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Cathay Smith

@cathaysmith.bsky.social
406 followers 344 following 41 posts

IP prof at Chicago-Kent. Teaching copyright, property, and IP + cultural property law seminar.

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Reposted by Cathay Smith
Noah Smith-Drelich @nsmithdrelich.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
"Highly Recommended!"
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Lawrence Solum @lsolum.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Smith-Drelich on Is Bivens Dead? Noah Smith-Drelich (Chicago-Kent College of Law - Illinois Institute of Technology) has posted Is Bivens Dead?...
legaltheoryblog.com
Smith-Drelich on Is Bivens Dead?
Noah Smith-Drelich (Chicago-Kent College of Law - Illinois Institute of Technology) has posted Is Bivens Dead? (Georgia Law Review, forthcoming) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: For much of its fifty-year existence, Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of Federal Bureau of Narcotics has served as a tenuous counterpart to Section 1983, providing a cause of action for federal violations of the Constitution.
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Kevin M. Kruse @kevinmkruse.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Students who nod and smile during lecture when we try to make a point? Heroes
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
www.esquire.com/entertainmen...
esquire.com
Taylor Sheridan Is Accused of Stealing ‘Yellowstone’
A new lawsuit claims that the TV creator had access to a script about “a modern war over land” prior to his deal with Paramount.
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Noah Smith-Drelich @nsmithdrelich.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
I just posted @ssrn.bsky.social: Is Bivens Dead?, 61 Ga. L. Rev. __ (forthcoming 2027), papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers..... I look at every decision nationally that cites Bivens between June 2022 and June 2025 (4,808 in total) to see how courts are deciding Bivens actions after Egbert v. Boule. 1/10
papers.ssrn.com
Is Bivens Dead?
For much of its fifty-year existence, Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of Federal Bureau of Narcotics has served as a tenuous counterpart to Section 1983, pro
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The Guardian @theguardian.com · 20/08/2026
The winner of the Guardian's Invertebrate of the year 2026 revealed
theguardian.com
The winner of the Guardian's Invertebrate of the year 2026 revealed
It's been a tightly fought race, but watch as naturalist and presenter Chris Packham reveals the Guardian's Invertebrate of the year 2026.
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Christine Corcos @lpcprof.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
hyperallergic.com/taiwanese-ar...
hyperallergic.com
Taiwanese Artists Accuse South Korea’s Gwangju Biennale of Censorship
The Biennale’s decision to exclude “Taiwan” from the pavilion’s official name “is a threat to freedom of expression and the global art community,” the artists said.
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Jordi Goodman @jordigoodman.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
If you told me one year ago that my next big law review paper would be about breastmilk, I would have laughed. Or maybe cried.. I was about three weeks postpartum. In honor of World Breastfeeding Week, I am debuting my draft: Property Rights in Liquid Gold (papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....)
papers.ssrn.com
PROPERTY RIGHTS IN LIQUID GOLD: RECOGNIZING BREASTMILK AS PROPERTY
Breastmilk is a highly valued commodity. It is produced, stored, transferred, sold, and, at times, contaminated, stolen, improperly handled, and even lost. Liti
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BigLawGothGF @biglawgothgf.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Ok pocket friends, I’m lighting the beacons: can anyone recommend a lawyer in the Chicago area who represent college students in disciplinary disputes with universities? Issues include disability accommodation refusals and harassment. I’m at a loss so any suggestions would be appreciated!
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Jordi Goodman @jordigoodman.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
Can't wait to see the Federal Circuit at Chicago-Kent on October 6!
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Ed Timberlake @trademarksaremagic.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
"This Article exposes the gap between the rhetoric and reality of copyright's parody doctrine." - @cathaysmith.bsky.social
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kyleayers.bsky.social @kyleayers.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Not saying that game was stolen from Egypt but it is now on display at museum in London.
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Chris Geidner @chrisgeidner.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
BREAKING: Eleventh Circuit, on a 2-1 vote, upholds injunction blocking Florida from enforcing its 2022 Stop WOKE Act in the university context. The majority opinion is from Judge Britt Grant, a Trump appointee: storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
Before GRANT, LAGOA, and WILSON, Circuit Judges.
GRANT, Circuit Judge:
"Congress shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech." U.S. Const. amend I. The First Amendment, incorporated against the States in 1868, is this country's written commitment to the idea that freedom of speech is essential to freedom of thought, and that both are essential to maintaining our liberty. The Supreme Court has long been clear that teaching and scholarship are due some measure of protection under the Amendment. But how much? And in what contexts? That Court has not had to say, but this one is now put to the test. The State of Florida legislated a broad set of speech restrictions banning certain viewpoints relating to race, color, sex, and national origin in various settings. The provision at issue here bars Florida's educators from promoting or endorsing those distavored ideas when instructing students. Its prohibition applies not only in primary and secondary education, where states traditionally exercise a great deal of control, but also in public colleges and universities, where the state government's role has been far more limited.
