Insights

Chicago – December 12, 2024: Crowell partner Marc V. Richards and counsel Adam D. Sussman recently authored the lead chapter in the 2025 edition of the Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education’s Intellectual Property Law Handbook. The chapter, titled “Patenting Inventions,” covers the basics of what a patent is and what it can protect, and provides a detailed roadmap for evaluating inventions and the process to obtain a U.S. patent.

Washington – June 30, 2022: Intellectual Asset Management recognized Crowell & Moring in its IAM Patent 1000 – The World’s Leading Patent Practitioners guide, awarding the firm a gold band ranking as one of the top four firms handling patent litigation and transactions in Belgium, and a silver ranking for the firm’s Chicago office. This marks the ninth consecutive year that the firm has been ranked in the guide in Belgium. The guide also recommended Brussels partner Kristof Roox in the gold band; partner Jan-Diederik Lindemans in the silver band; and senior counsel Jurgen Figys in the bronze band.

Washington – June 15, 2022: Crowell & Moring has been recommended in eight practice areas in the 15th edition of the Legal 500 United States. In addition, partner Daniel R. Forman, co-chair of the firm’s Government Contracts Group, has been named to Legal 500’s “Hall of Fame” for Government Contracts. Antitrust & Competition partner Megan L. Wolf has been named a “Next Generation Partner” for Merger Control. Advertising & Media partners Christopher A. Cole and Lauren Aronson have been named a “Leading Lawyer” and “Next Generation Partner” for Advertising and Marketing Litigation respectively. The firm’s full rankings can be viewed here.

In 2023 and 2024, several U.S. states enacted extensive “Right to Repair” laws, reflecting a growing legislative focus on ensuring consumers have access to the parts and resources needed to repair their own products without relying on the product’s original manufacturer. Most recently, California, Colorado, Minnesota, New York, Massachusetts, and Oregon implemented comprehensive regulations aimed at providing consumers direct access to tools, parts, and information for the repair of various electronic devices and equipment, including digital products and agricultural machinery. As the “Right to Repair” movement continues to gain significant traction across the United States, it is critical that manufacturers understand these laws and how these laws will impact their individual businesses.

Design patents play a crucial role in protecting the aesthetic and functional aspects of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and connectors, which are essential components in the growing EV market, and the burgeoning infrastructure supporting the same. Participants in this crowded market would be wise to protect their innovations and investments by filing for design patents directed to distinctive design elements of the products and services they offer, as part of a robust intellectual property strategy. Doing so can help such participants enhance their market position, obtain and then maintain market differentiation, and attract investors.

On November 22, 2024, World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) member states adopted the Riyadh Design Law Treaty (“Treaty”). This development is arguably the biggest advancement in international design law since 1999, when the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs (“the Hague Agreement”) was adopted.

&Motion sits with Crowell's Jacob Bachman to discuss design patents and their relevance to the transportation industry.