Tennessee IP Law Blog

Compulife Software Inc. v. Newman , No. 18-12004, 2020 WL 2549505 (11th Cir. May 20, 2020) Topic:  Abstraction/Filtration Anaylsis & Burden Shifting Takeaway:  After an infringement plaintiff has demonstrated that he holds a valid copyright and that the defendant engaged in factual copying, the defendant bears the burden of proving—as part of the filtration analysis—that the elements he copied from a copyrighted work are unprotectable. Overall, this is a very in depth and complicated case that involves multiple aspects of IP law. As such, this post is limited to the issue of copyright infringement and protectability under the abstraction/filtration test. Check back next week for part 2 regarding the trade-secret issues! naaip.org/logo             compulife.com Background & Parties There’s nothing easy about this case. The facts are complicated, and the governing law is tangled. At its essence, it’s a case about h...

Enchant Christmas Light Maze & Mkt. Ltd. v. Glowco, LLC , No. 19-6282, 2020 WL 2487598 (6th Cir. May 14, 2020) Topic: Copyrights for light sculptures of animals and nature & Preliminary Injunctions Takeaways: Light Sculptures of Animals in various natural poses enjoys thin copyright protection at best. Similarity of light sculptures of animals and ice were inherent in their subject. Preliminary Injunction not proper when there was little likelihood of success on the merits of a copyright infringement claim, the light show had already ended, and a future show was speculative. https://www.fox13news.com/video/628335   https://nashvillefunforfamilies.com/glow-holiday-nashville/ Holding Holiday-themed light show producer "Enchant" brought action for injunctive relief against competitor, alleging infringement of its copyrights in a number of holiday-themed light sculptures. The United States District Court for the Middle District of Te...