The FBI reported in July 2018 that business e-mail compromise (BEC) is continuing to grow and evolve, targeting small, medium and large businesses. IC3, the Internet Crime Complaint Center, estimates that from December 2016 to May 2018 there was a 136 percent increase in identified global exposed losses1. IC3 also […]
Technology & Intellectual Property Update
A Final Checklist for the CFPB’s Prepaid Account Rule
In less than one week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (“CFPB”) prepaid account rule will take effect. The final, effective version of the rule comes after a lengthy rulemaking process spanning several years, numerous amendments, and delayed effective dates. The end result will be that, after the rule finally does […]
Proposed Amendments Seek to Broaden the Scope of the California Consumer Privacy Act
In June of 2018, California enacted the California Consumer Privacy Act (the “CCPA”), the most comprehensive data privacy law to date in the United States. The CCPA originally began as a ballot initiative. However, the sponsor of that ballot initiative withdrew the measure when the California legislature agreed to pass […]
Laches as a Defense to Trademark Infringement
Businesses are often confronted with trademark issues surrounding the similarity of their brands creating potential trademark infringement. But trademark infringement is usually anything but a black-and-white analysis. In evaluating whether a trademark infringes another mark, the standard used is whether the junior mark (i.e. the mark second to the market) […]
Patent and Trademark Office Proposes Rule Requiring Trademark Applicants to Use U.S.-Licensed Attorneys
On February 15, 2019, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (the “Office”) published a proposed rule that would require a U.S.-licensed attorney to represent a foreign applicant or registrant before the Office in trademark matters. The proposed rule would amend the Rules of Practice in Trademark Cases and the […]