Jodi Benassi
Subscribe to Jodi Benassi's PostsJodi Benassi focuses her practice on litigation and investigations. Jodi has experience in federal court district actions in California, Texas, Florida and Michigan and actions before the US Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) of the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). She has also conducted internal investigations on behalf of audit committees from high profile Fortune 500 organizations to Silicon Valley start-ups. Jodi Benassi's full bio.
Case exterminated too soon: DTSA and CFAA claims survive
By Jodi Benassi on Feb 5, 2026
Posted In Trade Secrets
The US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit partially reversed and partially affirmed a series of district court rulings arising from alleged corporate espionage between competitors in the pest control industry. The decision clarifies the scope of recoverable “loss” under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) after Van Buren and underscores that causation...
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Expert had firm grip on Rule 702
By Jodi Benassi on Jan 29, 2026
Posted In Patents
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversed an exclusion of expert testimony and grant of judgment as a matter of law, finding that the district court improperly conflated admissibility with credibility and weight of the evidence. Barry v. DePuy Synthes Companies, et al., Case Nos. 023-2226; -2234 (Fed. Cir. Jan. 20, 2026)...
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Sedona Conference releases draft model DTSA jury instructions
By Jodi Benassi on Dec 18, 2025
Posted In Trade Secrets
The Sedona Conference published the first comprehensive draft Model Jury Instructions for the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (DTSA) and invites public comment through January 17, 2026. The draft instructions, which have been three years in development, aim to provide clear, consensus-driven guidance on the key issues that juries must resolve in DTSA cases,...
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Vague definitions deflate tire trade secret claims
By Jodi Benassi on Dec 18, 2025
Posted In Patents, Trade Secrets
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a district court’s judgment as a matter of law (JMOL) that the plaintiff failed to prove misappropriation of five alleged trade secrets related to self-inflating tire (SIT) technology and separately rejected the plaintiff’s claim for correction of inventorship of defendant’s patent related to the alleged...
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When patent law meets free speech: Anti-SLAPP appellate jurisdiction
By Jodi Benassi on Oct 30, 2025
Posted In Trade Secrets
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit determined that it had jurisdiction over an interlocutory appeal from a district court’s denial of a California anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) motion in a trade secret and inventorship case, finding such a denial was immediately appealable under the collateral order doctrine. On the merits,...
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The smoke has cleared – and so has your invalidity defense
By Jodi Benassi on Sep 25, 2025
Posted In America Invents Act, Patents
The US District Court for the Northern District of Iowa issued an instructive decision clarifying the scope of statutory estoppel under the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) following post-grant review (PGR) proceedings before the Patent Trial & Appeal Board. Intirion Corp. v. College Products, Inc., Case No. 23-cv-4023-CJW-KEM (N.D. Iowa Sept. 16, 2025) (Williams, J.)...
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DMCA safe harbor: Prelude to a Supreme Court encore?
By Jodi Benassi on Sep 18, 2025
Posted In Copyrights
The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit granted in part and denied in part Capitol Records’ petition for reconsideration of the Court’s January 13, 2025, decision in Capitol Records v. Vimeo. In that ruling, the Court determined that Capitol Records had waived the argument that Vimeo’s encouragement of users to make infringing lip-dub...
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No specifics, no case? DTSA trade secret disclosure timing differs from CUTSA
By Jodi Benassi on Aug 21, 2025
Posted In Trade Secrets
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit found that a district court abused its discretion by striking several of the plaintiff’s trade secrets, concluding that the court improperly relied on Rule 12(f) and failed to support dismissal as a discovery sanction under Rule 37. The Court emphasized that the fact-specific question of “reasonable...
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From confidential to careless: The case of the unprotected customer list
By Jodi Benassi on Aug 14, 2025
Posted In Trade Secrets
The US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit affirmed a summary judgment dismissal of a trade secret misappropriation complaint, finding that the plaintiff failed to take reasonable measures to maintain the secrecy of a customer list. The Court also reversed the district court’s Daubert ruling, finding that it improperly exceeded the scope of Fed....
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Fair use or foul play? The AI fair use copyright line
By Jodi Benassi on Jul 2, 2025
Posted In Copyrights
The US District Court for the Northern District of California granted summary judgment in favor of an artificial intelligence (AI) company, finding that its use of lawfully acquired copyrighted materials for training and its digitization of acquired print works fell within the bounds of fair use. However, the district court explicitly rejected the AI company’s...
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