Commercial litigation, free speech, trademarks & Internet law | ron coleman
Past Notable Successes
Historic SCOTUS Free Speech Ruling that Changed Trademark Law
Historic SCOTUS Free Speech Ruling that Changed Trademark Law
Historic SCOTUS Free Speech Ruling that Changed Trademark Law
Represented Simon Tam in the 2017 U.S. Supreme Court case Matal v. Tam, which resulted in a Supreme Court rulng that the disparagement clause of the trademark statute violated the First Amendment's free speech clause. More...
Trademark Preliminary Injunction Denied
Historic SCOTUS Free Speech Ruling that Changed Trademark Law
Historic SCOTUS Free Speech Ruling that Changed Trademark Law
Our client, a website that published public reviews of companies' products and services, was sued by a group of companies who were unhappy with what consumers said about them. We successfully resisted their motions for a preliminary injunction, settled the case with no costs or other relief against our client. A series of similar cases essentially put an end to this abuse of trademark law. More...
TRO, Injunction Obtained Against Disloyal Employees
Ninth Circuit Victory Upholds Dismissal of "Civil Rights" Claim Against Blogger
Ninth Circuit Victory Upholds Dismissal of "Civil Rights" Claim Against Blogger
A group of disloyal employees conspired, while still drawing salaries from our client, to copy our client's proprietary technical drawings for use in their own competing business. We obtained preliminary relief despite a claim by employees that our client had no right to rely on conversations discussing their plans conducted on Facebook
A group of disloyal employees conspired, while still drawing salaries from our client, to copy our client's proprietary technical drawings for use in their own competing business. We obtained preliminary relief despite a claim by employees that our client had no right to rely on conversations discussing their plans conducted on Facebook Messenger with company computers. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals affirms.
The result was a very favorable settlement for our client. More...
Ninth Circuit Victory Upholds Dismissal of "Civil Rights" Claim Against Blogger
Ninth Circuit Victory Upholds Dismissal of "Civil Rights" Claim Against Blogger
Ninth Circuit Victory Upholds Dismissal of "Civil Rights" Claim Against Blogger
John Patrick Frey, a political activist who also worked as a Deputy District Attorney, published derogatory comments about Naffe on his Internet blog and Twitter. As a result, Naffe sued Frey alleging a violation of her civil rights under the color of state law as a prosecutor under a 42 U.S.C. §1983. The district court dismissed this cau
John Patrick Frey, a political activist who also worked as a Deputy District Attorney, published derogatory comments about Naffe on his Internet blog and Twitter. As a result, Naffe sued Frey alleging a violation of her civil rights under the color of state law as a prosecutor under a 42 U.S.C. §1983. The district court dismissed this cause of action. The panel affirmed, holding that Frey’s public duties did not include updating his website, his comments were not related to being a prosecutor, and he included a disclaimer. More ...