The Briefing by Weintraub Tobin
In The Briefing by Weintraub Tobin, intellectual property attorney Scott Hervey and his guests discuss current IP issues related to trademark, copyright, and entertainment, as well as IP litigation and intellectual property in the news.
Episodes
October 31, 2025 • 11 mins
A consent agreement can be a powerful tool to overcome a USPTO likelihood-of-confusion refusal—but only if it’s done right.
In this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub Tobin attorneys Scott Hervey and Richard Buckley discuss the TTAB’s precedential decision in In re Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla, where the Board rejected a one-page consent agreement as a “naked consent” insufficient to overcome a Section 2(d) refusal.
The...
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October 24, 2025 • 16 mins
Can a car, a superhero, or even a cartoon sidekick be protected by copyright? In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Matt Sugarman break down how fictional characters earn legal protection — and when they don’t.
From DC Comics v. Towle (the “Batmobile” case) to Carroll Shelby Licensing v. Halicki (the “Eleanor” case), Scott and Matt explore the three-part test for character copyrightability, how trademark rights ca...
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October 17, 2025 • 10 mins
A federal court has granted summary judgment for Nirvana, dismissing Spencer Elden’s claim that the Nevermind album cover — depicting him as a baby — constituted child pornography. In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and James Kachmar revisit their earlier coverage of the Ninth Circuit’s decision and unpack how the district court’s final ruling turned on artistic intent and context rather than perception.
Tune in to le...
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October 10, 2025 • 18 mins
Disney faced a copyright lawsuit over the use of MOVA facial-capture software in Beauty and the Beast. A jury found Disney vicariously liable, the district court threw out the verdict, but the Ninth Circuit has now reinstated it. In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Tara Sattler discuss:
● The facts behind Disney’s use of VFX vendor DD3 and the disputed MOVA software
● Why the district court found no “practical a...
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October 3, 2025 • 12 mins
Former Congressman George Santos sued Jimmy Kimmel after the late-night host used Cameo videos in a comedy segment called “Will Santos Say It?” Santos claimed copyright infringement and fraud, but both the District Court and the Second Circuit said Kimmel’s use was fair use. In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Tara Sattler break down:
● How Kimmel obtained the videos using fake Cameo accounts
● Why the Dis...
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September 26, 2025 • 16 mins
Neil Young vs. Chrome Hearts — What happens when a rock legend collides with a luxury fashion powerhouse? Chrome Hearts has filed suit against Neil Young, claiming his new band “Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts” infringes on their famous trademark
On this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub attorneys Scott Hervey and James Kachmar unpack the lawsuit, analyze the likelihood of confusion, and compare it to the Lady Gaga “Mayhem” ...
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September 19, 2025 • 7 mins
The Anthropic settlement shows just how costly copyright missteps can be in AI development. Anthropic has agreed to a $1.5B settlement after a court found that keeping a permanent library of pirated books was not fair use—even though training its AI model on those same works was.
On this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub attorneys Scott Hervey and Matt Sugarman discuss the ruling, the settlement, and what it means for future...
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September 12, 2025 • 23 mins
The Yuga Labs v. Ryder Ripps case is shaking up NFTs and trademarks. In this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub attorneys Scott Hervey and Tara Sattler unpack the Ninth Circuit’s ruling on whether NFTs count as “goods,” why the First Amendment defense fell flat, and what it all means for the future of digital asset law.
Watch this episode on YouTube.
Show Notes:
Scott: Was the Ryder Ripps Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT series a soci...
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September 5, 2025 • 17 mins
50 Cent’s two-minute cameo in the horror film "Skill House" turned into a full-blown legal battle over credits, contracts, and control. In this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub entertainment and IP attorneys Scott Hervey and Tara Sattler break down what went wrong—and what Hollywood can learn from it.
Watch this episode on YouTube.
Show Notes:
Scott:
Picture this, Curtis 50 Cent Jackson, hip hop legend and media mogul, ste...
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August 29, 2025 • 8 mins
You came up with a clever brand name in a foreign language—great! But did you know it might be refused by the USPTO? In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Richard Buckley break down what a doctrine is, how trademark examiners apply it, and other important considerations for choosing foreign-language marks.
