Dale Cendali
Professional Profile
Dale Cendali is a partner in Kirkland's New York office. She is a nationally recognized leader in the field of intellectual property litigation, having successfully litigated and tried numerous high-profile cases, and having argued before the U.S. Supreme Court. Her practice encompasses copyright, trademark, patent, Internet and trade secrets law, as well as defamation, the right of publicity, false advertising, privacy, complex contract disputes and similar areas, including electronic discovery. Prior to joining Kirkland, Dale served as the chair of O'Melveny & Myers' New York Intellectual Property and Technology Practice, and as firmwide chair of the Copyright, Trademark and Internet Subpractice.
Dale has repeatedly been ranked as a "top tier" lawyer by Chambers USA, which describes her as "one of the best lawyers in the country" in her field who combines "intellectual acuity" with a "tough, hard-working attitude." Chambers also describes Dale as "a superb choice for cutting-edge copyright cases" and an "exceptionally gifted litigator; she's tenacious, hard-hitting and really cares about her clients." Managing Intellectual Property named her trial victory for J.K. Rowling on the high-profile "lexicon" fair use case as the "Copyright Trial of the Year." The World Trademark Review recognized Dale as a "Trademark Experts' Expert." The National Law Journal named her as one of "America's Top 50 Women Litigators" and also as one of the "50 Most Influential Women Lawyers in America." IP Law & Business recognized her as one of the "Magnificent Seven - IP's Best Young Trial Lawyers." Dale was selected for The Best Lawyers in America in the area of Intellectual Property Law. She has also repeatedly been named by Super Lawyers among "The Top 100 New York Lawyers" as well as "The Top 50 Female New York Lawyers." Her picture appeared on the cover of the Super Lawyers supplement in The New York Times Magazine. She was profiled in the feature story "Truth, Justice and the Cendali Way" in the 2007 New York Metro edition of Super Lawyers Magazine. The American Lawyer profiled her as one of the high-profile lateral hires in 2009. Dale has been recognized by the Harvard Law Bulletin as one of Harvard Law School's "Nifty 50," celebrating 50 of Harvard Law School's 7,200 women alumnae who have made a name for themselves. Dale is also an integral part of the Intellectual Property team, which recently won Kirkland the title of "Trademark Contentious Firm of the Year" for the Northeast region by Managing Intellectual Property.
Representative clients include Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp., J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers, The Walt Disney Company, IBM, Apple, Lionel Trains, Tetris Company, The Associated Press and Victoria's Secret.
Dale is an adjunct professor at Harvard Law School, teaching copyright and trademark litigation. She is also a prolific writer and has long been active in the bar. In 2010, the International Trademark Association elected Dale to serve as Counsel, the highest ranking position in the organization for an outside counsel. Dale is also the Vice Chair of the Copyright Division for the IP section of the American Bar Association.
Representative Matters
For more than 20 years, Ms. Cendali has tried unique, high-profile cases in state and federal courts across the country and in a wide variety of subject areas. Illustrative experience includes the following matters.
Argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of Twentieth Century Fox in Dastar v. Fox, a copyright and Lanham Act case involving General Dwight D. Eisenhower's acclaimed memoirs, having won trials below on liability and damages. The case ultimately ended with Fox obtaining a permanent injunction and a multi-million dollar award.
Represented Victoria's Secret in the U.S. Supreme Court in a case of first impression interpreting the federal dilution statute, and leading to Dale's appointment on the International Trademark Association Presidential Select Committee that helped rewrite the federal dilution statute and her key role in preparing for the Congressional hearings regarding the bill.
Won the highly publicized copyright fair use trial representing J.K. Rowling against RDR Publishing, bringing a halt to the proposed publication of an unauthorized Harry Potter "lexicon." Managing Intellectual Property named this trial "Copyright Trial of the Year."
Representing The Associated Press in a declaratory judgment suit brought by Shepard Fairey, in which the AP has asserted copyright infringement claims, among others, arising out of Mr. Fairey's unauthorized use of the AP's photo of President Barack Obama to create a poster and related commercial merchandise, including t-shirts, sweatshirts and tote bags.
Representing the makers of the famous "Tetris" video game in connection with ongoing policing of their intellectual property assets, including multiple litigations both domestic and international.
Won summary judgment in a high-profile copyright and trademark action that accused J.K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter books, of plagiarism. In the matter, awarded sanctions and attorneys' fees because of claimants' fabricated evidence.
Won a landmark trial on behalf of the Martha Graham Dance Center, in a case that preserved Martha Graham's dance legacy in a bitterly contested contract, fiduciary duty and intellectual property battle against the heir to Martha Graham's estate.
Representing IBM in connection with a copyright and patent infringement case brought by CCP Systems Inc. in a case involving JScribe technology and international issues.
