Attorney Steve® Blog

Attorney Steve® Trademark College® - International Trademark Law Trademark rule requires foreign-domiciled applicants and registrants to have a U.S.-licensed attorney According to the USPTO website: "Foreign-domiciled trademark applicants, registrants, and parties to Trademark Trial and Appe...

Attorney Steve® Information Age Essentials - Data Privacy, Security and Consumer Trust   Introduction The Washingon D.C. based "Business Software Alliance" has announced a new project designed to facilitate the cross-border transfer of information (ex. personal information of consumers of vari...

Attorney Steve® - Copyright Essentials - [Public Domain] Introduction Many people believe that CSPAN is a governmental entity and that all of its videos and still photos can be freely used without permission.  NPR radio is also not well understood.  While these political videos and clips ma...

Introduction             In today's modern age many media sources are changing from their older now archaic systems to newer, faster, and cheaper systems. Television has been on the same progress track as the rest of technology, originally starting with only a handful of channels in black and wh...

Attorney Steve® Defamation and Media Law Essentials - Does calling someone a racist put you at risk of a defamation lawsuit? Introduction This week's legal research comes from the case of a Covington Catholic Nick Sandmann suing CNN for defamation.  Here are excerpts from CNN's brief opposing...

Attorney Steve® Copyright Law Essentials - International Copyright Law Introduction Included in Bryne Convention Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Antigua Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Barbuda Belarus Belgium Beliz...

California Right of Publicity Essentials - Heirs can capitalize on the deceased publicity rights?     Introduction If you have a famous deceased aunt, uncle, mom, dad, or other family member who is deceased, they can will all of their personal and intellectual property to you (meaning the rig...

Attorney Steve® Software Compliance Essentials - Autodesk Maintenance Fees Introduction Autodesk EULA and information regarding maintenance fees Per their https://knowledge.autodesk.com/customer-service/account-management/billing-orders/maintenance-plan-renewal: "Maintenance plans and s...

Attorney Steve® Personal Injury - AB 218 Plaintiff litigation.   Introduction Our firm does not do a lot of personal injury law, but we are very experienced in both state and federal court litigation.  When I saw this new law pop up on my legal radar, I knew it was time to see if I could help ...

How to file a DMCA "unmasking" subpoena in California to stop facebook infringers!     General process - (may vary by Court) 1.  Send a DMCA takedown notice to put the alleged infringement claim in writing 2.  File with the Clerk of the Court a DMCA 512 unmasking subpoena 3.  Provide a decl...

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS AUSTIN DIVISION MICROSOFT CORPORATION,                           ) a Washington corporation,                                      )                                                                                     )     ...

 Reverse Domain Name Hijacking sounds more complicated than it really is. In its purest essence Reverse Domain Name Hijacking, abbreviated to RDNH, is the reverse form of cybersquatting. Believe it or not RDNH is a fairly common practice across the internet. This blog will help the rea...

HELLO YELPERS!! We understand we are living in a point and click world where many people want instant gratification and to discuss their case with a qualified attorney.  We are very proud of the business we have created and due to our tremendous success since 2004 and our vast social media prese...

Case 2:15-cv-03504-JFB-SIL MALIBU MEDIA, LLC, Plaintiff, against JOHN DOE, subscriber assigned IP address 98.116.160.61, Defendant Relying on Next Phase Distribution, Inc. v. John Does 1-27, 284 F.R.D. 165 (S.D.N.Y. 2012), Defendant argues in opposition that “judges in [the] S.D.N.Y. are serio...

Attorney Steve® Copyright Infringement Essentials Can the First Amendment Provide Safe Harbor against claims of infringement? Probably not.  Here is one case from New York federal court which discussed this issue in the context of a Motion to Quash a Subpoena in a Malibu Media case (Case 2:15-c...

But I wanted to address one thing you said. You want to pitch the idea. Ideas cannot be protected. So yes, pitching is a risky business. The more detailed your “idea” is, the more it lands into being a completed work and subject to copyright protection. And, in fact, a completed script for a pil...

Why should I register my work with the U.S. Copyright Office? Introduction In the case of Arista Records LLC v LimeWire LLC, LimeWire had committed copyright infringement that resulted in statutory damages valued at $1.4 billion. Despite this, the final settlement was $105 million. Registering ...

Software Audit Defense Essentials - CCPA Privacy Law allows you to "access" information a company holds on your.     Introduction California has recently signed the CCPA into law (California Consumer Privacy Act).  This is a new law that is set to go into effect on January 1, 2020.  Many comp...

The Photo Infringement Lawyer discusses evidence in alleged infringement cases.  Getting a SAMPLE of the photo claimed to have been registered.  This is helpful information if dealing with Masterfile, ImageRights International, Higbee & Associates or other firms. Introduction Before paying ...

2019 Strike 3 Holdings, LLC Updates - What's this?  Now they are trying a litigation "unmask" method in Florida?   Introduction You never know what new is going to happen in BitTorrent litigation.  Our firm is a leader in defending persons (internet subscribers) in defending cases of peer to p...

COVERAGE B – PERSONAL AND ADVERTISING INJURY LIABILITY 1. Insuring Agreement We will pay those sums that the insured becomes legally obligated to pay as damages because of "personal and advertising injury" to which this insurance applies. We will have the right and duty to defend the ...

Software Audit Licensing - DMCA anti-circumvention   Introduction Most software companies use some type of digital rights management (DRM) to protect their software copyrights.  One of the ways this is done is by creating "product keys" or "license key."  The key is not the software, it is the...

Copyrighting Ship Hulls             One copyright stipulation many people know is that one cannot copyright useful and moveable designs such as boats or recreational vehicles, but in 1998 this all changed. So what exactly can be copyrighted and how do you go about the process? Well, you're in ...