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Trademark, Copyright, Advertising & the Law

Providing practical knowledge, interesting updates and insights for companies and legal practitioners to help navigate complex trademark, copyright, advertising and related legal issues

Trademark, Copyright, Advertising & the Law Blog
The Best of British Brands – An INTA 2026 London Walking Tour Through a U.S. Trademark Lens
Blog April 29, 2026
As we gear up for the INTA conference in London this year, it’s a perfect time to explore some of the UK’s most well-known brands and trademarks…
Marketing Meets IP: How to Stay Creative Without Crossing Legal Lines
Blog January 05, 2026
In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, marketing teams are under constant pressure to create bold, engaging campaigns. But creativity often collides with legal risk, especially when referencing other brands, copyrighted works, or celebrity likenesses…
What a Piece of Work is a Man[made piece of art] : Non-humans (Still) Can’t be Authors Under the Copyright Act
Blog March 26, 2025
Last week, the D.C. Circuit upheld the Copyright Office’s refusal to register the copyright in this image, which was created entirely by AI…
The Hazy Landscape of Trademark Protection for Cannabis Products in the U.S.
Blog August 22, 2024
Navigating the cannabis industry’s legal landscape in the United States is like moving through an ever-evolving maze, especially in the world of intellectual property…
Name That Artist: How AI Music is Shaping the Right of Publicity
Blog June 26, 2024
Every industry today is abuzz with the possibilities of artificial intelligence, and music is no exception. In the year since the AI-generated hit “Heart on My Sleeve,” courts have started to tackle AI issues in the arts head-on…
Trailblazers, OutKasts, and Iconic Brands: The INTA Annual Meeting in Atlanta
Blog May 17, 2024
The INTA Annual Meeting is here! As one of the largest gatherings of trademark professionals from around the world, the INTA Annual Meeting offers opportunities for networking, education, and collaboration…
How Original! The Oscars and the Craft of Derivative Works
Blog February 07, 2024
Happy Oscar season! As we ramp up for film’s most anticipated event, the lists start flying for the year’s potential winners. Frequently, the Academy favors somewhat obscure, esoteric films—so it might be surprising to learn how many nominees are, in fact, adaptations of existing art…
A Tale of Two Gorillas: An Underdog (Under-Ape?) Story
Blog March 11, 2021
March 8 was, according to questionable sources, National Retro Video Game Day in the US.  As one of Foley Hoag's several resident video game nerds, this reminded me of one of my favorite video-game-related IP disputes. In the 1970s, a nearly century-old Japanese playing card company called Nintendo started to branch out into electronic gaming, and in 1979 started a coin-operated arcade gaming division…
Out With The Old, In With The Gatsby Sequels: Trademark and Copyright News for the New Year
Blog February 01, 2021
Most of us were thrilled to see the calendar turn to 2021 on January 1, closing the chapter on what was an extremely challenging year around the globe. Now that we are a month into the new year, and the fireworks have faded and the noisemakers are packed away, we take a moment to highlight a few notable developments in the IP world that made a somewhat quieter entrance on the scene when the clock struck midnight…
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ABOUT

Foley Hoag’s Trademark, Copyright, Advertising & the Law blog aims to provide practical knowledge and insights for companies and legal practitioners to help them navigate complex trademark, copyright, and advertising law legal issues. 

Our authors, comprised of attorneys from the firm’s Trademark, Copyright & Unfair Competition and Advertising & Marketing practices, have been active in trademark, copyright, and advertising space for decades. We advise our clients on the availability of marks and names, prepare and prosecute domestic and foreign applications for marks, and monitor and maintain thousands of registrations worldwide. We help clients exploit their brands through trademark licensing and provide clients with the legal and contractual protection they need to maximize the commercial potential of their brands without jeopardizing their rights. We have extensive experience in the policing, enforcement and defense of our clients’ trademark rights, representing our clients in civil litigation, administrative proceedings and arbitration in the U.S. and abroad. We also specialize in advising clients on trademark matters in connection with emerging media and the Internet, including domain name and Internet keyword disputes.

Our team also handles a variety of copyright matters. We offer advice regarding copyright registration and assist clients in policing and enforcing copyrights against infringers, including actions involving the Internet and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). We are counsel to some of the largest corporations in the U.S. in defending against claims of copyright infringement. We also focus on related complex unfair competition matters, as well as disputes involving trade secrets, false advertising, comparative advertising, defamation, and commercial disparagement. We work with clients to determine acceptable limits in client advertising and assist clients in evaluating advertising and related statements by competitors that cross the line into deception, disparagement, and defamation. We also help clients evaluate and address the theft of trade secrets, including by ex-employees, data thieves, and hackers.

Foley Hoag lawyers are leaders in their field. In addition to being well known in the business community and the courts, they are active members and leaders of the International Trademark Association, the Food and Drug Law Institute, the National Advertising Division of the Better Business Bureau, and other professional organizations. They frequently lecture, teach, and publish in the fields of trademark and unfair competition. As members of these organizations, they participate actively in shaping law and policy.

Webinar Series

Foley Hoag’s Trademark, Copyright & Unfair Competition practice group presents a webinar series designed exclusively for in-house counsel and business executives that discusses timely legal issues impacting business decisions in the areas of trademark, trade dress, copyright, trade secret, Internet, domain name, false advertising, defamation, commercial disparagement and other unfair competition.

Click here to subscribe to our webinar series invitation list.