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Today's Lead · trademark

Taylor Swift Filed a Sound Mark Application for an Amazon Music Ad and the Examining Attorneys at the USPTO Will Probably Shake It Off the Register for Failing to Function as a Mark

Taylor Swift filed a sound mark application built around an Amazon Music ad for the album she's currently being sued over. The USPTO probably won't register it. Here's why — and why federal name-image-likeness legislation is what this whole conversation is actually missing.

Brian Lynch · May 3, 2026 · 5 min read
Taylor Swift Filed a Sound Mark Application for an Amazon Music Ad and the Examining Attorneys at the USPTO Will Probably Shake It Off the Register for Failing to Function as a Mark

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trademark

Cutting a Pancake Into 8 Slices Is Not a Trademark

The TTAB's first precedential opinion of 2026 refused registration of an eight-slice pancake design as a trademark, finding the configuration functional — largely because the applicants' own marketing materials and arguments explained exactly why it's useful.

Apr 13 · 4 min read
Supreme Court

The Tariffs Are Gone. Good Luck Getting Them Back.

Can They Just Backfill With Other Statutes? Technically, yes. Practically? Good luck. The President still has tariff authority under Section 232 and Section 301 — but those statutes require actual investigations, actual findings, and actual legal justification. You can't use a Section 301 finding ab

Feb 20 · 3 min read
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