Monthly Archives: August 2026

look, there’s a lawsuit: bad claim against comedian leads to anti-SLAPP award

Posted on August 31, 2026 by rtushnet

Morake v. Mwanyenyeka, No. 2:26-cv-02795-JLS-AS, 2026 WL 2548629 (C.D. Cal. Aug. 28, 2026) Noted because, well, it’s an unusually bad claim. Morake is the creator and original performer of “Nants’ingonyama bagithi Baba,” the opening chant from Disney’s The Lion King. … Continue reading →

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5th Circuit puts its own spin on the server test

Posted on August 28, 2026 by rtushnet

Emmerich Newspapers, Inc. v. Particle Media, Inc., No. 25-60550 (5th Cir. Aug. 27, 2026) This is being reported as creating a split with the 9th Circuit; I don’t think that’s right in practice. As far as I can tell, the … Continue reading →

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weak infringement case + bad litigation conduct = fee shift for anticompetitive suit over descriptive term

Posted on August 27, 2026 by rtushnet

BBK Tobacco & Foods LLP v. Central Coast Agriculture Inc., No. CV-19-05216-PHX-MTL, 2026 WL 2445019 (D. Ariz. Aug. 20, 2026) Previously. Although BBK forced Central Coast to an (expensive) trial on its very weak infringement claims over the use of … Continue reading →

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use of (R) on goods for which mark is not registered might be literally false

Posted on August 27, 2026 by rtushnet

Southern Marsh Collection, LLC v. Dixie Decoys, LLC, 2026 WL 2431220, No. 24-00905-BAJ-EWD (M.D. La. Aug. 19, 2026) This opinion deals only with defendant’s attempt to get claims against its allegedly false use of the ® symbol dismissed; it is … Continue reading →

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Midjourney can’t force Disney to disclose the prompts it used that didn’t generate material in complaint

Posted on August 27, 2026 by rtushnet

Disney Enterprises, Inc. v. Midjourney, Inc., No. 2:25-cv-05275-JAK-AJR, 2026 WL 2055488 (C.D. Cal. Jun. 15, 2026) This is what seems like a significant discovery dispute; I’m not an evidence scholar, but there’s interaction with the fair use analysis that copyright … Continue reading →

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Private label brands show lack of exclusive use for Pedialyte’s trade dress claim, but bad social media use saves TM claim

Posted on August 27, 2026 by rtushnet

Abbott Laboratories v. Revitalyte LLC, 2026 WL 2374024, No. 23-1449 (DWF/DTS) (D. Minn. Apr. 30, 2026) The court here allows part of Abbott’s infringement claim to proceed, including against “compare to Pedialyte,” which I think is wrong, though Revitalyte did … Continue reading →

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9th Circuit orders class decertified: common issues on materiality/damages insufficient without deception

Posted on August 25, 2026 by rtushnet

Rusoff v. Happy Group, Inc., — F.4th —-, 2026 WL 2387098, No. 24-7706 (9th Cir. Aug. 17, 2026) Court’s summary: This is a deceptive advertising class action concerning “pasture raised” labels on egg cartons. After excluding the opinion of plaintiffs’ … Continue reading →

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court finds ROP claim preempted where model initially consented to being in ad

Posted on August 25, 2026 by rtushnet

Delacruz v. Roc Nation LLC, No. 2:25-cv-11864-AH-(SSCx), 2026 WL 2455107 (C.D. Cal. Jul. 28, 2026) Should copyright preemption apply to a right of publicity claim where the original, consented-to use of the work was created for advertising? The court here … Continue reading →

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compounding pharmacy must face drugmaker’s Lanham Act claims based on false 503B compliance statements

Posted on August 17, 2026 by rtushnet

Pacira BioSciences, Inc. v. Nephron Sterile Compounding Center, LLC, No. 3:23-cv-05552-CMC, 2026 WL 2267750 (D.S.C. Aug. 6, 2026) Pacira sells an FDA-approved pain management drug called EXPAREL. Nephron allegedly made various false and misleading statements about two of Nephron’s competing … Continue reading →

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anti-Chinese memory chips blog & report weren’t commercial speech despite alleged competitor funding

Posted on August 17, 2026 by rtushnet

Yangtze Memory Technologies, Inc. v. Micron Technology, Inc., 2026 WL 2350276, No. 1:25-cv-01795 (CJN) (D.D.C. Aug. 13, 2026) On the one hand, there’s a risk of suppressing valuable noncommercial speech if we apply the Lanham Act too broadly; on the … Continue reading →

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