Morgan Lewis on Intellectual Property and Technology
March/April 2004

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In this Issue:

• Deere Color Trade Dress Claims Roll On:
  In Deere & Company v. MTD Holdings Inc., 2004 WL 324890 (S.D.N.Y. February 19, 2004), the Southern District of New York denied lawn and garden manufacturer John Deere’s motion for summary judgment on its Lanham Act and state law claims arising out of a competitor’s use of the colors green and yellow on lawn and garden products.
• No Legg To Stand On: Substantial Statutory Damage Award for Copyright Infringement Upheld:
  In Lowry’s Reports, Inc. v. Legg Mason, Inc., 2004 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1908 (D. Md. February 11, 2004), the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland held, among other things, that the limitations on excessive punitive damages awards adopted by the Supreme Court in State Farm Mutual v. Campbell, 538 U.S. 408 (2003), and BMW of North America v. Gore, 517 U.S. 559 (1996), do not apply to statutory damages awards under the Copyright Act.
• Love the One You're With: Complaint Licensee Can't Challenge Validity of Licensed Patent:
  In Gen-Probe, Inc. v. Vysis, Inc., 2004 U.S. App. LEXIS 4286 (Fed. Cir. March 5, 2004), the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that a patent licensee in good standing lacked subject matter jurisdiction to seek a declaration of non-infringement and invalidity of the licensed patent.

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