Author Archives: John DiGiacomo

As recently reported — see Reuters media report here — the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board of the U.S. Trademark Office office has canceled the trademark registrations for a set of “SUPER HERO” trademarks, at least one of which dates to the mid-1960s. According to the media reports, these trademarks are jointly owned by the […]

Almost half of the States in the U.S. have enacted some version of an online personal or consumer data privacy statute. The statutes all use a similar framework that requires data collectors and processors to provide notices, obtain consent, and comply with mandates and prohibitions. For example, all of the online data privacy statutes require […]

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals — located in San Francisco — partially struck down California’s Age-Appropriate Design Code Act (“CAADCA”). See Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1798.99.28 et seq. The CAADCA was passed in 2022 by the California State Assembly. The CAADCA was enacted to protect the online privacy of children — persons under the […]

Trademark creation and use are both essential for the success of modern businesses. Trademarks are logos, words, phrases, designs, marks, and other things that consumers use to identify a business as the commercial source for goods or services. Trademarks are generally registered and can be valid for as long as the trademark is being used […]

Software-as-a-Service (“SaaS”) companies are generally acutely aware of the need to protect their intellectual properties (“IP”), like patents, copyrights, and trademarks, when preparing their service contracts. SaaS companies must be just as acutely aware of protecting IP that is covered by trade secret law. A good example of the dangers is the recent lawsuit filed […]

Artificial intelligence (“AI”) software programs are generating enormous legal concerns around the world. The European Union has recently promulgated significant regulations intended to reduce various risks related to AI programs. Small-to-large AI programs are used for a large number of services and are embedded in devices that might be surprising to consumers. Examples include: The […]

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has held that California’s social media content reporting law violates free speech and is, therefore, unconstitutional. X Corp v Bonta, Case No. 24-271 (9th Cir. 2024). See the news report here. In 2023, the California State Assembly passed a law — Assembly Bill 587 — that required social media […]

Generally, a buyer of an e-commerce business wants to buy the target company free and clear of any liabilities that the target might have (other than those that the buyer is expressly and voluntarily willing to assume). The term “liabilities” includes any debt or legal liability that most people would think of, including mortgage debt […]

Trademarks are logos, phrases, words, marks, designs, and other things that are placed on products, websites, advertising, etc., that identify a commercial source for goods or services. Current marketing lingo speaks in terms of “branding,” and, in essence, branding is all about trademarking. In turn, trademarking begins with getting the trademark registered either at the […]

Copyrights entitle the owners to exclusive use of their original works of authorship. That right means that others cannot use — either whole or in part — the original work. This means that the work cannot be used, copied, displayed, performed, etc., without permission. Just as importantly, no works derivative of the original can be […]