Diana Muller was recently invited by the Dominican Association of Intellectual Property (ADOPI) and various sponsors to deliver two lectures in Spanish in the Dominican Republic. The first lecture was delivered on March 3 at the prestigious University PUCMM in Santo Domingo. The audience consisted of students, professors, the Director of the Patent and Trademark Office, colleagues, designers and business people as well as members of ADOPI. There were approximately 120 people.
The second lecture took place on March 5 in Centro Leon , a fabulous museum and center of art and education which had an exhibition on the life and work of the famous designer OSCAR DE LA RENTA. This lecture was very well attended and included students, professors, designers , press and people involved in the art.
Diana Muller was also invited to a private conference with the Director of the Patent and Trademark Office and other colleagues in Santo Domingo.
The two lectures addressed the Art of Protecting Intellectual Property in the Fashion Industry including the protection and enforcement of trademarks, copyrights, trade dress, designers’ names, trade secrets, design patents and utility patents. Famous cases were discussed included the Louis Vuitton and “My Other Bag” case and Christian Louboutin SA v. Yves Saint Laurent America Holding, Inc.
The lectures covered the evolution the copyright concept of “separability” and the protection of designs under U.S. copyright law, and touched on cases such as Jovani Fashion, Ltd v. Cinderella Divine, Inc., Star Athletica, LLC vs. Varsity Brands, Inc. and Silvertop Assocs., Inc v. Kangaroo Mfg, Inc.
The audiences were very interested in the various issues of protection of electronic technologies including smart watches and intelligent clothing that can detect pressure, breathing, posture, etc. The subject of design patent protection was also discussed, especially in regard to the new and original ornamental designs on jewelry, footwear, perfume bottles, sportswear, pants and accessories. Design patent protection has become a very valuable tool in the fight against infringers in the United States.
Legal aspects of protection of IP in social media, protection and trademark registration of hashtags and international IP protection were also addressed.