On February 12, 2009, I had the pleasure and privilege of presenting a program entitled “Virtual Worlds and Real Life Legal Issues” at Suffolk Law School. I was attending the American Bar Association Midyear Meeting in Boston that week. Attorney Stephen Hollman, an alumnus of Suffolk, arranged a series of talks at Suffolk by members of the American Bar Association Section of Science & Technology Law. I was one of those members having an opportunity to address the students at Suffolk. I hope that more law schools will create programs and classes to discuss virtual worlds legal issues. Read More...

On January 22, 2009, U.S. District Judge Lawrence E. Kahn signed an order dismissing Richard Minsky’s case involving alleged trademark infringement in Second Life. According to the Albany federal district judge’s order, Magistrate Judge David R. Homer reported to the Court that the parties had settled their case. Accordingly, Judge Kahn dismissed the case. The dismissal brings to an end the suit involving alleged infringement of Mr. Minsky’s SLART federally registered trademark. Read More...

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On January 15, 2009, Richard Minsky and Linden Research agreed to a stipulation regarding the treatment of confidential information exchanged during the discovery process in their Second Life trademark infringement case. Judges routinely sign stipulated orders of this kind to allow the parties to exchange confidential information in the course of discovery while protecting the confidentiality of the information exchanged. Otherwise, the docket reveals little activity during the holiday season. A copy of the stipulation appears on the Minsky v. Linden Research documents page.

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On December 18, 2008, Richard Minsky appealed the December 8 order in his Second Life trademark infringement case denying Mr. Minsky’s motion regarding Linden Research’s compliance with the temporary restraining order (TRO) in the case. Mr. Minsky contended that Linden Research failed to comply with the TRO, but the magistrate judge disagreed. Mr. Minsky now seeks to have the district judge on the case overturn the magistrate judge’s order. Read More...

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From January 21, 2007 until December 2, 2008, writer Benjamin Duranske served the 3D Internet legal world with his blog Virtually Blind with dedication and energy. On December 2, Ben made his final post on his pathbreaking blog, and announced his new position as an attorney with the Silcon Valley office of Pillsbury. I applaud Ben for his hard work and sharing of legal information concerning legal issues in virtual worlds and multiuser online games. We will miss his blog, but look forward to his future publications. Read More...

Since my last blog entry concerning Richard Minsky’s Second Life trademark infringement case, Mr. Minsky asked the Court to drop the John Doe defendant -- an avatar named Victor Vezina -- from his case. The Court granted Mr. Minsky’s request on December 3, 2008. In addition, on December 8, 2008, the Court denied Mr. Minsky’s motion regarding Linden Research’s compliance with the temporary restraining order in the case. Read More...

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In the past two weeks, Linden Research Chairman Philip Rosedale and former Chairman Mitch Kapor continued to spar with Richard Minsky in federal court filings concerning the fraud claims asserted against them by Mr. Minsky. Mr. Minsky brought his action against Rosedale and Kapor, as well as Linden Research, to claim infringement of his federally registered trademark SLART. Rosedale and Kapor recently filed a reply brief in support of their motion to dismiss the fraud claims against them, and Minsky’s filing is an additional reply in opposition to their motion. Read More...

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This past week, Richard Minsky opposed the motion to dismiss his fraud claims against Linden Research Chairman Philip Rosedale, and former Chairman Mitch Kapor. Rosedale and Kapor are defendants in Minsky’s case, in which he asserts his rights to the federally registered trademark SLART against Linden Research. Rosedale and Kapor sought dismissal of the fraud claims against them, and Minsky’s opposition seeks to keep the fraud claims in the case. I expect Rosedale and Kapor to file a reply brief in support of their motion, after which Judge Lawrence E. Kahn will rule on the motion. Read More...

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America awoke this morning to a new President-Elect, Barack Obama, who swept to power in an historic election. What does this important election mean for the 3D Internet? President-Elect Barack Obama became the first presidential candidate to harness the real potential of the Internet in his bid to become president. What will President Obama do for the 3D Internet during the next four years? Read More...

Last week, Judge Lawrence E. Kahn signed a stipulated preliminary injunction in the Second Life trademark infringement case brought by Richard Minsky against Linden Research. Under the stipulated order, the Court converted the temporary restraining order (TRO) in place in the case to a preliminary injunction. The defendants in the case are Linden Research, two of its principals, and an anonymous avatar named Victor Vezina. Mr. Minsky’s suit claims infringement of his federally registered trademark SLART. The purpose of a preliminary injunction is to hold the status quo in place during the pendency of a case. The preliminary injunction will likely remain in effect until the case is resolved. Read More...

