IP Monday Law Blog 

In my last post, I wrote about the importance of asking the right question because the answer you get is only as good as the question you ask. That idea is practically universal, it also shows up in how patent eligibility under 35 U.S.C. §101 is being applied, especially for AI and software.

A recent precedential decision from the United States Patent Trademark Office's (USPTO) Appeals Review Panel, Ex parte Desjardins, is a good example of what happens when the wrong question gets asked and then corrected.

The Wrong Question

For a while now, many §101 rejections, particularly in AI, have ...

Every parent knows the script. “How was school?” “Good.” “How’s class?” “Fine.” “Good talk, kiddo.”

It’s funny because it’s true, teenagers don’t want to talk. Not to nosy parents, not to teachers, not to coaches. Definitely not to anyone who isn’t at least 5% charged.

At least, that’s what we (as adults) tell ourselves. But what if the answer has been sitting right in front of us the whole time? What if the questions are just… bad?  Or, at the risk of sounding a little meta, what if better questions change the conversation entirely?

One that actually ...

Some of you may remember when your favorite classic film was first released in color: re-edited, remastered, and modernized for our modern 4K and OLED TVs. Or many of you may not be old enough to have ever watched a movie or television show in black and white at all.

Either way, in trademark law, color is not preferred! Despite how counterintuitive it seems, black and white still rules supreme when it comes to filing design trademark applications, and for good reason.

The Black-and-White Rule

Under long-standing United State Patent and Trademark (USPTO) practice, a design mark filed in ...

Injunctions, Innovation, and the Problem We Can’t Price

There is a shift happening in patent law, but its real impact will not be felt in policy statements...it will be felt in federal courtrooms.

Recently, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a Statement of Interest in Collision Communications, Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co., reinforcing a principle that has quietly eroded over time: a patent is a right to exclude, and injunctions are central to that right.

At first glance, that sounds obvious, patents have always been ...

If you are preparing to sell your business, there is one part of the process that often catches founders by surprise.

During the diligence step for an M&A, it is surprisingly common to discover that some of the entity’s intellectual property (IP) was never formally assigned to the company in the first place. It's not the patents or the registered trademarks; it’s the overlooked assets.

Assets such as:

• Website content and marketing copy
• Graphics, videos, and blog articles
• Software written by contractors
• Domain names registered under a founder’s personal account
• Internal ...

In rapid succession, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced two new Community Engagement Office locations: Montana State University (Montana) and the University of Utah (Utah).

This is not a mere coincidence, it is strategy. Taken together, these announcements signal something more significant than just administrative expansion. They reflect a structural shift where innovation is happening and how federal intellectual property (IP) infrastructure is responding.

We are witnessing the expansion of a new “Innovation Frontier”.

Why Montana and ...

In the NIL era of college sports, athletes are moving fast: launching personal brands, apparel, and merchandise, while attention is high. Speed matters. But when a brand name feels instantly familiar, that familiarity can sometimes be a legal warning sign rather than a strength.

I’m seeing a growing pattern: NIL brands built around phrases that intentionally echo well-known movie titles, characters, or pop-culture names, often through rhyme, cadence, or wordplay. They feel clever and marketable. And they often create trademark risk that isn’t obvious at first glance.

For companies building real AI and software technology, patent eligibility under §101 has been a persistent frustration. Innovations grounded in model training, data handling, or system architecture are often dismissed as “abstract” simply because they involve algorithms or math.

A recent precedential decision from the United States Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) Appeals Review Panel signals a meaningful adjustment in how those innovations are evaluated. The case—Ex parte Desjardins—does not change the law, but it clarifies how examiners must apply it ...

In addition to his practice as an attorney, blog author Mikhail Murshak is an adjunct Professor in Intellectual Property (IP), Trademark and Patent Law at Michigan State University College of Law.

The start of 2026 brings energy, momentum, and predictably, the same intellectual property mistakes I see every January.

For startups, it often looks like moving fast without realizing that public launches, pitch decks, websites, and demos can quietly destroy patent rights if filings are not in place. For established companies, it usually shows up as brand expansion, new offerings, or ...

It usually starts with a phone call, email or even a handwritten letter with the opening line: "Hi! I've got a great idea for your business!" While this well-meaning pitch is a seemingly an innocent moment, it can create one of the sneakiest legal traps that companies can face.

This blog discusses what's really happening behind the scenes and what you should be ready for when someone wants to share their "million-dollar idea" with you.

1. The Surprise Pitch: “Can I Tell You My Idea?”

It sounds harmless, maybe even a little flattering. But legally? It’s a minefield.

Because ...