Representing Colgate-Palmolive in trademark infringement litigation involving the “Total” brand, its crown jewel. On behalf of Colgate, Kirkland filed two separate suits alleging trademark infringement, unfair competition, trademark dilution, deceptive trade practices and unjust enrichment against defendants, Johnson & Johnson and Chattem Inc.
Represented MySpace.com in a high-profile copyright action involving the allegedly improper use of music on the widely popular MySpace social networking site, brought by the largest music company in the world, Universal Music Group Recording, Inc.
Represented Nuance Communications, a leading provider of speech and imaging solutions for businesses and consumers around the world, in several patent infringement, copyright, trademark, contract and trade secret misappropriation actions involving speech recognition and related technology, including cases in the Eastern District of Texas, Delaware, and in private arbitration.
Obtained a temporary restraining order on behalf of Trader Joe's barring the Gristede's supermarket chain from proceeding with its planned opening of a new store under the name "Gristede's Trader John's" and using trade dress that copied the distinctive Trader Joes' style; the case settled on favorable terms shortly thereafter.
Secured a favorable settlement for License Management Co. during the second week of an expected three week bench trial in the District of Connecticut in a case involving breach of fiduciary duty and corporate opportunity claims, and license rights to the world-famous "Swiss Army" branded products and trademarks.
Successfully represented J.K. Rowling in numerous intellectual property disputes nationwide, including a highly publicized copyright infringement action brought against the New York Daily News involving the premature release of excerpts of the fifth Harry Potter book.
Represented Honeywell in class actions premised on fraud on the trademark office involving the famous Honeywell Round trademark for thermostats.
Represented and advising Lionel LLC in all of its intellectual property litigation, and in developing, protecting and enforcing its intellectual property rights, including assisting to secure the reversal of a $40 million adverse judgment on trade secret claims that threatened the company with bankruptcy, and successfully resolving a high-profile trademark dispute against Union Pacific train line.
Successfully represented Twentieth Century Fox in a high-profile copyright, false advertising, and breach of contract lawsuit against Marvel Comics, Tribune, and Fireworks concerning the movie X-Men and television show Mutant X.
Won summary judgment for Twentieth Century Fox in a copyright infringement matter brought by the purported owner of the photograph allegedly used to create the "I WANT TO BELIEVE" poster in Fox Mulder's office on The X-Files.
Successfully represented Time Warner Entertainment and related companies, such as Time Inc. and Home Box Office, in a variety of matters including a major fraud in the inducement contract case and the successful defeat of a preliminary injunction involving Time's expansion of its "Real Simple" line of products.
Successfully defended the Gallo Winery from false advertising charges brought by Heublein in a case that involved the extensive use of survey experts.
Led a team in obtaining a unanimous federal jury verdict in favor of the American National Theatre, a nonprofit theatre organization in New York, in a trademark infringement case brought by ANTA, another nonprofit theater organization, over the right to the American National Theatre mark.
Obtained transfers of domain names pursuant to both the ICANN dispute resolution procedures and the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act and counseling on Internet issues in general.
Defeated as a prior restraint O.J. Simpson's attempt to enjoin broadcast of the Simpson/Brown wedding video and later obtained a demurrer of the suit as failing to state a claim under privacy and unfair competition law.
Memberships & Affiliations
American Bar Association
IP Section of the American Bar Association (Vice Chair of Division III - Copyrights; Former Chair of the Copyright Litigation Committee)
Litigation Section of the American Bar Association (Former Chair of the IP Committee; Former Division Chair)
New York State Bar Association (Media Law Committee; IP Committee; Cyberlaw Committee)
Association of the Bar of the City of New York (Trademarks and Unfair Competition Committee (Former Chair); Communications and Media Law Committee; Copyright and Literary Property Committee)
International Trademark Association (Counsel; Former Chair of Trademark Enforcement Committee; Former Chair of the Dilution Committee; Former Member of the Presidential Select Task Force on Dilution)
Publications
"Why Trademark and Copyright Counsel Should Heed the Patent Precedent of the Supreme Court," Landslide (November/December 2009)
"Copyrights and Wrongs," The Economist on-line debate on proposed revisions to copyright law (May 2009) (Opinion Author)