When several groups of professors challenged Florida's new restrictions, the State cast about for an existing case or doctrine that could support its speech ban in the university setting. Finding none, it tried to marry public-employee speech cases with government speech doctrine, resulting in a new rule: if thegovernment pays a professor's salary, it has total control over her classroom speech.
That is not a blessed union. Florida's salary-for-speech rule is a breathtaking assertion of power to ban unpopular ideas from public discourse in the very places the State's own statutes recognize as centers of inquiry-classrooms where students are trusted to puzzle through ideas that are good and bad, easy and hard, ideally getting ever closer to the truth. This new rule also runs headlong into the Supreme Court's repeated, if imprecise, endorsements of academic freedom. If the First Amendment offers any boundary of protection at all for public university classrooms, this statute crosses it.
Nor does this Court's leading academic speech precedent,
Bishop v. Aronov, demand the outcome Florida seeks. 926 F.2d 1066 (11th Cir. 1991). In fact, it counsels the opposite. The restriction in that case was imposed by one university, against one professor, relating to speech about one thing— personal religious views that got in the way of the course's well-understood parameters.That precedent makes clear that universities and even other government entities have crucial authority to shape curricular content, discipline teachers, and take other steps to guide and govern postsecondary education. But the speech ban Florida's political leaders seek to impose here is different in both nature and degree from these ordinary concerns. The rule Florida developed for this case does not withstand scrutiny.
11 Case: 22-13992
Document: 156-1 Date Filed: 07/07/2026 Page:
22-13992
Opinion of the Court
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The ideas Florida targets may well be noxious. Or maybe
not.
Either way, in this context the First Amendment trusts students to figure it out for themselves. We affirm the district court's preliminary injunction.
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Felicia Caponigri @fashionbyfelicia.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
Happy 4th of July weekend! Have you been shopping for your flag swimsuit or for other appropriately patriotic attire for your backyard cookout? Wondering why the American flag can appear on so many fashion options? @cathaysmith.bsky.social and I have you covered!
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
What are you wearing for America at 250 tomorrow? Check out my new essay with Prof. Felicia Caponigri @fashionbyfelicia.bsky.social in The Fashion Law @tfl.bsky.social on the American flag in fashion: www.thefashionlaw.com/america-at-2... 🇺🇸 #July4 #AmericaAt250 #fashion #trademark #copyright
thefashionlaw.com
America at 250: Who Owns the American Flag in Fashion?
As the United State of American marks its 250th anniversary, the American flag occupies a unique place in fashion.
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
Thrilled to return to fair use in my newest article, Parody of What?, forthcoming in the Georgia State University Law Review! papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.... We often hear that a parody must comment on “the original work.” But that narrow definition doesn’t reflect how courts actually decide cases.
papers.ssrn.com
Parody of What? Reconceptualizing the Scope of Parody for Copyright Fair Use
Barbie. Barney. The Elf on the shelf. Gone with the Wind. Grease. The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. Walt Disney. Don Henley. WWF wrestlers. Viral music videos. Pr
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Christine Corcos @lpcprof.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Call For Papers, Law and Cultural Production / lawlit.blogspot.com/2026/06/call...
lawlit.blogspot.com
Call For Papers, Law and Cultural Production
From Amy Kellam, IALS, University of London: A month ago, I shared the call for papers for a special section of Amicus Curiae on Law and Cu...
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
IP Summer Camp @chicagokentlaw.bsky.social begins tomorrow, June 23, 12 pm CDT on Zoom! I am looking forward to chatting with Prof. Ben Sobel @law.wisc.edu about his new work on #copyright law. If you're interested in derivative works, #fanfiction, character copyright, or #IP, we hope to see 😎 you!
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
I'll be tuning in to today's motion hearing in RRT v. Bawtinheimer (2 pm PT / 4 pm CT). The case involves an alleged #cult suing a former member for #copyright infringement. To learn about the case, check out this post: blog.ericgoldman.org/archives/202...
blog.ericgoldman.org
A Religious Organization is Suing its Critics, and the Weapon of Choice is Copyright—RRT v. Cheryl Bawtinheimer (Guest Blog Post) - Technology & Marketing Law Blog
By guest blogger Cathay Y. N. Smith, Professor of Law at Chicago-Kent College of Law Rapid Relief Team (RRT), the charitable arm of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church (PBCC), has filed a copyright...
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Jordi Goodman @jordigoodman.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
It's always bittersweet when the conference ends. I loved hosting JIPSA at @chicagokentlaw.bsky.social and couldn't do it without our incredible colleagues and staff. Thanks again to @design-law.bsky.social, @cathaysmith.bsky.social, @graemedinwoodie.bsky.social, and Greg Reilly for your support!
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Jordi Goodman @jordigoodman.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
I am so excited for IP Summer Camp! Sign ups are opened!
