Courtney L. Batliner
Partner
Overview
Courtney L. (Bennigson) Batliner is a litigator in the Intellectual Property (IP) Group at Holland & Knight. Representing clients at every stage of litigation and pre-litigation dispute resolution, Ms. Batliner focuses on complex commercial matters involving IP (including copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets) and related contract issues. She has particular experience handling inventor disputes and licensing/royalty disputes, as well as claims of copyright infringement, copyright termination and trade secret misappropriation.
Based in the firm's Boston office, Ms. Batliner resides in Maine and practices in federal courts nationwide, from California to New York, Oklahoma to Florida and throughout New England. She has assisted clients in the consumer products, entertainment and online services industries, and has extensive experience in connection with the toy and game industry, in particular. She also coordinates with the firm's IP transactional, data security and privacy teams to meet client needs beyond litigation.
Ms. Batliner's successes include:
- Defeating copyright termination claims – e.g., protecting a global toy/game company's rights in an iconic property over a licensor's attempted termination pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 304(c), obtaining a favorable trial judgment that was then upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.
- Defeating inventor disputes – e.g., defending an international consumer products and entertainment company against an inventor's claims of trade secret misappropriation and breach of contract, winning summary judgment on all counts after extensive discovery.
- Defending against competitor disputes – e.g., defending a toy manufacturer against a highly litigious competitor's claims of false designation of origin, trademark infringement, design patent infringement, copyright infringement and unfair competition, securing a favorable settlement based on discovery.
Ms. Batliner is a trained mediator under Massachusetts law (M.G.L. ch. 233 § 23C), and believes that the principles of interest-based negotiation can be a powerful tool for her clients in virtually any matter, both within and beyond litigation.
Pro bono service is also a priority for Ms. Batliner. She has spent hundreds of hours serving pro bono clients in connection with prisoners' civil rights, immigration, asylum and public benefit issues.
During law school, Ms. Batliner wrote for Cornell's Legal Information Institute and served as president of the school's Alternative Dispute Resolution Society, participating in international mediation and negotiation student competitions. Before joining Holland & Knight, she interned for the Honorable John L. Kane in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado and for a Boston-based negotiation firm. Prior to law school, she had a career as a professional triathlete.
Representative Experience
Copyright Termination: Defended a global toy and game company against a plaintiff's efforts to terminate the transfer of copyright in an iconic board game, under 17 U.S.C. § 304(c); obtained favorable judgment after trial – a ruling upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
Copyright Infringement: Defending a major e-commerce corporation against a copyright infringement claim involving apparel design; the client's motion for summary judgment is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma
Copyright Infringement: Defended an international consumer products and entertainment company against an inventor's claims of copyright infringement, trade secret misappropriation and breach of contract; defeated motion for preliminary injunction in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (a ruling upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit), then obtained partial summary judgment, defeated cross-motion for summary judgment and secured favorable settlement before trial
Copyright Termination: Defended a large toy manufacturer, where plaintiff sought to terminate a copyright grant pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 304(c) in connection with iconic line of toys; settled favorably prior to dispositive motions in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
Copyright Infringement: Defended an industry-leading web services provider against a former vendor's copyright infringement claims; helped to obtain favorable settlement on the eve of trial in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- Licensee Audit Dispute: Representing an international consumer products company in a multimillion-dollar royalty audit dispute with a former licensee; case is pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island
- Inventor Dispute: Representing a global toy and game company against a third-party inventor's claims, including for breach of contract, misappropriation of ideas and unfair competition; the client's motion for summary judgment is pending in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
- Breach of Contract and Fraud: Defended an internet startup against fraud and contract claims brought by multiple parties, originally in the Oklahoma District Court; obtained a favorable settlement
- Breach of Contract: Defended a major toy and game manufacturer against breach of contract claims, originally filed in the Supreme Court of the State of New York; secured a favorable settlement
- Breach of Contract and Trade Secret: Represented an international consumer products and entertainment company against an inventor's claims for breach of contract and theft of trade secret; won summary judgment on all counts in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
- Breach of Contract and Related IP Claims: Represented a global provider of telecommunications equipment against a supplier's lawsuit, where the supplier asserted claims for breach of contract, theft of trade secrets and unfair competition, and brought two separate motions for preliminary injunction in connection with hardware and software for sending data over Code-Division Multiple Access (CDMA) wireless networks; helped to obtain favorable settlement during hearing on second motion for preliminary injunction in the New York State Supreme Court (Commercial Division), when it became clear that plaintiff's motion was unlikely to succeed
- Trademark Claims: Representing a medical device company in a trademark infringement dispute with a competitor; case is pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire
- Design Patent, Trademark Claims: Defended an international toy manufacturer against a competitor's claims of false designation of origin, trademark infringement, design patent infringement, copyright infringement and unfair competition; obtained favorable settlement in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
- Utility Patent: Represented a golf equipment manufacturer against numerous golf ball sellers over patents relating to the aerodynamics of golf balls; helped to defeat three separate motions to dismiss before securing settlements with all defendants early in proceedings in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts
- Patent and Trade Secret: Represented a large information technology (IT) management solutions provider against a competitor alleging trade secret misappropriation and infringement of patents relating to object code instrumentation; helped to secure favorable a settlement shortly before trial in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
- License Evaluation: Assists clients in drafting IP-related contracts that meet their particular business needs, and advises clients regarding the likely interpretation and effect of existing IP agreements as due diligence for corporate mergers/acquisitions
- Liability and Claim Evaluation: Advises clients regarding potential liability under IP-related law, and evaluating potential IP-related claims
- General IP Law Guidance: Advises clients, including foreign governmental bodies and nongovernmental organizations, regarding principles of U.S. IP law most relevant to clients' interests
Credentials
- Cornell Law School, J.D.
- Williams College, B.A., Psychology, magna cum laude
- Massachusetts
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts
- Phi Beta Kappa
- Holland & Knight Pro Bono All-Star, 2021
- English
- French
- Italian