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William Honaker

Member

Dickinson Wright PLLC

William Honaker is a Member in Dickinson Wright PLLC in Troy, Michigan. He has 30 years of intellectual property experience evaluating patents, trademarks and copyrights, along with advising clients on the protection of inventions, trademarks and copyrightable subject matter, with a focus on helping clients avoid unnecessary litigation.

Honaker is a former USPTO examiner and author of Turn Your Ideas Into Gold – A Business Owner’s Guide to Intellectual Property.

Recent Articles by William Honaker

Blue Gentian v. Tristar Underscores the Importance of Naming the Correct Inventors on a Patent

Careless naming of inventors on a patent application can create confusion and add complexity to an already intricate process. The recent case of Blue Gentian, LLC v. Tristar Prod., Inc. is a great example where failure to properly list a co-inventor resulted in the only named inventor losing their patent rights…. To avoid a case similar to Blue Gentian v. Tristar, identify all inventors carefully and have them sign an assignment agreement, which transfers their rights to a single entity, such as an individual or the company that’s going to exploit the patent.

‘Russian Doll’ Copyright Infringement: Beware What’s in the Background

In the winter of 2014, Leah Bassett rented her Martha’s Vineyard home to Joshua Spafford. He seemed like a nice guy, quiet and well-dressed. Joshua listed his employer as “Mile High Media.” Mile High then used the home to shoot several adult videos. Leah, the homeowner, didn’t know that they were going to use her home in this way. She was upset when she learned what they had done, but in the end, she got her revenge thanks to copyright law.