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Lake Michigan! Live! @lake-michigan.live · 29/04/2026
Current* conditions near Chicago, IL:
Northern view from Lake Point Tower overlooking the Chicago shoreline where it meets Lake Michigan. // Image captured at: 2026-04-29 15:06:11 UTC (about 1 min. prior to this post) // Image sourced from: youtube.com/@LakefrontLive // Current Temp in Chicago: 53 F | 12 C // Precip: broken clouds // Wind: N at 7 mph | 11 kph // Humidity: 76%
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Spotted on my bus ride to work today… ad for #AI for lawyers (featuring Jude Law)
Billboard mounted on brownstone building featuring Jude Law in a suit sitting at a desk, appearing to be a lawyer. The text reads “ready to fall in love with law? Legora: collaborative AI for exceptional lawyers”
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
I don’t know how many times I’ve had to say this: it’s TRADEMARK, not PATENT!!!!!
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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Full-funded (home or international) collaborative PhD studentship (Kew and Royal Holloway, University of London) available. Deadline 8 May. Topic: ‘Just acquisitions? Law and ethics over time in Kew’s overseas plant collecting history’ #Skystorians
royalholloway.ac.uk
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Michael Smith @msmith750.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
Brian Frye is a pretty intimidating guy. If you're too nervous to speak with him, feel free to reach out to me--I am happy to do guest-hosted interviews!
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Erin L. Thompson @artcrimeprof.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
I always wonder - usually in vain - just how big auction houses determine provenance information. Thanks to the Epstein Files, we can see exactly how a seemingly rock-solid provenance was built on shifting sands for this Hercules. 🧵
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Alyssa Katz @alykatzz.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
Mike Pence got totally owned here: Jewish plaintiffs won a ruling against Indiana's abortion ban, using the law he signed 11 years ago as governor to help evangelicals refuse to cater gay weddings and such. Now similar challenges could win in other red states. We tell the story at @forward.com.
forward.com
Jews paused Indiana’s abortion ban — by turning a religious freedom law against the evangelical right
As governor, Mike Pence signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, amid a conservative Christian push against LGBTQ rights. A judge’s ruling is inspiring hopes other states’ abortion restrictions c...
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
Check out this important new paper by my colleague @design-law.bsky.social about a new form of judge shopping - where plaintiffs add or drop defendants in mass joinder #IP cases based on the judge they are assigned. She compares this to cheating maneuvers in #roulette!
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
“What makes it so special … is that you can walk to the coast anywhere in England, turn left or right, and walk beside the sea for as long as you like.” ❤️
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
Enjoyed sharing my latest project on The Copyrightability of Living Organisms with the engaging law faculty @californiawestern.bsky.social. Great feedback on my early stage project and SO MUCH SUN! 🌞
Cathay in front California Western School of Law plaque.
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
Religious organizations have long weaponized #copyright to silence critics. My new post on @ericgoldman.bsky.social’s blog breaks down RRT v Bawtinheimer - a suit by the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church against an ex member - and why it feels like a classic case of “copyright silencing.” 👇🏽
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Ed Timberlake @trademarksaremagic.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
The weather in the Washington DC area in the summer is . . . well . . . anyway, this sounds like a cool opportunity! www.usajobs.gov/job/86114660...
usajobs.gov
USAJOBS connects job seekers with federal jobs across the United States and around the world as the official employment site for the federal government
Imagine a transformative summer experience working as an intern as part of the USPTO Law Internship Program where you will be starting your career working side by side with intellectual property (IP) ...
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McSweeney's @mcsweeneys.net · 09/03/2026
Would you rather be perceived as likable or competent? Would you rather be “shrill” but finish your sentence or polite but interrupted by your male colleague? Would you rather shoot literal botulism into your face or look your real age, you hag?
buff.ly
17 Real-Life Would-You-Rathers I, a Woman, Have Had to Ask Myself
1. Would you rather have a career or a family? 2. Would you rather be perceived as likable or competent? 3. Would you rather be told to...
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The Associated Press @apnews.com · 02/03/2026
A triceratops skeleton that once greeted visitors at a Wyoming museum is heading to an online auction as dinosaur prices keep soaring.
bit.ly
Triceratops skeleton 'Trey' to hit the auction block as dinosaur market soars
A triceratops skeleton that once greeted visitors at a Wyoming museum is heading to an online auction as dinosaur prices keep soaring.
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
Always appreciate 🙏🏼 @rtushnet.bsky.social’s blogging! So helpful to review feedback on my projects and catch-up on all the fascinating IP talks that I missed. Here’s a great summary of projects from #WIPIP26 Panel 6 @bulaw.bsky.social, including my early-stage project on copyright & living organisms
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Cathay Smith @cathaysmith.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
Enjoyed chatting with @ashleybelanger.bsky.social @arstechnica.com about Copyright x AI x Microsoft x Harry Potter 👇🏽 check it out below…
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