Copyrights

Weintraub’s copyright attorneys advise clients on a wide range of issues including copyright registration, assignment, licensing, and strategy. Our experienced attorneys also handle a broad scope of copyright litigation, from representing copyright owners whose works have been infringed to defending those accused of copyright infringement.

To that end, Weintraub copyright attorneys are intently involved in the complex issues surrounding computer software and the high-tech industry, including issues relating to the scope of copyright protection, enforcement, acquisition, and licensing. Weintraub has also represented and advised clients in licensing and litigation matters relating to copyright protection for a wide variety of commercial items such as toys, electronics, and educational materials.

Weintraub brings extensive experience protecting copyrighted works for the entertainment industry, including protecting literary works, television and film works, visual artwork, video games, sound recordings, and multimedia products. We represent clients from industries such as television, film, music, publishing, websites, video games, and software. The firm has assisted clients in all forms of media and copyrightable works, including digital content, audiovisual presentations, software, film, literature, images, photography, and recorded music and sounds.

We register copyrights, expedite applications, record documents, and perform title searches. We also draft and negotiate agreements involving copyrighted works, including joint-development agreements, licenses, assignments, rights clearance, and distribution agreements. We advise on copyrightability, fair use, infringement, ownership and title, notice, security interests, and foreign protection. We have extensive experience in social media and other on-line issues and guide our clients through constantly changing best practices in this field.

Our services include:

  • Preparing and negotiating licenses and transfers, including for software and entertainment content
  • Litigation of copyright infringement cases
  • Copyright registration and protection
  • Fair use, open source counseling, and other software related issues
  • Ownership and work-made-for-hire counseling
  • Derivative works, distribution, and public performance rights
  • Copyright issues in commercial transactions

Jo Dale Carothers Quoted in Law360

Jo Dale Carothers was recently quoted in a Law360 article after a recent Precendential Opinion Panel decision for patent petitions for inter partes review (IPR) on whether copyright and ISBN are sufficient evidence for printed reference material as having been “publicly available”. Jo Dale speaks about the ruling stating, “I…

Weintraub Tobin and Waldron & Bragg Merge

Download: WTWB Merger Press Release FINAL.pdf Weintraub Tobin Chediak Coleman Grodin Law Corporation and Waldron & Bragg, a professional corporation, have jointly announced the merger of their business law and litigation firms. The combined firm will be named Weintraub Tobin Chediak Coleman Grodin and have offices in Sacramento, Calif., San…

Weintraub Tobin Raises Money for American Heart Association

For a third year in a row, Weintraub Tobin is working to raise funds for cardiovascular diseases and stroke by partaking in the American Heart Association Heart Walk on Saturday, September 21 at William Land Park. Our attorneys and staff work hard during the summer months to gear up for…

Authors Get Mixed Results With Initial Skirmish in OpenAI Lawsuit

OpenAI, Inc. develops artificial intelligence software involving large language models (“LLM”) known as ChatGPT.  In 2023, several authors, including the comedian Sarah Silverman, filed putative class action lawsuits alleging various copyright infringement claims. On February 12, 2024, a District Court in the Northern District of California issued its Order and…

District Court Rules Twenty-Two Month Delay in Filing Copyright Case Favors Denying Plaintiffs’ Request for Preliminary Injunction

In Jacobs et al v. The Journal Publishing Company et al, 1-21-cv-00690, District Judge Martha Vazquez of the District Court of New Mexico recently held Plaintiffs’ twenty-two-month delay in filing suit rebutted any presumption of irreparable harm for alleged copyright violations, and accordingly denied Plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction. In…

First Lawsuit Under CA’s Fair Chance Act Filed Against Ralph’s Grocery Store: A Message for CA Employers to Comply

In December 2023, the California Civil Rights Department (“CRD”) filed the first-of-its-kind lawsuit under the California Fair Chance Act (“Act”) against Ralphs Grocery Store (“Ralphs”) in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Background Re: the Act. The Act (sometimes referred to as the “Ban the Box” law) went into effect…

USPTO Issues Guidance on Patentability of Inventions Developed with the Assistance of Artificial Intelligence

On February 12, 2024, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) issued guidance on the patentability of inventions developed with the assistance of artificial intelligence, saying that a human must have made a “significant contribution” to the invention. The USPTO explained that while AI-assisted inventions are not categorically unpatentable,…

Jacqueline M. Simonovich for The Daily Journal: California’s New Civility MCLE Requirement Should Focus on Bias-Driven Incivility

In a January 31st article for The Daily Journal, Weintraub attorney Jacqueline M. Simonovich writes about California’s new civility MCLE requirement. While civility training can focus on the “link between civility and bias,” it can also focus on broader forms of incivility. Jacqueline suggests that education on bias-based incivility should…

Employers Beware: The Deadline to Comply with Notification Requirement of California’s New Non-Compete Law is Rapidly Approaching!

Last October, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 1076 into law and it became effective as of January 1, 2024.  AB 1076 was the Legislature’s attempt to codify the California Supreme Court’s 2008 decision, Edwards v. Arthur Anderson LLP, which held that non-compete agreements in the employment context are unenforceable…