Fish & Richardson invites you to participate in a complimentary webinar that looks at the recent Ninth Circuit decision in Fleischer Studios Inc. v. A.V.E.L.A. Inc. (aka the Betty Boop case).

Trademark Functionality: Job's Daughters Has Risen Again!

Thursday, May 5, 2011
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm ET
On the web

The Ninth Circuit's recent decision in the Betty Boop case resurrected the doctrine of defensive aesthetic functionality first articulated in the 1980 in International Order of Job’s Daughters v. Lindeburg & Co., 633 F.2d 912. The court ruled that use of another's trademark on a product to express loyalty or affection for the owner of the trademark is a "functional" use and not infringement. This case should be of concern to trademark owners, as it could impact the landscape of trademark management and licensing and open the door to more trademark counterfeiting.

This program will explore:

• The historic underpinnings of aesthetic functionality;
• The outbreak of defensive aesthetic functionality more than thirty years ago; and
• The best legal arguments against it today.

Moderator:
Irene Hudson, Principal, New York

Speaker:
Anthony Fletcher, Senior Principal, New York

Tony Fletcher began his trademark career in 1966, and has practiced trademark law and related fields virtually exclusively since 1971. He is the 2011 recipient of the INTA Ladas Memorial Award for his recent article “The Product with the Parody Trademark: What’s Wrong with Chewy Vuiton?” and was the recipient of INTA's President's Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2003.

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