Writings by Iva Rukelj

The most interesting grudge match in professional soccer this season isn’t between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, but rather the intellectual property lawyers representing Barcelona and footwear giant Adidas. “Kit” sponsoring–sponsoring the uniforms of a team–is a highly competitive business dominated by Nike and Adidas. For example, Adidas pays top-rated Manchester United €83.5 million a […]

In our previous blog article, we explored the concept of fair use and how courts determine whether the use of copyrighted material is permitted without the rightsholder’s permission under the Constitution’s statute. In our previous blog article, we explored the concept of fair use and how courts determine whether the use of copyrighted material is permitted without the rightsholder’s permission under […]

While the framers of the Constitution had no way of predicting the kinds of technology we enjoy today, they did have the foresight to understand the necessity of intellectual property rights. That is why the Constitution gives artists and inventors an exclusive right to their work under Article I, Section 8, Clause 8: To promote […]

If you thought that US Supreme Court justices lacked romantic proclivities, you’re wrong! Some months ago, in a conversation between the justices about a very important copyright issue involving fashion, Justice Stephen Breyer stated, “The clothes on the hanger do nothing. The clothes on the woman do everything.” Justice Elena Kagan immediately interjected with, “That’s […]

We admit we are talking about Adidas a lot lately, but that is because (i) we truly love their gear, and (ii) they have really been active. After some bruising encounters with United States trademark law, Adidas SA recently found itself on the ropes again, this time at the hands of a church in Zion, […]

A trademark is a “source identifier.” That is, a trademark generally is a word, phrase, symbol, design or a combination of words, phrases, symbols, or designs that identify and distinguishes the source of the goods of one party from those of others, and can be used to indicate the source of goods and services. A […]

On June 23, 2016, the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. The UK-EU divorce-nicknamed “Brexit”- will be negotiated over the next several years. In a recent blog post, we discussed recent changes in the EU system. On June 23, 2016, the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. The UK-EU divorce-nicknamed “Brexit”- will […]