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Monthly Archives: May 2011
Known for his roles in such movie blockbusters as “Julius Caesar,” “The Godfather,” and “Apocalypse Now,” Hollywood legend Marlon Brando passed away in 2004. Now Brando’s estate is suing Harley-Davidson Motor Company for the company’s use of the actor’s name on a new line of boots. “The Brando,” as Harley-Davidson called the new boot, was recently selling for over $100 on Amazon.com. The actor’s estate believes the boot is a knock-off of the one Brando wore in his 1953 movie “The Wild One.” Brando’s estate has permitted the use of the actor’s name in conjunction with Triumph motorcycles, MasterCard and Dolce & Gabbana, amongst other brands, but this boot, according to the estate, is an unlicensed use. Brando’s estate is seeking an injunction to stop the use of his name as well as punitive damages and profits that Harley-Davidson makes from the use of his name. A Los Angeles litigation…
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In one corner: the man who created Mike Tyson’s facial tattoo. In the other corner: Warner Brothers, one of the biggest movie studios in the world. The fight is over the use of the distinctive tribal design in the upcoming film The Hangover: Part 2, and if Mike Tyson’s tattoo artist gets his way the film won’t make it into theaters anytime soon. The artist is asking a Los Angeles court for an injunction to halt the release of the film because it infringes his copyright. When Mike Tyson got his infamous tribal swirl tattooed on his face back in 2003, he assigned all ownership of the artwork to tattoo artist Victor Whitmill. Experienced intellectual property litigators always try to get such assignments in writing. Tyson made am extended cameo appearance in the original Hangover film, and the character Stu (played by Ed Helms) seems to have the same design…
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In April 2011, the California Court of Appeal in the Second Appellate District published an opinion on the issue of when prompt payment penalties apply when a contractor fails to timely pay a subcontractor on a construction project. In that published opinion, the Court of Appeals sided with KLEIN and affirmed the lower court decision awarding money to our client in a breach of construction contract. In a cross appeal following judgment in our favor, our client was seeking to recover 2% per month penalties under California’s “Prompt Payment” statute. Under this statute, contractors must pay a statutory penalty if they fail to make timely payments to their subcontractors. However, there is an exception when the two parties are involved in a “good faith” dispute over the actual amount owed. The issue on appeal was whether an “objective” standard applies as we argued, or whether a “subjective” standard applies as…
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