U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Bloomberg's Susan Decker had an interesting piece this week: firms that aggressively pursue patent litigation have found their business model to be less lucrative after the U.S. Supreme Court limited what types of software are eligible for legal protection and after the Patent and Trademark Office changed how it reviews patent disputes. Total patent lawsuits declined 23 percent in the third quarter of the year, Bloomberg reports. Adam Mossoff, a law professor at George Mason University said the changes show that Congress doesn't need to take up patent reform in 2015.

A younger group of American Indians are challenging the Washington Redskins trademark after prior challengers to the trademark lost on the grounds that they waited too long to bring their challenge. "The current petitioners are five Native Americans from different tribes who say they are offended by the team’s name. A decision by the trademark appeal board could come any day," The Wall Street Journal reported. The footbal team argues that what matters is how a term was perceived at the time of its registration, not whether it is disparaging in 2013, The Journal also reported.