"Copyright Litigation" chapter in Successful Partnering Between Inside and Outside Counsel (Robert L. Haig, ed., 1st ed., Fall 2000 and 2008 Supp. by West Group and ACA) (First Author)
"Eight Steps to a Powerful Opening," 26 Communications Lawyer 11 (Nov. 2008) (First Author)
Moseley v. V Secret Catalogue, Inc.: One Answer, Many Questions, 93 The Trademark Law Reporter 833 (2003) (First Author)
"How to Ensure Your Website Complies with Consumer Protection Laws," Internet Law & Business, (October 2002)
"Trademark Protection and the Internet," UCLA Symposium and INTA Annual Meeting, 2001
"Electronic Discovery," PLI's Fourth Annual Internet Law Institute, (June 2000)
"An Overview of Intellectual Property Issues Relating to the Internet," 89 Trademark Reporter 485 (1999) (First Author)
"The Internet and Jurisdiction: The International Experience," The Computer Law Association Bulletin, Vol. 14, No. 2 (1999) (Co-Author)
"Personal Jurisdiction in Cyberspace," The New York Law Journal, (July 20, 1998) (First Author)
"How to Protect Your Intellectual Property on the Internet?" Price Waterhouse Leadership Conference, (1998)
"Freelancers Reeling In Fight Over Online Rights: Tasini v. The New York Times," The National Law Journal, (October 20, 1997)
"Personal Jurisdiction and the Internet," PLI's Annual Internet Law Institute, (1997 and 1998)
"Net Use Raises Issues of Jurisdiction," The National Law Journal (October 28, 1996) (First-Author)
"You Name It: To What Extent Can A Surname Be Used As A Trademark?" Los Angeles Daily Journal and the San Francisco Daily Journal (April 25, 1996) (Co-Author)
"In Lotus, The 1st Circuit Departed From Precedent, Narrowing Protection For Developed Software And Giving Crafty Litigators A Blank Disk On Which To Write," The National Law Journal (May 15, 1995) (First-Author)
"The Book Publishing Industry: Intellectual Property, Privacy, Libel and Contract Issues," The Texas Bar Association (March 1995)
"Other Methods of Proof," The New York Bar Association's Practical Evidence Program (December 1994)
"Computer Interfaces Test Copyright Law's Scope," The National Law Journal (October 31, 1994) (First-Author)
"Lotus Case Highlights Copyright Issues and High-Tech Problems," The National Law Journal (November 1, 1993) (Co-Author)
"Book Publishing," University of Houston Law Foundation and University of California at Davis School of Law (July 1993 and July 1994)
"Federal Preemption of State Dilution Statutes," The New York Law Journal (April 12, 1993) (Co-Author)
"Sega Case Suggests Protection Strategies," The National Law Journal (January 18, 1993) (Co-Author)
"Ferrari Case Shows Collision of Competing [Trade Dress and Patent] Protection Concepts," The National Law Journal (October 12, 1992)
"Fact-Compilation Ruling May Hinder [Copyright] Protection," The National Law Journal (June 17, 1991)
"The Work for Hire Doctrine After CCNV v. Reid," New York State Bar Journal (July 1990) (Principal Co-Author)
"Enjoining A Tender Offer for Misuse of Confidential Information: Is It A Show-Stopper or Can The Bidder Cure?" The Journal of Proprietary Rights [December 1989 (Part I); January 1990 (Part II)] (First Author), abstract reprinted in The Bowne Digest for Corporate & Securities Lawyers (April 1990)
"Representing The Employee In A Trade Secret Case," The Corporate Analyst (August 1989) (First Author), Reprinted in The Corporate Counsel's Guide to Protecting Trade Secrets
"In Search Of Truth, A Review of Renata Adler's Reckless Disregard," 15 Northern Kentucky Law Review 227 (1987)
"Entering and Leaving the Employer-Employee Relationship, Planning For Possible Litigation, Strategic Aspects of Litigation," Trade Secret Law Reporter, Vol. II, Nos. 10-11 (1987)
"Of Things To Come–The Actual Impact of Herbert v. Lando and a Proposed National Correction Statute," 22 Harvard Journal on Legislation 441 (1985), Partially reprinted in M. Franklin, Cases and Materials on Mass Media Law 293-295 (3d Ed. 1987)
Seminars
"The Effect of Supreme Court Patent Jurisprudence on Copyright Law," ABA Section of Intellectual Property Law, Annual Intellectual Property Law Conference (April 2009)
"That's All Well and Good, But How Do We Prove It? Evidence and Hot Substantive Issues," 2009 Mid-Winter Institute, AIPLA (January 2009)
"Copyright Considerations for User Generated Content," American Intellectual Property Law Association, Annual Meeting (October 23, 2008)
"Making Rain: Taking the Lead in Bringing in Business," Celebration 55: The Women's Leadership Summit, Harvard Law School (September 2008)
"First Chair: Trying Intellectual Property Cases," American Bar Association, Annual Meeting: Commission on Women in the Profession -- Day of Equality (August 7, 2008)
Courts
United States Supreme Court
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
United States District Court, Southern District of New York
United States District Court, Eastern District of New York
United States District Court, Eastern District of Michigan
United States District Court, Northern District of California
New York, Appellate Division, First Department
New York, Appellate Division, Second Department
