Archive for January 2013

REASONABLENESS OF A RESTRICTIVE COVENANT REMAINS A HIGHLY FACT BASED INQUIRY The Solari/Whitmyer test has long been the standard by which New Jersey courts determine the enforceability of restrictive covenants (e.g.,covenants not to compete, non-solicitation clauses).  Under that test, a plaintiff seeking to enforce a restrictive covenant must establish that the covenant is reasonable.  Reasonableness is proven…

SUPREME COURT RULES THAT COVENANT NOT TO SUE FOR TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT DIVESTED DEFENDANT OF STANDING TO ASSERT COUNTERCLAIM TO INVALIDATE MARK On January 9, 2013, the Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision, held that a covenant not to enforce a trademark against a competitor’s existing products and any future “colorable imitations” of those products mooted…

CHANCERY DIVISION HOLDS THAT THE NEW JERSEY TRADE SECRETS ACT DOES NOT PREEMPT RELATED COMMON LAW CAUSES OF ACTION In an apparent case of first impression, the Superior Court of New Jersey, Chancery Division, Bergen County, held that the New Jersey Trade Secrets Act (“NJTSA”), which became effective on January 5, 2012, does not preempt…

NEW JERSEY DISTRICT JUDGE RULES THAT APPLYING FOR COPYRIGHT REGISTRATION DOES NOT SATISFY THE “REGISTRATION” PREREQUISITE FOR FILING AN INFRINGEMENT CLAIM On January 4, 2013, District of New Jersey Judge William Martini dismissed, without prejudice, a plaintiff’s copyright infringement claims on the ground that the plaintiff’s pending application for copyright registration was insufficient to satisfy…