Paper Topics

The sole requirement of my Advanced Topics in Trademarks class is a paper, of publishable quality, on a trademark issue. Originally I wanted to tackle the sale of Google keywords and whether that constituted a use in commerce under the Lanham Act. I was quite excited about this topic, but my professor decided that my topic had been joined because of the focus of another professor from Northeastern Law School and the PLI. So I had to find a new one - even though I was deep into the paper...

I struggled with it for about a week but now I am exploring whether the use of reverse product placement in virtual environments can create rights to the trademark associated with them. Personally I thought it was a clinker but when I presented it my professor thought it was great. Surprised me a little, I thought I had a rather insignificant topic. Let's hope a law review editor is as enthralled as my professor...