Thought Leadership

Intellectual Property Report

Client Updates

Defending “Sad Beige”: When Imitation is Not Flattery
Jean Choi
In an era of content creation, social media influencers are tasked with the creative job of building a personal brand to influence the general public’s purchasing decisions and lifestyle choices. Creating a brand identity online raises questions about intellectual property protections of these influencer-curated aesthetics. Copyright protections may be available for content created in the form of photos and videos, but enforcing these rights and proving infringement may be a separate issue, especially when influencers have adopted similar trends in building their personal brand.
Read the full article on our website here.

USPTO Announces New Fee Schedule for 2025

Billy Ellis*, Arya Moshiri, Matthew Avery
The USPTO has announced a significant update to its fee schedule for the 2025 fiscal year, set to take effect on January 19, 2025. Across the board, fees will rise by at least 10%, with some increasing by as much as 100%. The last major update to the fee schedule occurred in December 2022. According to the USPTO, these increases are “needed to provide the agency with sufficient aggregate revenue to recover the aggregate costs of patent operations in future years.” In addition to the increases to existing fees, the new fee schedule also includes entirely new fees for continuations and IDS filings that may impact applicant filing strategies. The most significant fee changes are detailed in the article.
*Billy Ellis, a law clerk at Baker Botts, assisted in the preparation of this article.
Read the full article on our website.

Fourth Quarter 2024 Federal Circuit Law Update
Michael Hawes
Since serving as a Federal Circuit clerk, Michael Hawes has monitored that court's precedential opinions and prepares a deeply outlined index by subject matter (invalidity, infringement, claim construction, etc.) of relevant legal points - in order to assist clients seeking to identify recent law relevant to a particular problem.
Read the full article on our website.

This Month: Our Take on AI
Joseph Cahill
Trade Secret Protection for AI Innovations: Partner Rich Harper published an analysis exploring how trade secret law will likely be a key battleground for protecting AI innovations. The article examines three critical requirements for establishing AI-related trade secrets: (1) independent economic value from secrecy, (2) reasonable steps to maintain secrecy, and (3) identification of trade secrets with sufficient particularity. Recent cases demonstrate courts require specific identification of AI-related trade secrets beyond general references to "AI" or "machine learning." The analysis also discusses the potential of "combination trade secrets" - where a unique combination of public and private AI components could receive protection if the combination creates competitive advantage. Read more here: "Trade Secret Litigation: How Will AI Innovations Likely Be Litigated?"

TRAIN Act Introduces AI Training Transparency Requirements: A new bill titled the Transparency and Responsibility for Artificial Intelligence Networks Act ("TRAIN Act") was introduced in the Senate by Senator Peter Welch. The Act would amend Title 17 of the U.S. Code to create a subpoena process allowing copyright holders to obtain information about whether their works were used to train AI models. Under the proposed legislation, failure to comply with a subpoena would create a rebuttable presumption that the AI developer copied the copyrighted work. The Act aims to address the "black box" problem in AI training data transparency and provide a mechanism for creators to protect their rights. While the current legislative session is ending, Senator Welch's office plans to reintroduce the TRAIN Act in 2025. Further analysis of the implications can be found here: "Senate Introduces TRAIN Act to Enhance Transparency in AI Model Training."

JPM Healthcare Conference Private Reception
Baker Botts and Salem Partners will be co-hosting a private reception to be held at Jasper's Corner Tap and Kitchen during the JPM Healthcare Conference on January 13, 2025!
If you're interested in joining us for drinks, light bites, and to watch the NFL playoff wild card game with a number of our clients and friends in the Life Sciences industry, please contact Elizabeth Van Wagner.

December 2024 Intellectual Property Report Recap
In case you missed it, here is a link to our December 2024 Intellectual Property Report that looked at:

  • Patent Trolls Come Under Increasing Fire in Federal Courts
  • Trade Secret Litigation: How Will AI Innovations Likely Be Litigated
  • This Month: Our Take on AI

ABOUT BAKER BOTTS L.L.P.
Baker Botts is an international law firm whose lawyers practice throughout a network of offices around the globe. Based on our experience and knowledge of our clients' industries, we are recognized as a leading firm in the energy, technology and life sciences sectors. Since 1840, we have provided creative and effective legal solutions for our clients while demonstrating an unrelenting commitment to excellence. For more information, please visit bakerbotts.com.