Cecilia Choy, Ph.D.
Subscribe to Cecilia Choy, Ph.D.'s PostsCecilia Choy, Ph.D., focuses her practice on intellectual property matters and is a certified patent agent. Read Cecilia Choy's full bio.
Battle of the Bay: It’s Oakland Airport, Not San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport
By Cecilia Choy, Ph.D. on Dec 5, 2024
Posted In Trademarks
The US District Court for the Northern District of California granted the city and county of San Francisco a preliminary injunction enjoining the Port of Oakland from using the name or trademark “San Francisco Bay Oakland Airport” based on the strength of San Francisco’s mark and the proximity of goods and services. City and County...
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Jurisdiction “Found”: Navigating E-Commerce Boundaries in Copyright Disputes
By Cecilia Choy, Ph.D. on Oct 24, 2024
Posted In Copyrights
In a copyright case, the US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit determined that the district court had jurisdiction over two Chinese companies that consented to jurisdiction in any judicial district in which a third-party e-commerce company could be “found.” The Tenth Circuit concluded that whether an e-commerce company is “found” in a district...
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Stay Focused: New Point of View of Patent Eligibility
By Cecilia Choy, Ph.D. on Sep 19, 2024
Posted In Patents
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversed and remanded a district court’s decision that the asserted claims were patent ineligible under 35 U.S.C. § 101, finding that the district court improperly characterized the claims at an “impermissibly high level of generality.” Contour IP Holding LLC v. GoPro, Inc., Case Nos. 22-1654; -1691...
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Arguing Internet Availability to Establish Copyright Infringement Is Bananas
By Cecilia Choy, Ph.D. on Aug 29, 2024
Posted In Copyrights
In an unpublished opinion, the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a district court’s decision finding that a pro se Californian artist failed to establish that an Italian artist had reasonable opportunity to access the copyrighted work simply because it was available to view on the internet. Morford v. Cattelan, Case No....
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House Rules: Remote Gambling Activity Claims Go Bust
By Cecilia Choy, Ph.D. on Jul 18, 2024
Posted In Patents
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit applied the Alice/Mayo framework to assess whether claims directed to remote gambling were patent eligible under 35 U.S.C. § 101 and determined that the claims were directed to a patent-ineligible abstract idea and did not otherwise recite an inventive concept. Beteiro, LLC v. DraftKings Inc., Case...
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ITU Applicants Beware: Federal Courts Have Jurisdiction Over Pending Trademark Applications
By Cecilia Choy, Ph.D. on Apr 11, 2024
Posted In Trademarks
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed in part a district court’s ruling in a trademark dispute, upholding its decision to invalidate trademark applications. The Ninth Circuit held that district courts have jurisdiction to alter or cancel trademark applications in an action properly brought under 15 U.S.C. § 1119, and that in...
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Scattered Disclosures May Not Lead to Inference of Fraud in FCA Claim
By Cecilia Choy, Ph.D. on Feb 1, 2024
Posted In Patents
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied a petition for panel rehearing and rehearing en banc and issued an amended opinion that reversed a district court’s decision regarding the False Claims Act’s (FCA) public disclosure bar. Silbersher v. Valeant Pharm. Int’l, Inc., Case No. 20-16176 (9th Cir. Aug. 3, 2023; amended Jan....
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A Matter of Style: No Need to Select “Primary” Reference in Obviousness Challenge
By Cecilia Choy, Ph.D. on Oct 19, 2023
Posted In Patents
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed an obviousness decision by the Patent Trial & Appeal Board, explaining that nothing requires a petitioner to identify a prior art reference as a “primary reference” in an obviousness challenge. Schwendimann v. Neenah, Inc., Case Nos. 22-1333; -1334; -1427; -1432 (Fed. Cir. Oct. 6, 2023)...
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Pre-Enforcement Commercialization Isn’t “Impossible” Basis for Personal Jurisdiction of Nonresident Defendant
By Cecilia Choy, Ph.D. on Sep 28, 2023
Posted In Trademarks
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed a district court’s dismissal of trademark declaratory judgment claims, finding that pre-enforcement commercialization activities can be used to establish personal jurisdiction. Impossible Foods Inc. v. Impossible X LLC, Case No. 21-16977 (9th Cir. Sept. 12, 2023) (Lucero, Bress, JJ.) (VanDyke, J., dissenting). Impossible Foods is...
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Tune to the Right Channel: Disclosure Lacking Fraud Information Isn’t an FCA Qui Tam Bar
By Cecilia Choy, Ph.D. on Aug 17, 2023
Posted In Patents
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed a district court’s decision to dismiss a qui tam action brought under the False Claims Act (FCA) after analyzing the public disclosure bar channels. The case required the Ninth Circuit to examine Congress’s 2010 amendments to the FCA public disclosure bar to determine whether the...
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