Top 10 Copyright Cases for the Month of October 2010

1. Tenneco Auto. Operating Co. v. Kingdom Auto Parts, Case Nos. 08-2276, 09-1920, UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT, 10a0663n.06;, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 22571; 2010 FED App. 0663N (6th Cir.), October 28, 2010, Filed, NOT RECOMMENDED FOR FULL-TEXT PUBLICATION. SIXTH CIRCUIT RULE 28 LIMITS CITATION TO SPECIFIC SITUATIONS. PLEASE SEE RULE 28 BEFORE CITING IN A PROCEEDING IN A COURT IN THE SIXTH CIRCUIT. IF CITED, A COPY MUST BE SERVED ON OTHER PARTIES AND THE COURT. THIS NOTICE IS TO BE PROMINENTLY DISPLAYED IF THIS DECISION IS REPRODUCED.

OVERVIEW: Manufacturer's product identification number stamped into its struts did not have a secondary meaning and were merely descriptive, so they had no trademark protection and the competitor's accidental use of the marks did not violate the Lanham Act, specifically 15 U.S.C.S. §§ 1114, 1125.

CORE TERMS: declaration, strut, consumer, summary judgment, secondary meaning, genuine issues, material fact, distributor, trademark, copying ...

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2. Steinbeck v. Steinbeck Heritage Found., No. 09-1836-cv, UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 21117, October 13, 2010, Decided, PLEASE REFER TO FEDERAL RULES OF APPELLATE PROCEDURE RULE 32.1 GOVERNING THE CITATION TO UNPUBLISHED OPINIONS.

OVERVIEW: Promissory estoppel claim failed because plaintiff son could not reasonably have relied on defendant widow's purported oral promise that he could market all rights in an author's travelogue; such a representation modified the relationship between the parties established in an agreement, which by its terms can only be done in writing.

CORE TERMS: powers of attorney, agency relationship, fiduciary duty, terminate, fiduciary obligations, unjust enrichment, summary judgment, termination, constructive trust, sole discretion ...

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3. Fed. Treasury Enter. Sojuzplodoimport v. Spirits Int'l N.V., Docket No. 06-3532-cv, UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 20826, December 15, 2009, Argued, October 8, 2010, Decided

OVERVIEW: District court improperly conflated incontestability with whether a subsequent transfer of the marks was valid; thus, federal question jurisdiction existed not only over infringement claims but also over the antecedent issue of validity of an assignment of ownership, an issue whose resolution could depend on state or foreign law.

CORE TERMS: trademark, ownership, Lanham Act, incontestable, registrant, registration, registered, successor, entity, trademark infringement ...

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4. Burgin v. Lahaye, No. 09-16066 Non-Argument Calendar, UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 20246, October 1, 2010, Decided, October 1, 2010, Filed, PLEASE REFER TO FEDERAL RULES OF APPELLATE PROCEDURE RULE 32.1 GOVERNING THE CITATION TO UNPUBLISHED OPINIONS.

OVERVIEW: District court did not err in granting summary judgment to defendants in an action alleging copyright infringement in violation of 17 U.S.C.S. § 101 et seq. because plaintiff had not established an inference of copying because she had not demonstrated that either of the defendants ever had reasonable opportunity to view her unpublished manuscript.

CORE TERMS: copying, summary judgment, copied, pro se, reasonable opportunity, quotation, round, circumstantial evidence, similarity, judged ...

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5. Mediostream, Inc. v. Microsoft Corp., CASE NO. 2:08-CV-369-CE, UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS, MARSHALL DIVISION, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 115338, October 29, 2010, Decided, October 29, 2010, Filed

CORE TERMS: counterclaim, embedded, trade secrets, misappropriation, pled, fraudulent, license, inducement, breach of contract, discovery ...

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