posted (in updated form) on September 20, 2011.(Originally published on July 22, 2011; see update at bottom!) It can only mean one thing when you read this in a news article: On Friday morning, the RIAA released a brief statement; “We disagree with this decision and are considering our next steps.” That’s right: It means U.S. District Court Judge Michael Davis has once again — for a third time — knocked down a jury’s copyright... Read more
If the news cycle gets slow enough, anyone can get quoted on the Internet! Plus, if you clicked on the throwaway at the bottom of the previous item, that about confirms it… okay, next week’s vacation — only two court appearances! — is hereby officially approved by the Coleman Law Firm marketing director! Originally posted 2005-08-19 11:47:01. Republished by Blog Post Promoter Read more
Courtesy of Best of the Web Today, we learn that Rolling Stone magazine has repented of its earlier sins and has accepted the Bible ad. Funny how a little publicity can put the fear o’ God in ya! Originally posted 2005-01-26 17:42:00. Republished by Blog Post Promoter Read more
The online edition (free registration required) of the Times Herald-Record, “serving New York’s Hudson Valley and the Catskills,” reports about a blogger suit brought back from dead. This is the suit (warning – big PDF file), and the cryptic decision reinstating certain counts. It’s a libel suit. Part of it was dismissed. Part of it was reinstated. Actually, that’s pretty darned unusual, especially in the Empire State. The reporter from the paper called me, an... Read more
Sharmil McKee has the latest on the Tiffany v. eBay trial: The closing arguments concluded on Tuesday, 11/20 after a week-long bench trial. The judge ordered the attorneys to submit briefs by Dec. 7. A bench trial is a trial conducted before a judge only with no jury. So the judge will serve as the judge and jury of this case. Bench trials are the best strategy when the issue is primarily a legal issue.During... Read more
Blawg Review #125 is at, and about the concept of, “Real Lawyers Have Blogs.” A little pointy-headed? Maybe. Bit of the old inside baseball, perhaps? Perhaps. But if you’re considering dipping a toe into the blawgy muck, there is some good larnin’ to be had. Originally posted 2010-03-02 12:15:54. Republished by Blog Post Promoter Read more
Michael Atkins writes about the frustrations of a restaurant owner who seems to think — oddly, for someone who’s already hired a lawyer — he can’t stop someone from copying his restaurant decor and theme. Of course, Two Pesos v. Taco Cabana dealt exactly with that question, and pretty definitively, and, well, it did so 15 years ago. But Michael isn’t satisfied just embarrassing the New York Times, which also doesn’t get the story straight,... Read more
It fell off the back of a truck! Originally posted 2013-06-07 12:10:41. Republished by Blog Post Promoter Read more
Or should it be whom? Anyway, my article on trademark bullying first published in January’s Intellectual Property Magazine and excerpted in this previous post, is now available free and easy for download, right here. Here’s what the old bloggers would call the “money quote” on that excerpt, if I may. Please forgive the British spelling — it’s that kind of magazine. Links are exclusive to here, though!: [T]here are real bullies, real abuses of the... Read more