Intellectual Property

Mediator in an action between two lenders as to the ownership rights to a patent based on an assignment of the patent by the original owner, who had defaulted. The issues to be considered included the nature and scope of the assignment agreement, the extent to which one of the lenders had already collected its debt, and the value of the patent.

Mediator for an intellectual property claim alleging that the defendants sold products which included the plaintiff’s distinctive word mark. Such accessory products included home goods, clothing and other consumer goods. The defendant was a “print on demand” website, that which allegedly sold the products with plaintiffs marks. The settlement discussions focused on the payment of monies for the alleged infringement and injunctive relief.

Mediator for a copyright infringement case resulting from the alleged infringing internet sales of automotive products. The mediation was impacted by a prior agreement that parties had reached as to such sales, which was alleged being breached.

An architect claimed in a copyright infringement action that his designs were improperly utilized by another architectural firm in the construction of several new apartment complexes. The case involved issues of proof of copyright infringement, and the extent of copyright protection of architectural designs. These required analysis and resolution as part of a settlement, with the issues including concepts of originality, protection of standard features and functionality of design elements, and substantial similarity.