News & Insights

In its official March 2026 notice, “Supplemental Guidance for Examination of Design Patent Applications Related to Computer-Generated Interfaces and Icons,” the USPTO introduced greater flexibility in the examination of design patent applications relating to icons and digital interfaces.

בעידן שבו קליק אחד יכול לייצר “עותק” משכנע של קול, דמות או משפט מזוהה - הגבול בין השראה להטעיה נעשה דק מתמיד. המקרה של Matthew McConaughey שבחר להגן על קולו ועל הביטוי המזוהה עמו באמצעות רישום סימן מסחר לא־מסורתי, ממחיש כיצד כלים מוכרים מדיני סימני המסחר עשויים להפוך לקו הגנה אפקטיבי דווקא מול חיקויים מבוססי בינה מלאכותית. מכאן עולה שאלה רחבה יותר: מה באמת דורש הגנה אקטיבית, ואילו מנגנונים משפטיים יכולים לסייע כש”הפרסונה” עצמה הופכת לנכס שמנסים לשכפל

We are proud to announce that Cohn, de Vries, Stadler & Co. (Herzog Patents) has once again been ranked as a Top Tier firm in The Legal 500 2026 edition. In addition to the firm ranking, The Legal 500 has individually recognized all of our partners: Ilan Cohn, Svetlana Stadler,…

We are proud to share our Chambers and Partners Global 2026 results in Intellectual Property: Prosecution. Cohn, de Vries, Stadler & Co., now part of the Herzog-Patents, has once again been ranked Band 1 recognition we do not take for granted. A special congratulations to our individually ranked team members:…

In an era in which a single click can generate a convincing “replica” of a voice, persona, or recognizable phrase, the boundary between inspiration and deception has become harder to draw than ever. The case of Matthew McConaughey, who chose to protect his voice and associated catchphrases through the registration of a non-traditional trademark, illustrates how familiar tools from trademark law may become an effective line of defense against AI-based imitations. This raises a broader question: what truly requires active protection, and which legal mechanisms can assist when the “persona” itself becomes the asset that others attempt to replicate?

On December 4, 2025, USPTO Director John A. Squires issued a Memorandum (Memorandum I) to patent applicants and patent practitioners, reminding them about the use of Subject Matter Eligibility Declarations (SMEDs) under 37 CFR § 1.132 (commonly referred to as 132 Declarations) as another tool to overcome Section 101 rejections…

On Friday November 28, 2025, USPTO Commissioner John Squires issued a Revised Inventorship Guidance for AI-Assisted Inventions.  This Guidance rescinds the USPTO’s previously published Inventorship Guidance for AI-Assisted Inventions from February 13, 2024, and replaces it with the new Guidance.  This new guidance is effective immediately. The Guidance clarifies how…

USING PLACEHOLDER CLAIMS IS NOT RECOMMENDED AND MAY GIVE RISE TO UNINTENDED EXTRA COSTS “Placeholder claims” are temporary claims used in continuation applications to keep the new application legally connected to the original one and to preserve the same priority date before the parent application officially becomes a patent. “Placeholder…