Watch this episode on YouTube.
Show Notes:
Scott: You've come up with a great brand. It's clever, it's catchy,...
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August 22, 2025 • 5 mins
Can you use a celebrity’s voice or image in your work? What about AI-generated versions? On this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Richard Buckley explore the right of publicity—how it protects names, likenesses, voices, and what happens when you cross the line.
Watch this episode on YouTube.
Show Notes:
Scott: Can you use a celebrity's name or likeness in your film, in your podcast, or in an advertisement? Well, you s...
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August 15, 2025 • 6 mins
Who owns the rights when you co-create something? It’s not always as simple as you think. On this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Richard Buckley dig into:
✔️ Joint authorship
✔️ Work-for-hire rules
✔️ Why every collaboration needs paperwork
Avoid disputes before they derail your project. Watch this episode on YouTube.
Show Notes:
Scott: In a film, a television show, and music— creative projects are ...
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August 8, 2025 • 6 mins
From podcast names to iconic sounds, trademarks shape the entertainment world. In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Richard Buckley break down what trademarks are, how to get one, and why creators must protect their brand. A must-listen for anyone building a name in entertainment.
Watch this episode on YouTube.
Scott: From movie titles to podcast logos, trademarks are everywhere in the entertainment industry. But ...
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August 1, 2025 • 8 mins
Creators, beware: just because it’s online doesn’t mean it’s fair game. In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Richard Buckley break down one of the most misunderstood areas of copyright law—fair use.
In this episode, they cover:
What makes a use "transformative"?
Why credit alone doesn't protect you
How recent court rulings (Warhol v. Goldsmith) are changing the game
Tips to stay on the right si...
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July 25, 2025 • 15 mins
In a major win for Meta, a federal court recently dismissed a lawsuit brought by prominent authors who claimed their books were illegally used to train the company’s LLaMA models. But the ruling doesn’t give AI companies a free pass—it reveals the roadmap for how a better-prepared copyright plaintiff could win next time.
In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey is joined by his partner Matt Sugarman as they break down:
T...
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July 18, 2025 • 16 mins
A federal judge has ruled that training Claude AI on copyrighted books—even without a license—was transformative and protected under fair use. But storing millions of pirated books in a permanent internal library? That crossed the line.
In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Tara Sattler break down this nuanced opinion and what this ruling means for AI developers and copyright owners going forward.
Watch this epi...
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The Supreme Court sidestepped a major copyright showdown—again. What does it mean when infringement claims surface decades later? In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Tara Sattler break down the latest in the discovery rule debate, RAD Design’s rejected petition, and how this uncertainty affects creators, businesses, and copyright holders across the country.
Watch this episode on YouTube.
Show Notes:
Scott: In Warn...
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July 3, 2025 • 12 mins
Who really owns WallStreetBets? The man who created the subreddit, or the platform that hosted it?
In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Tara Sattler dive into the trademark showdown between Jaime Rogozinski and Reddit, and why both the District Court and the Ninth Circuit said no to Rogozinski's claim of trademark ownership.
This case is a cautionary tale for creators and entrepreneurs about what really counts as “use ...
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June 27, 2025 • 16 mins
In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Richard Buckley dive into Pepperdine University v. Netflix, a trademark showdown over the use of the name “Waves” in the Netflix series Running Point. After Pepperdine’s attempt to block the series’ release was denied under the Rogers test, the university is back—this time arguing that the Jack Daniel’s Supreme Court decision changes everything.
Watch this episode on the Weintraub ...
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June 20, 2025 • 14 mins
Can a car be a copyrightable character? In Carroll Shelby Licensing v. Halicki, the Ninth Circuit said no — ruling that “Eleanor,” the iconic Mustang from 'Gone in 60 Seconds,' lacks the distinctiveness and consistency required for copyright protection.
In this episode of The Briefing, Scott Hervey and Richard Buckley break down the history of the Eleanor litigation, review the district court and Ninth Circuit rulings, and explain...
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