What Entered the Public Domain and What Disney Still Owns The expiration of the Steamboat Willie copyright became a popular issue when the 1928 cartoon entered the U.S. public domain on January 1, 2024. The lapse permits free use of the film’s original creative expression, but it did not release every version of Mickey Mouse. […]

How to Check a Brand Before You Commit to It A federal trademark search is a search of the database of prior trademark filings provided by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The search may involve searching for combined search terms, including keywords, specified goods and services, and classes of goods and services, […]

An explanation of Apple’s allegations, the legal claims, and business implications. Apple filed a 41-page complaint on July 10, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The Apple-OpenAI trade secret lawsuit names OpenAI, io Products, and two former Apple employees, Chang Liu and Tang Yew Tan. An Apple spokesperson said, […]

How it Affects Patent Scope Patent claims are specialized formal descriptions of an invention that define the legal protection provided by the patent. However, the meaning of the words in the claims requires close evaluation of both the language of the claims, the detailed description of the invention provided in the specification of the application. […]

Real-World Lessons for Businesses A trademark distinguishes a company’s products or services from those of others. It may be a word, symbol, design, color, package, or combination of branding elements. Trademark infringement occurs when unauthorized use is likely to cause consumer confusion about the source, sponsorship, or affiliation of goods or services. This article provides […]

An Explanation of Patent Term and How Patents End When do patents expire? Most United States patents follow a twenty-year term measured from a controlling filing date, but the actual expiration date may change because the application is part of a patent family with multiple related applications, maintenance fees, Patent Term Adjustment, Patent Term Extension, […]

An Explainer of Restrictions and Their Effects in a Patent Application A restriction requirement is a procedural action in U.S. patent law. The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issues it during examination when a single application appears to claim multiple patentably independent and distinct inventions. The examiner requires the applicant to elect one […]

A Detailed Breakdown for Innovators If you have conceived and developed a promising invention, one of the first practical questions you will face is how much does a patent cost. The answer depends on what kind of patent you need, how complex your technology is, and how you approach the patent process. This guide breaks […]

What Business Owners Should Know Trade secret litigation involves legal action to protect confidential business information from misappropriation. For a company, trade secrets can be valuable intellectual property, sometimes constituting a large proportion of the business value, because they may include customer lists, business plans, data compilations, manufacturing methods, chemical formulations, source code, processes, pricing, […]

What Intellectual Property Owners Need to Know Entrepreneurs, inventors, artists, and other creators and owners of intellectual property assets need to have a succession plan for their valuable IP assets. The possibility of disposal of intellectual property in probate is a risk that should be avoided, if possible. In a probate estate, IP is generally […]