Welcome to another in my ongoing series of posts on craft beer trademark battles. This one is a little different from the rest. Hood River, Oregon’s Full Sail Brewing is best known for its Session Lager, which, according to their website, “comes in a stubby, 11-oz bottle like your grandpa used to buy.” Well, not my grandfather, maybe yours. Full Sail recently filed a complaint for trademark infringement and dilution against Georgia-based The Sessions Law Firm, LLC (we’ll call them “Sessions Law”). What does a brewery have to do with a law firm?
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Keep it Legal Blog
Tyler Perry’s Trademark Fight Over “What Would Jesus Do”
July 8, 2014
In a story that carries no trace of irony whatsoever, the US Patent & Trademark Office Trademark Trial and Appeal Board has ruled in a dispute between two television producers over the title WHAT WOULD JESUS DO.
Music Copyright Issue: Can a Restaurant Owner be Personally Liable for Playing Unlicensed Music?
June 17, 2014
Recently, I was watching a hockey game on TV with some friends. During the breaks in the action, the old familiar Jock Jams were playing on the arena’s speakers. One of the folks in the room asked whether they have to pay to use those recordings. Yes, they do: it’s a public performance, subject to the restrictions found in the Copyright Act. The same applies to other public venues, such as restaurants and bars. Naturally, the restaurant owners aren’t out there asking the Beatles for their OK to play “Hey Jude” during dinner service. Instead, the rights are administered by…
Trademark Dispute: Mormon Church v. Dating Site
June 10, 2014
Who owns the right to use the words “Christian,” “Jewish,” or “Muslim” in connection with product or services? Nobody. But the right to use the word “Mormon” is in dispute. The intellectual property arm of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has attempted to prevent the owner of the dating website Mormon Match from using that brand name and registering it with the US Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO).
