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Anten, Todd
Direct Tel: +1 212 849 7192
New York
Tel: +1 212 849 7000 Fax: +1 212 849 7100

Todd Anten is Co-Chair of the firm’s Trademark, Copyright, and Trade Secret practices. His practice focuses on high-stakes complex commercial litigation and intellectual property disputes, including copyright infringement, trademark infringement, trade secret misappropriation, false advertising, cybersquatting, “hot news” misappropriation, defamation, and rights of publicity, as well as general contract, antitrust, and Alien Tort Statute disputes.  

Todd has tried and argued cases in state and federal courts, as well as before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. He recently secured a complete victory for Vimeo in actions brought by music labels—which asserted hundreds of claims of copyright infringement based on the presence of music in user-generated videos—on safe-harbor grounds under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. He also represented the Boy Scouts of America in a trademark dispute with the Girl Scouts of the United States of America over the use of the term “scout,” securing a complete victory for the Boy Scouts on summary judgment. He has represented major brands in connection with copyright and trademark litigation across the country, including Gucci, Marriot, OpenAI, Wise Payments, Charter Communications, and U.S. Soccer Foundation.

As a member of the firm’s Appellate Group, Todd represented Frederick Allen and Nautilus Productions in the U.S. Supreme Court in Allen v. Cooper, arguing that Congress’s passage of an act allowing copyright holders to sue States for infringement does not violate the Eleventh Amendment. Todd helped achieve a 9-0 victory before the U.S. Supreme Court in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., 569 U.S. 108 (2013), which restricted the extraterritorial scope of the Alien Tort Statute. He has also represented multiple clients before the Supreme Court and Courts of Appeals on a variety of other matters, including First Amendment, copyright and trademark issues.

Todd is active in the firm’s pro bono practice. He represented over 200 major companies on a U.S. Supreme Court amicus brief filed in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, 590 U.S. 644 (2020), arguing that sexual-orientation and gender-identity workplace discrimination violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. He also represented professors of constitutional law the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and 29 other organizations on a U.S. Supreme Court amicus brief filed in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, 593 U.S. 522 (2021), arguing that the application of anti-discrimination provisions in public government contracts with private entities does not violate the First Amendment. He previously represented a client in the U.S. Supreme Court challenging a discriminatory federal statute that imposes different, sex-discriminatory restrictions on the children of unmarried fathers than it does on the children of unmarried mothers, which resulted in a decision finding that the statute violated the 14th Amendment, Sessions v. Morales-Santana, 582 U.S. 47 (2017). He also represented a transgender client in New Jersey federal court, challenging the denial of health-related services based on sex and gender-identity discrimination.

Todd has provided testimony before the U.S. Copyright Office, and is a frequent public speaker on copyright, trademark, and Title VII matters. Todd has been named by The Best Lawyers in America in the field of Copyright Law in 2023-2025, and named a “recommended lawyer” by Legal 500 in the fields of copyright, trademark and trade secret litigation in 2023-2025. In 2025 Todd was recognized by the World Trademark Review 1000 as a Recommended Individual who is part of a “formidable team known for securing highly contentious wins for their clients.”