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Last week, Richard Minsky and Linden Research agreed to convert the temporary restraining order (TRO) in place in their trademark infringement case to a preliminary injunction. Mr. Minsky had sued Linden Research, two of its principals, and an anonymous avatar named Victor Vezina claiming infringement of his federally registered trademark SLART. It is now up to Judge Lawrence E. Kahn to sign the proposed order converting the TRO to a preliminary injunction. I expect Judge Kahn to sign the order, since judges typically abide by the parties’ wishes on pretrial proceedings and encourage collaboration and settlement. Once that order is in place, it will likely remain in effect until the case is resolved. Read More...

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Last week was a fairly quiet one for the trademark infringement case brought by Richard Minsky. Mr. Minsky filed a reply letter brief in further support of his letter motion essentially seeking a declaration that Defendant Linden Research has failed to comply with the temporary restraining order (TRO) in the case. Linden Research asked the Court to strike Mr. Minsky’s reply brief from the record, saying that the Court’s dispute resolution procedures set forth in the TRO do not permit reply briefs. Mr. Minsky is known as ArtWorld Market on Second Life and claims ownership in the registered trademark SLART used with his art magazine. He sued Linden Research, some of its principals, and an anonymous avatar named Victor Vezina claiming infringement of his SLART mark. Read More...

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This past week, the defendants in the Minsky trademark infringement case responded with a number of their own court filings. Richard Minsky had filed a trademark infringement lawsuit last summer against Linden Research, an avatar named Victor Vezina (named as a John Doe defendant), Linden Chairman Philip Rosedale, and former Chairman Mitchell Kapor in Albany’s federal court. Mr. Minsky is known as ArtWorld Market on Second Life and claims ownership in the mark SLART used with his art magazine. Richard Minsky’s recent letter brief claimed non-compliance with the temporary restraining order in place. Linden Research defended its conduct in its own letter brief. In addition, Kapor and Rosedale asked the Court to dismiss the claims against them. Finally, Linden Research filed an answer and counterclaims document denying Mr. Minsky’s allegations, asserting a number of defenses, and seeking its own relief in a counterclaim that includes infringement and cancellation claims. Linden Research contends that Mr. Minsky infringed upon its SECOND LIFE and SL marks. Read More...

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On October 2, 2008, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board suspended the proceedings instituted by Linden Research, Inc. against Richard Minsky to cancel his SLART trademark used with his art magazine. The Board’s suspension effectively stops Linden Research from doing an end run around the federal lawsuit Mr. Minsky filed against Linden Research and others in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York. The previous day, counsel for Mr. Minsky had filed a motion requesting the suspension, and the Board agreed that suspension was appropriate, citing a regulation permitting suspension of a Board proceeding in the event a civil suit would have a bearing on it. Read More...

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This past week, both Richard Minsky and defense counsel sent letters to one of the Albany federal court judges presiding over his SLART trademark suit against Linden Research, an avatar named Victor Vezina (named as a John Doe defendant), Linden Chairman Philip Rosedale, and former Chairman Mitch Kapor. Mr. Minsky sent a letter to Magistrate Judge David R. Homer, while defense counsel’s letter went to District Judge Lawrence E. Kahn. Read More...

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I am pleased to announce that the American Bar Association Journal’s October 2008 issue contains an article about virtual worlds. The issue should be arriving in people’s mailboxes soon. I am one of the attorneys quoted in the article. The article talks about:

• legal issues in virtual worlds
• the eventual use of dispute resolution in virtual worlds
• the SL Bar Association
• Ben Duranske’s Virtual Law book
• the Virtual Worlds and Multiuser Online Games Committee of the American Bar Association Section of Science and Technology Law
• The American Bar Association Annual Meeting seminar on virtual worlds in New York this past summer.

Read More...

On September 29, 2008, counsel for Linden Research and other defendants sent a letter to Albany federal court Judge Lawrence E. Kahn announcing an “agreement in principle” with Richard Minsky regarding part of the case Mr. Minsky brought against Linden Research: whether or not the Court should issue a preliminary injunction. A preliminary injunction preserves the situation the parties face while a case is pending, but is not a final resolution of the case. Therefore, this “agreement in principle” does not portend an imminent settlement of the entire case, although it is a sign of open communications among the parties that may lead to an eventual settlement. The defendants apparently are agreeable to converting the existing temporary restraining order into a preliminary injunction, thereby avoiding what appeared to be an expensive showdown on the motion for preliminary injunction with Mr. Minsky. Read More...

