Tag Archives: first amendment

Honey Badger don’t care for different reasons: court fixes artistic relevance but still doubles down on transformativeness

Posted on November 26, 2018 by

Gordon v. Drape Creative, Inc., No. 16-56715 (9th Cir. Nov. 20, 2018) Previous opinion discussed here; amicus brief that may have influenced the court to withdraw that opinion and put out a superseding one here. The court found a triable … Continue reading →

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Cents and sensibility: NY Ct of Appeals weighs in on credit surcharge law

Posted on October 25, 2018 by

Expressions Hair Design v. Schneiderman, — N.E.3d —-, 2018 N.Y. Slip Op. 07037, 2018 WL 5258853 (Oct. 23, 2018) GBL section 518 states: “No seller in any sales transaction may impose a surcharge on a holder who elects to use … Continue reading →

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it’s not defamatory to conflate 2 legally distinct entities when unity is what they wanted consumers to perceive

Posted on October 4, 2018 by

RainSoft v. MacFarland, No. 15-432 WES, 2018 WL 4696737 (D.R.I. Sept. 30, 2018) MacFarland runs lazymanandmoney.com, where he blogs about companies who provide consumer products and services. He and his wife “sat through an in-home demonstration of RainSoft’s water-treatment products.” … Continue reading →

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Sony’s claim that Michael Jackson performed songs on album was just its opinion

Posted on August 30, 2018 by

Serova v. Sony Music Entertainment, — Cal.Rptr.3d —- , 2018 WL 4090622, No. B280526 (Ct. App. Aug. 28, 2018) [This case says a bunch of stuff that’s way too broad for the facts; people who are concerned about things like … Continue reading →

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ad for a “true story” states an opinion, not a fact, when applied to an expressive work

Posted on August 7, 2018 by

Incarcerated Entertainment, LLC v. CNBC LLC, No. 18-480, 2018 WL 3677918 (D. Del. Aug., 2, 2018) Ads for TV shows aren’t immune from false advertising law.  However, “[s]ummarizing an argument or opinion offered within the show is different than a … Continue reading →

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ad for a “true story” states an opinion, not a fact, when applied to an expressive work

Posted on August 7, 2018 by

Incarcerated Entertainment, LLC v. CNBC LLC, No. 18-480, 2018 WL 3677918 (D. Del. Aug., 2, 2018) Ads for TV shows aren’t immune from false advertising law.  However, “[s]ummarizing an argument or opinion offered within the show is different than a … Continue reading →

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the perils of default judgments against speech: showing up late can prove onerous

Posted on July 2, 2018 by

Lokosky v. Gass, No. 1 CA-SA 18-0101, 2018 WL 3150499 (Az. Ct. App. Jun. 28, 2018) Respondents (not Gass, who’s the judge, named for procedural reasons) sued Lokosky for false advertising and related claims seeking to compel Lokosky to “remove … Continue reading →

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