  • Google
  • Vimeo
  • Gucci
  • National Football League and its member clubs
  • Cisco
  • Marriott
  • Boy Scouts of America
  • Charter Communications
  • Skillz Platform Inc.
  • OpenAI
  • IBM
  • Stolichnaya
  • Wise Payments Ltd.
  • Bell + Howell
  • Optilogic
  • Big Run Studios
  • Jackpot.com
  • TVEyes
  • Tommy John
  • Legal & General
  • Despegar.com
  • Deckers Outdoor Corp.
  • Hyundai
  • Tumblr
  • The Richard Avedon Foundation
  • Representing Marriott International in a trademark infringement and trademark dilution dispute brought by Delta Air Lines in the Northern District of Georgia over Marriott’s acquisition of the brand “Delta Hotels.”
  • Representing Zuru, Inc. in a trade dress and copyright dispute brought by Lego A/S alleging that Zuru infringed Lego’s “minifigure” designs.
  • Representing Optilogic and its founder in a copyright and trade secret dispute brought by Coupa Software and Llamasoft, alleging that Optilogic infringed Coupa’s data schema and website design, and misappropriated Coupa’s trade secrets. Defeated Coupa’s demand for a preliminary injunction.
  • Representing multiple clients in generative AI disputes brought in federal court concerning claims of copyright infringement.
  • Represented video-sharing website Vimeo.com in actions brought by music labels alleging hundreds of claims of copyright infringement of sound recordings and musical compositions based on the presence of music in user-generated videos, with Vimeo asserting a safe-harbor defense under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Secured a summary judgment victory for Vimeo in the district court, and secured a complete, precedent-setting victory in the Second Circuit on all grounds.
  • Represented Jackpot.com, a lottery courier service, in a trademark dispute brought by Jackpocket, Inc. in the Southern District of New York, securing a complete trial victory for Jackpot.com by defeating claims of trademark infringement, dilution and unfair competition. Decision affirmed in its entirety by the Second Circuit.
  • Represented the Boy Scouts of America in a trademark dispute brought by the Girl Scouts of the United States of America over the use of the term “scout,” securing a complete victory for the Boy Scouts on summary judgment.
  • Represented Charter Communications and Bright House Networks in actions brought by music labels alleging thousands of claims of secondary copyright infringement of sound recordings and musical compositions based on customers’ alleged downloading and sharing of music files through the use of peer-to-peer technologies.
  • Represented Wise Payments Ltd. in a trademark dispute brought by ADP, Inc. alleging that Wise’s brand infringed ADP’s trademark rights in “Wisely.”
  • Represented Cisco Systems, Inc. in a copyright action it brought against Arista Networks, Inc., alleging that Arista infringed Cisco’s copyright in its command-line user interfaces for network switches and routers. Also represented Cisco Systems, Inc. in two Alien Tort Statute litigations arising out of alleged acts that occurred in China, resulting in successful motions to dismiss.
  • Represented the NFL and the Baltimore Ravens in a series of copyright disputes over the Ravens’ inaugural team logo, used in 1996-1998. Obtained a unanimous decision by the Fourth Circuit dismissing claims of copyright infringement regarding the appearance of the inaugural logo in certain historical documentaries and photo displays on fair use grounds.
  • Represented Pro-Football, Inc in a dispute seeking cancellation of the Washington D.C. football team’s trademark registrations on disparagement grounds.
  • Represented Shell Oil in the U.S. Supreme Court in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, where we obtained 9-0 decision holding that the Alien Tort Statute does not extend to alleged conduct committed on foreign soil.
  • Represented videographer Rick Allen in the U.S. Supreme Court in Allen v. Cooper, arguing that Congress’s passage of an act allowing copyright holders to sue States for infringement does not violate the Eleventh Amendment.
  • Represented Coca-Cola in the U.S. Supreme Court in POM Wonderful LLC v. Coca-Cola Co., a case involving whether Lanham Act false advertising claims are preempted by the Food & Drug Act.
  • Represented before the U.S. Supreme Court a pro bono client challenging a federal statute that imposes different, sex-discriminatory birthright citizenship restrictions on children of unmarried citizen fathers than it does on children of unmarried citizen mothers (Lynch v. Morales-Santana).
  • Represented over 200 businesses before the U.S. Supreme Court on an amicus brief arguing that Title VII’s non-discrimination provisions apply to LGBTQ+ employees (Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia).
  • Represented the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and 29 other organizations before the U.S. Supreme Court on an amicus brief arguing that the application of anti-discrimination provisions in public government contracts with private entities does not violate the First Amendment (Fulton v. City of Philadelphia). 
  • Represented prominent professors of constitutional law before the U.S. Supreme Court on an amicus brief arguing that discrimination against transgender individuals should be subject to heightened scrutiny (Little v. Hecox / West Virginia v. B.P.J.)
  • Represented online travel agencies operated through Despegar.com in action against American Airlines alleging antitrust violations and defamation, and defending the agencies against various trademark claims.
  • Represented the Richard Avedon Foundation in a dispute over the ownership of the copyright in thousands of photographs taken by the esteemed photographer Richard Avedon.
  • Represented designer of mixed martial arts clothing line, “Clinch Gear,” in trademark challenge brought by western-wear designer using designation “Cinch.”
  • Represented Deckers Outdoor Corporation in various trademark matters, including protection of Deckers’ famous “Uggs” trademark and the trade dress of its footwear designs.
  • Columbia Law School
    (J.D., 2006)
    • Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar
    • Harlan Fiske Stone Moot Court Honor Competition:
      • Finalist
  • Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania
    (M.A., Communication Research, 1998)
  • University of Pennsylvania
    (B.A., Communication, 1996)
  • The State Bar of New York
  • United States Supreme Court
  • United States Court of Appeals:
    • Second Circuit
    • Third Circuit
    • Fourth Circuit
    • Seventh Circuit
    • Ninth Circuit
    • Tenth Circuit
    • Eleventh Circuit
    • Federal Circuit
  • United States District Courts:
    • Southern District of New York
    • Eastern District of New York
  • Law Clerk to the Hon. Victor Marrero:
    • United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, 2008-2009
  • Named a “Recommended Individual” by the World Trademark Review 1000, 2025
  • Listed in The Best Lawyers in America: for Copyright Law, 2023-2025
  • Recognized as a Recommended Lawyer for Trademarks: Litigation, Legal 500 USA, 2015-2018, 2022-2025
  • Recognized as a Recommended Lawyer in Intellectual Property: Copyright by Legal 500, 2015-2017, 2023-2025
  • Recognized as a Recommended Lawyer for Trade Secrets, Legal 500 USA, 2022-2025
  • Recognized as a Recommended Lawyer for Media & Entertainment Litigation, Legal 500 USA, 2022
  • Recognized as a Super Lawyer in Appellate by Super Lawyers, 2020
  • Recognized as a Super Lawyer in General Litigation by Super Lawyers, 2020
  • Recognized as a Super Lawyer in Intellectual Property Litigation by Super Lawyers, 2020
  • Recognized as a Next Generation Lawyer in Intellectual Property: Copyright by Legal 500, 2018, 2019
  • Named a Rising Star in Intellectual Property Litigation by New York Metro, 2014-2017
  • “Self-Disparaging Trademarks and Social Change: Factoring the Reappropriation of Slurs into Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act,” 106 Columbia Law Review 388 (2006).
  • “‘Please Disable the Entire Filter’: Why Non-Removable Filters on Public Library Computers Violate the First Amendment,” 11 Texas Journal on Civil Liberties & Civil Rights 65 (2005).
  • “In Defense of Trademark Dilution Surveys: A Post-Moseley Proposal,” 39 Columbia Journal of Law & Social Problems 1 (2005).
  • “Perceived Typicality: American Television as Seen by Mexicans, Turks, and Americans,” 16 Critical Studies in Mass Communication 436 (1999) (co-author).