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On September 16, 2008, a federal judge in Albany, NY, Judge Lawrence E. Kahn, signed an order setting up the preliminary injunction showdown between Richard Minsky and Linden Research. Minsky, whose SL avatar is ArtWorld Market, is seeking a preliminary injunction restraining the Lindens from infringing upon his U.S. Trademark SLART. A hearing is set on the preliminary injunction for December 3, 2008. Plaintiff Richard Minsky’s opening brief is due on October 30, the Defendants’ brief is due November 5, and Minsky may serve a reply brief no later than November 10. Read More...

Tags: Minsky trademark litigation

I received an email the other day that contained a very interesting question. The person asked my opinion as to whether it would be a good idea for virtual worlds businesses to obtain insurance. The person had in mind companies like The Electric Sheep Company. I wrote back to say that obtaining insurance is a good idea, and there may be some general insurance products out there that virtual worlds businesses can consider. Unfortunately, however, I don’t believe the market for insuring virtual worlds risks is mature enough yet to have virtual world-specific coverages. A number of factors are barriers to carriers rolling out virtual world-specific coverages today. Read More...

The defendants in the Minsky v. Linden Research case entered their appearance in Court this week and sought to dissolve the temporary restraining order entered against them on September 4, 2008. The Court will create a schedule for briefing and a hearing on whether the Court should issue a preliminary injunction against the defendants during the case. Mr. Minsky filed a reply in support of his motion for temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction. In the end, the Court entered a modified temporary restraining order pending the preliminary injunction hearing. The TRO implements a trademark take down procedure by which Mr. Minsky can continue to bring infringements to the attention of the Lindens for action. Read More...

Tags: Minsky trademark litigation

On July 29, 2008, artist and art critic Richard Minsky filed suit against against Linden Research, an avatar named Victor Vezina (named as a John Doe defendant), Linden Chairman Philip Rosedale, and former Chairman Mitch Kapor in Albany’s federal court. Mr. Minsky’s avatar in SL is ArtWorld Market, and he is attempting to enforce his SLART trademark used with his art magazine. He filed an amended complaint on August 14. I posted the court documents about the case on my Minsky v. Linden Research documents page. Mr. Minsky obtained a temporary restraining order against the defendants, prohibiting them from infringing on his mark. A hearing to determine if the court should issue a preliminary injunction will take place tomorrow. Read More...

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I will be giving a talk in SL tomorrow on Trademark Infringement in Virtual Worlds before the SL Bar Association at its offices, noon PDT/SLT. You can register for the talk by going to the registration page. Read More...

It’s inevitable. We’re in the process of moving from a 2D Internet -- one like magazine pages, with maybe some video, audio, and animation -- to an immersive 3D Internet. You may have heard of the Second Life® virtual world, a service of Linden Lab in San Francisco. It’s the most prominent virtual world in use, but there are others -- There(sm) and Entropia Universe®. All of these virtual world Internet applications let users control on-screen characters, called “avatars,” that walk in and around what seem to be buildings, stroll by the lakeshore, fly through the air, and ride virtual vehicles. The technology powering these virtual worlds has a lot in common with multiuser online games, such as World of Warcraft®, EverQuest®, and City of Heroes/City of Villains®. Regardless, it is just a matter of time before business 3D Internet “sites” or applications are just as common as 2D websites.

With the adoption of the 3D Internet comes new legal issues -- and we’re just beginning to see what they are. For instance, do items of virtual “property” constitute legally-recognizable property, with rights and obligations that go along with property law? What happens when conduct in games or virtual worlds infringe -- or at least appear to infringe -- intellectual property rights? What governments or sets of courts have jurisdiction over behavior in 3D Internet applications? All of these legal questions, and many more still await definitive answers.

In the meantime, we have only limited legal precedents, statutory law, and regulations to guide companies hosting 3D applications, businesses establishing presences in virtual worlds, and users. The hosting companies have created their own private law by way of contract through their online “terms of service,” which they hope will be enforced in court. Public and private law, however, still leave many gaps, and many legal questions remain unanswered.

I welcome you to this website and blog. In these pages, I hope to fill in the gaps in the law, and provide some information and thoughts concerning the direction of the law.

Before I close my first blog here, I would like to thank Benjamin Duranske, the author of a terrific new book entitled Virtual Law, for his foresight in creating his blog, Virtually Blind, and essentially pioneering a new practice area for lawyers -- virtual law. In fact, he wrote a fantastic book on the subject, called Virtual Law. He also had a forceful op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal recently, calling on the mainstream media to recognize the advent of the 3D Internet. Ben, and two other pioneers, Sean Kane and Cristina Burbach are doing a great job with their Virtual Worlds and Multiuser Online Games Committee of the American Bar Association Section of Science and Technology Law. I thank them all for their enthusiasm and service to the Section.

Steve Wu
August 31, 2008