Scott J Slavick

September 05, 2017 | Daily Business Review

On June 6, in a precedential decision in In re University of Miami, Serial No. 8661638, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board reversed two U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) refusals to register a design mark depicting the mascot of the University of Miami Hurricanes—Sebastian the Ibis—for various paper products, clothing, and educational and entertainment services, writes Scott J. Slavick.

By Commentary by Scott J. Slavick

10 minute read

June 09, 2017 | Corporate Counsel

Germany's national men's soccer team has tasted the thrill of victory at the FIFA World Cup four times, most recently in 2014. But the governing body of the current world champions experienced defeat in attempting to register its mark at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

By Scott J. Slavick

5 minute read

February 24, 2017 | Corporate Counsel

Blame it on the rain? A Tennessee irrigation company might well sing that tune after the rejection of its recent trademark application on a term found to be descriptive.

By Scott J. Slavick

10 minute read

February 21, 2017 | Corporate Counsel

An international Christian ministry, The Salvation Army has as its mission in part to meet human needs without discrimination. But some in its ranks faced a trademark registration battle in which a U.S. Patent and Trademark Office examiner sought expressly to discriminate between The Salvation Army's entities.

By Scott J. Slavick

10 minute read

April 04, 2005 | National Law Journal

What would you do if one day, out of nowhere, armed men showed up at your doorstep, told you and your loved ones that they were taking your house, your land and your freedom, and that you were being relocated to the middle of nowhere? Sound like a nightmare? Welcome to the United States circa 1870.

By Scott J. Slavick Special to The National Law Journal

4 minute read

November 14, 2012 | Law.com

Given the vast popularity of some Internet memes, it is not surprising that corporate marketers want to harness this popularity to promote commercial interests. But online memes pose a number of intellectual property-related questions for companies.

By Scott J. Slavick

8 minute read

April 10, 2006 | National Law Journal

When I finished reading David Schoenbrod's Saving our Environment from Washington: How Congress Grabs Power, Shirks Responsibility, and Shortchanges the People (Yale University Press 2005), I sat quietly for a moment trying to decide whether I should feel optimistic or pessimistic about our environmental future.

By Scott J. SlavickSpecial to The National Law Journal

5 minute read