Tyson Loves Tulips

Wow. Two post in one day. How about that. Anyway, when I pulled in from work today, while the sun was setting, I noticed how good our flowers looked. I grabbed Sara and Sara's camera and we snapped some quick pictures. Tulips are far and away my favorite flowers and, as of right now, I think we have the best tulips (and other flowers) on the street, if not in the entire neighborhood. Enjoy:

From 090422 - Front Yard Flowers

From 090422 - Front Yard Flowers

From 090422 - Front Yard Flowers

From 090422 - Front Yard Flowers

From 090422 - Front Yard Flowers

I guess I'm going to have to buy some more tulip bulbs this fall so that we can do even better next year! For the time being, spring has returned to Utah (75 degrees today). Who knows how long that will last. But, while it does, we will continue to enjoy our flowers. The irises should be coming out next.

Parents, Pruning, and Deck Remodeling

Some of you may know that Sara and I (with the help of many others) are in the process of "renovating" our deck. We thought we were going to have to replace the whole thing but, as it turns out, we're going to re-frame a lot of the support structure and then just replace parts of the deck itself. Part of the project involved ripping out a bunch of hedge-like bushes (Sara had fun doing that) and some much needed pruning on a tree next to our house. As the following pictures establish, neither my Mom (Cindy) nor Sara's Dad (Andy) are afraid of trees, heights, or chainsaws:

From 090410 - Deck Remodel (1)

From 090410 - Deck Remodel (1)

From 090410 - Deck Remodel (1)

Thanks Mom! Thanks Andy! The deck is coming along but the tree is now in tip-top shape! (You can click on the pictures to get the "full size" pics).

#1 on Martindale-Hubbell Lawyer Directory

Okay, granted, I have not even achieved the highly sought after "AV", "BV", or "CV" rankings that Martindale-Hubbell likes to dish out to attorneys, but this is still pretty cool:



Number one in Utah; number 12 in the entire U.S.A. My ranking on Martindale Hubbell is based on the number of searches and the number of visitors to my Martindale-Hubbell link and page. By referring to my link on Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and various other social media outlets, I have achieved a traffic level that ranks me extremely high. So, as I go to bed tonight, I can honestly say that I really am the "#1 attorney in Salt Lake / Utah" (at least based on a semi-independent measuring stick). Way to go me! Just another example of how social media can create name or brand recognition and help you to publicize yourself and your knowledge.

Now I'm gunning for #1 nationwide. You can help by visiting:

http://www.martindale.com/Tyson-B-Snow/4103830-lawyer.htm

Google AdSense and Trademark Infringement

When you are married to a patent/IP attorney and you are as interested in technology as I am, you are bound to have some entertaining discussions. Add the fact that I'm a litigator and that I enjoy IP litigation, and the discussions get even more interesting. We were recently debating whether Google and Google.com should be liable for trademark infringement when they allow competitors to use another companies registered trademark in paid keyword advertising. It appears that Sara's position was the position most inline with current jurisprudence on the subject. Via law.com:

In 2006 a computer repair company called Rescuecom sued Google for trademark infringement, claiming that users would be confused by links to ads from competing companies that showed up on searches for Rescuecom's name. On Friday the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit agreed with Rescuecom. The court overturned a lower court ruling dismissing the case, finding that Rescuecom could proceed with a trademark infringement suit against Google. Google is represented in the litigation by Michael Page of Durie Tangri Page Lemley Roberts & Kent. Rescuecom relied on in-house lawyer Edmund Gegan.

The Second Circuit followed the majority of district courts that have addressed the issue and concluded that the purchasing of competitors' names or trademarks to trigger keyword ads raises, at the very least, a threshold question of trademark infringement. Will Google ever respond or adjust its AdSense program in light of the increasing number of infringement suits filed against it? We'll have to see.

Credit: The AmLaw Litigation Daily