Just in time for Halloween, judge rules Fortnite dance moves do not infringe copyright A federal district court judge sitting in the Central District of California has dismissed a choreographer’s lawsuit against Epic Games, Inc. (“Epic”) alleging that Epic’s use of dance moves in the popular online video game Fortnite infringe his copyrights. Epic’s Fortnite game is set in a virtual reality world where players get to choose a human-like avatar to represent their character as

Do you remember the series of television commercials for Pace Picante Sauce from a few years ago? The premise involved a group of cowboys sitting around a campfire, presumably out working cattle, who are served their trail grub by the camp cook who also hands them a bottle of picante sauce. But, to everyone’s horror, it isn’t Pace Picante Sauce. Even worse, one of the cowpokes reads the ingredients label and announces, “It’s made in New York City.” The others join in with a c

In a move that surprised no one but finally acknowledges the widespread use of the Internet for trademark filings, the United States Patent & Trademark Office (the "PTO") has announced a substantial change in timing rules that will be implemented beginning December 3, 2022. Instead of the six months allowed under the current rules, applicants will now have three months to respond to an office action issued during examination, with a possible extension of an additional three m

In a legal saga that is well into its fifth year, singer Taylor Swift will have to defend her song “Shake It Off” at trial if she hopes to defeat a copyright infringement lawsuit filed against her by competing songwriters Sean Hall and Nathan Butler. Swift’s attorneys had argued a motion for reconsideration of an earlier ruling against summary judgement in the copyright lawsuit, but the motion was denied by Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald sitting in the U.S. District Court for th