alex roberts
@lexlanham.bsky.social
law professor teaching & writing about trademark, false advertising, IP, & entertainment law at northeastern
wow I really had my act together this morning huh 😒
December 27, 2025 at 9:57 PM
wow I really had my act together this morning huh 😒
it’s 18 degrees (“feels like” 10), my husband’s at work, my kids are making me take them sledding
check on me later
check on me later
December 27, 2025 at 4:16 PM
it’s 18 degrees (“feels like” 10), my husband’s at work, my kids are making me take them sledding
check on me later
check on me later
i spoke with @wsj about the "total 90" trademark dispute. a small company noticed nike's trademark registration for TOTAL 90 had lapsed, so they registered it & started using it on related goods & then sued nike for infringing it...
December 26, 2025 at 2:16 PM
i spoke with @wsj about the "total 90" trademark dispute. a small company noticed nike's trademark registration for TOTAL 90 had lapsed, so they registered it & started using it on related goods & then sued nike for infringing it...
I dreamt last night that I was recruited to join an ice hockey team for women lawyers
I wasn’t (am not) good & knew I would mostly warm the bench but I was just so thrilled to be on the team
I wasn’t (am not) good & knew I would mostly warm the bench but I was just so thrilled to be on the team
December 26, 2025 at 1:17 AM
I dreamt last night that I was recruited to join an ice hockey team for women lawyers
I wasn’t (am not) good & knew I would mostly warm the bench but I was just so thrilled to be on the team
I wasn’t (am not) good & knew I would mostly warm the bench but I was just so thrilled to be on the team
zootopia 2 is about patent law????
December 26, 2025 at 1:10 AM
zootopia 2 is about patent law????
actual confusion? www.facebook.com/photo.php?fb...
Redirecting...
www.facebook.com
December 24, 2025 at 2:47 AM
actual confusion? www.facebook.com/photo.php?fb...
sometimes I think about quitting sugar and just assume this is how it would go for me
December 23, 2025 at 8:34 PM
sometimes I think about quitting sugar and just assume this is how it would go for me
Reposted by alex roberts
Today in design patents:
D1107216 issued for a tablet.
Oddly nothing is disclaimed here.
#DesignPatents
D1107216 issued for a tablet.
Oddly nothing is disclaimed here.
#DesignPatents
December 23, 2025 at 7:43 PM
Today in design patents:
D1107216 issued for a tablet.
Oddly nothing is disclaimed here.
#DesignPatents
D1107216 issued for a tablet.
Oddly nothing is disclaimed here.
#DesignPatents
fancy chicago restaurant "smyth" sues neihgborhood spot "smyth tavern" inside the smyth tribeca hotel for trademark infringement after 4 years of coexistence & as though it isn't basically the most common surname in all of america
ny.eater.com/news/407901/...
ny.eater.com/news/407901/...
A Three-Michelin-Star Chicago Restaurant Sues a New York Tavern Over Its Name
Smyth in Chicago is not ok with the name of Tribeca’s Smyth Tavern
ny.eater.com
December 23, 2025 at 3:12 PM
fancy chicago restaurant "smyth" sues neihgborhood spot "smyth tavern" inside the smyth tribeca hotel for trademark infringement after 4 years of coexistence & as though it isn't basically the most common surname in all of america
ny.eater.com/news/407901/...
ny.eater.com/news/407901/...
lexi love trademark dispute hits a little close to home for me
love,
lex
news.bloomberglaw.com/ip-law/drag-...
love,
lex
news.bloomberglaw.com/ip-law/drag-...
Drag Performer Sues Over ‘Lexi Love’ Name in Trademark Dispute
A contestant from the popular TV show RuPaul’s Drag Race sued a California woman Friday, alleging trademark infringement and unfair competition over the use of the stage name “Lexi Love.”
news.bloomberglaw.com
December 23, 2025 at 3:09 PM
lexi love trademark dispute hits a little close to home for me
love,
lex
news.bloomberglaw.com/ip-law/drag-...
love,
lex
news.bloomberglaw.com/ip-law/drag-...
with a turtle for a client you'll never feel rushed 🐢
December 23, 2025 at 2:30 PM
with a turtle for a client you'll never feel rushed 🐢
are you a @northeastern undergrad or (non-law) grad student looking for a fun spring elective?
check out #MakeYourMark (INAM 5240), my @nu_camd class on trademark, advertising, & endorsement in creative industries
course description & some sample student evals below:
check out #MakeYourMark (INAM 5240), my @nu_camd class on trademark, advertising, & endorsement in creative industries
course description & some sample student evals below:
December 22, 2025 at 7:49 PM
are you a @northeastern undergrad or (non-law) grad student looking for a fun spring elective?
check out #MakeYourMark (INAM 5240), my @nu_camd class on trademark, advertising, & endorsement in creative industries
course description & some sample student evals below:
check out #MakeYourMark (INAM 5240), my @nu_camd class on trademark, advertising, & endorsement in creative industries
course description & some sample student evals below:
making this breaking news update 50% about the status of the suspect in the brown shooting & 50% about how we talk funny here in new england was quite a choice
December 19, 2025 at 2:41 AM
making this breaking news update 50% about the status of the suspect in the brown shooting & 50% about how we talk funny here in new england was quite a choice
my husband & I are the same
meyers-briggs type, is that common or unusual?
meyers-briggs type, is that common or unusual?
