Kinsella Law

Cigars, Spirits, Dames & Diversions

by Norman Stephan Kinsella on February 22, 2003

Thanks to my good buddy Russ Lindenfeldar, patent lawyer with Engelhard, who was in town the other night and with whom I did some carousing, along with another patent lawyer buddy, Mark Gilbreth, I’ve discovered a new beer: Chimay, made by the Trappist monks in Belgium. Comes in three flavors, red label, blue label, and triple, and are top fermented and refermented in the bottle. The large bottle has a champagne type cork that pops when you uncork it. Meant to be served in a wide-mouthed glass, it’s wonderful. (Okay, this has little to do with law or IP, but I love beer so much I had to tell.)

While I’m on the topic of alcohol, my former patent-lawyer boss Bill Norvell introduced me to the truly fine Blanton’s bourbon (and several varieties of tequila, but that’s another story). The Mises Institute’s Joe Stromberg gave me my first Elijah Craig bourbon experience. And my PhD EE former co-worker, Jim Baillargeon, initiated me into the world of scotch, especially his favorite, Lagavulin. My fellow patent lawyer Warner Delaune of Baton Rouge gave me some additional cigar and scotch tips.

And while I’m on this topic–I love the politically-incorrect site SmokeThis!, by “Cigar Dave”, who hosts the Smoke This! radio talk show. I particularly like his sense of humour and the Cigar Dave Motto: “Live the good life. Drink, smoke, gamble, feast, joke, fornicate and be tolerant of those who do. Take risks and thrive for the good challenge. Work hard and play hard without going over the edge. Live in the moment. Believe in moderation in all things, including moderation. Live it up!” You gotta love this guy. He calls cigars “sticks,” his female fans his “harem,” his listeners “Cigar Lieutenants,” and opens his show with the greeting “Long Ashes.” His site has features like Cigar Dave’s “Babe Magnet” Cologne Selections, Living Like Bond (Interview with author of the “Complete James Bond Lifestyle Seminar”), and Top 10 Cities for the Hottest Delicious Dames. His message to a “whiney” email that complained he “advocates” cigars: “My show does not ‘advocate’ cigar smoking. My show advocates enjoying life’s great pleasures. Amongst them: cigars, spirits, dames, diversions, and the right to be politically incorrect. I advocate treating yourself after a long stressful day or a hard week.”

*** Update: Man, am I am amateur! Here’s an email from a Belgian friend, whose knowledge of the suds puts me to shame. Oh well, something to look forward to… “So you like a Belgian beer! Chimay is not my favourite. It isn’t even the best Trappist beer on the market. If you’d ask me, the best Trappist is Westmalle, with Sixtus coming close. Right now Leffe is very popular. Anyway, is it the same quality you get over there that we serve here in the home of the abbaye-beers? […] [Other good Belgian beers include]: a Duvel (devil), Judas, Delirium Tremens, Verboden Vrucht (forbidden fruit), Kasteelbier (castle beer), Geuze, Hoegaarden, Graal (grail) or one of the other 200 or so Belgian beers.”

***Update: at the advice of my Frog friend Alex Padilla, check out www.realbeer.com, where you can order Belgian beer delivery.

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Generic Drug Maker Wins a Big One

by Norman Stephan Kinsella on February 19, 2003

Well worth reading: Warner-Lambert Co. v. Apotex Corp., 2003 U.S. App. Lexis 594 (Fed. Cir. Jan. 16, 2003); and commentary, Generic Drug Maker Wins a Big One.

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Don’t expect NesQuik, Ovaltine or Hershey to offer this anytime soon

by Norman Stephan Kinsella on February 5, 2003

Recent patent: Semen taste-enhancement dietary supplement. What will they think of next.

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Google-opoly

by Norman Stephan Kinsella on January 30, 2003

Google-Opoly: The Game No One but Google Can Play: Fascinating article in Slate about “The strange Google lawsuit over its page-ranking monopoly.”

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Ustjay Orfay Unfay

by Norman Stephan Kinsella on January 27, 2003

Google’s Language Tools page provides an option to customize the language used for your Google Interface. In addition to, of course, English, and standard languages such as Dutch, German, etc., older languages such as Latin (“Favente Fortuna!”), and utopian/invented languages such as Esperanto and Klingon, you can select other, more whimsical ones, like Pig Latin (“I’may Eelingfay Uckylay!”), Elmer Fudd (“I’m Feewing Wucky”).

N.b.: not for the humor-challenged (your know who you are).

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Hollywood finally killed the goose that layed the golden egg

by Norman Stephan Kinsella on January 24, 2003

Or so says a patent lawyer friend of mine, referring to Tech firms fight copy-protection bill. This story reports that “A coalition of companies including Apple Computer, Microsoft, Dell Computer, Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard and Intel said Thursday that they had joined together to oppose legislation backed by the movie studios that would allow the U.S. government to set antipiracy standards for PCs and consumer-electronics devices.” Good for them!

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Copyright and Free Culture

by Norman Stephan Kinsella on January 24, 2003

Lawrence Lessig’s Keynote address to the Open Source Convention (OSCON) 2002 is a truly fascinating and insightful look at the historical evolution of copyright law and how it is increasingly threatening cultural freedom.

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Patent Licensing…

by Norman Stephan Kinsella on January 22, 2003

Now stifle those yawns! My latest IP-related publication (not counting regular updates to Oceana’s Trademark Practice and Forms or World Online Business Law, for which I’m editor) is Impact of Patent Licensing on Patent Litigation and Patent Office Proceedings, co-authored with Richard T. Redano, published in the January 2003 issue of The Licensing Journal.

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PATSCAN’s Bizarre Patent Calendar 2003

by Norman Stephan Kinsella on January 8, 2003

Can be dowloaded for free from their website.

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Why Not to Lie to a Federal Judge

by Norman Stephan Kinsella on December 5, 2002

From an article in Solid-State Lighting (link2):

According to a story carried by Science, UCSB professor Shuji Nakamura has been accused by US District Court Judge James Fox of lying about Nichia patents. The accusations surfaced in a March 15, 2002 letter to federal prosecutors, made public in the electronic newsletter Internet Patent News Service. The story was picked up by the journal Science (Vol. 296, April 5, 2002, p. 31). The disputed US patents (5306662, 5578839, 5747832, and 5767581) cover Nakamura’s landmark LED and laser diode work done while he worked at Nichia. According to Fox’s letter, statements made by Nakamura, in a court deposition related to the North Carolina State University and Cree Inc., vs. Nichia Corporation and Nichia America Corporation patent dispute, conflict with claims made by Nakamura in the patent applications filed by Nichia. Thus, Fox accuses Nakamura of lying to either the US Patent Office or in his recent depositions regarding Nichia patents. [Copy of Judge Fox’s letter.] Either way, Fox recommends bringing perjury charges against Nakamura.

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