December 14, 2025 at 3:19 AM
my husband & I are the same
meyers-briggs type, is that common or unusual?
meyers-briggs type, is that common or unusual?
after i posted this @theverge.com reached out about the petition to cancel the twitter marks so now we *are* talking about residual goodwill!
www.theverge.com/report/84199...
www.theverge.com/report/84199...
December 10, 2025 at 10:38 PM
after i posted this @theverge.com reached out about the petition to cancel the twitter marks so now we *are* talking about residual goodwill!
www.theverge.com/report/84199...
www.theverge.com/report/84199...
more importantly, why aren't we talking about residual goodwill
if another platform using "twitter" creates a likelihood of confusion because of lingering association with x, that can be enough to enjoin its use even if x has no intent to resume use
if another platform using "twitter" creates a likelihood of confusion because of lingering association with x, that can be enough to enjoin its use even if x has no intent to resume use
“Mere ‘token use’ won’t be enough to reserve the mark,” Lemley wrote. “Consumers obviously still know the brand name. It seems weird to think someone else could grab the name when consumers still associate it with the ex-social media site of that name. But that’s what the law says.”
December 10, 2025 at 1:29 PM
more importantly, why aren't we talking about residual goodwill
if another platform using "twitter" creates a likelihood of confusion because of lingering association with x, that can be enough to enjoin its use even if x has no intent to resume use
if another platform using "twitter" creates a likelihood of confusion because of lingering association with x, that can be enough to enjoin its use even if x has no intent to resume use
the twitter bird is named larry bird!?! that seems like a whole separate issue!
“Mere ‘token use’ won’t be enough to reserve the mark,” Lemley wrote. “Consumers obviously still know the brand name. It seems weird to think someone else could grab the name when consumers still associate it with the ex-social media site of that name. But that’s what the law says.”
December 10, 2025 at 1:27 PM
the twitter bird is named larry bird!?! that seems like a whole separate issue!
signing your kids up for hiphop is great because they come home from school like "hey mom can you play 'it takes two' by rob base?" "hey mom want to see my dance to 'it's goin' down' by yung joc?"
December 10, 2025 at 12:43 AM
signing your kids up for hiphop is great because they come home from school like "hey mom can you play 'it takes two' by rob base?" "hey mom want to see my dance to 'it's goin' down' by yung joc?"
we are about to start seeing a lot of “chatgpt told me to” defenses in criminal & civil litigation if we aren’t already
Jimmy Fallon: "And do you use ChatGPT when raising your baby?"
Sam Altman: "I cannot imagine figuring out how to raise a newborn without ChatGPT."
Sam Altman: "I cannot imagine figuring out how to raise a newborn without ChatGPT."
December 9, 2025 at 6:46 PM
we are about to start seeing a lot of “chatgpt told me to” defenses in criminal & civil litigation if we aren’t already
I got a phishing email yesterday that said it was a student complaint and I was like “oh no!!” except it was from harvard and I do not teach at harvard
you’d have to be really mad at me to file a formal complaint about me all the way in cambridge
you’d have to be really mad at me to file a formal complaint about me all the way in cambridge
a woman wearing a hoodie and sunglasses stands in a crowd of people with the words she does n't even go here
ALT: a woman wearing a hoodie and sunglasses stands in a crowd of people with the words she does n't even go here
media.tenor.com
December 9, 2025 at 5:08 PM
I got a phishing email yesterday that said it was a student complaint and I was like “oh no!!” except it was from harvard and I do not teach at harvard
you’d have to be really mad at me to file a formal complaint about me all the way in cambridge
you’d have to be really mad at me to file a formal complaint about me all the way in cambridge
doing an #AMA tomorrow for northeastern—ask me anything about trademarks, false advertising, IP, law teaching, drinking iced coffee in the winter, or whatever else is on your mind!
U/NGNresearch
time: 3-430pm ET
U/NGNresearch
time: 3-430pm ET
December 8, 2025 at 7:57 PM
doing an #AMA tomorrow for northeastern—ask me anything about trademarks, false advertising, IP, law teaching, drinking iced coffee in the winter, or whatever else is on your mind!
U/NGNresearch
time: 3-430pm ET
U/NGNresearch
time: 3-430pm ET
Reposted by alex roberts
Likely to confuse? www.law360.com/ip/articles/... CC: @lexlanham.bsky.social
December 8, 2025 at 1:18 PM
Likely to confuse? www.law360.com/ip/articles/... CC: @lexlanham.bsky.social
we are on a zoom with astronaut jonny kim in space & he is currently explaining all the bathroom stuff 💫
December 6, 2025 at 7:57 PM
we are on a zoom with astronaut jonny kim in space & he is currently explaining all the bathroom stuff 💫
ttab says DANKE and MERCI can coexist as trademarks for chocolate--even though consumers will translate both to "thank you" under the doctrine of foreign equivalents & the goods are the same, the marks are conceptually weak & different in sight & sound
www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/sa...
www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/sa...
Say Thank You with Chocolate: MERCI and DANKE Not Confusingly Similar, Says the TTAB | JD Supra
Merci, Danke, and Thank You—different in linguistic origin, yet all express gratitude. Now that we are in the holiday season, you may want to convey...
www.jdsupra.com
December 4, 2025 at 8:45 PM
ttab says DANKE and MERCI can coexist as trademarks for chocolate--even though consumers will translate both to "thank you" under the doctrine of foreign equivalents & the goods are the same, the marks are conceptually weak & different in sight & sound
www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/sa...
www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/sa...
chalk one up for shabbat amirite
December 4, 2025 at 2:33 AM
chalk one up for shabbat amirite