Are companies under any obligation to shut down anything that blatantly infringes on that company's trademarks or copyrights?

Answering this very broadly, no. But if a large company with many shareholders and interested parties ignores blatant infringement to their...

If the stories were first published that long ago then they are in the public domain and you are free to use them or create derivative works from...

No, that's asking for a problem. If you were using it in some way for the purpose of social or political commentary then you would likely have a...

If a person links to your website and that link has a copyrighted image is that infringement?

If you are just talking about a thumbnail image (like you see on Google) then likely not or at least there are good arguments, otherwise even if...

I have a question regarding using.photos.

If your site is allowing for user-generated content, meaning they upload their own photos like on Facebook for example, and you are not...

Can I have illustrations of celebrities created to make jokes about them on products?

Using the name, image or likeness of someone, especially a famous person, to help sell or promote a good or service violates their publicity and...

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Business protection of an idea?

Without the benefit of any real details it is hard to offer a conclusive answer, but you are probably correct. You cannot really protect a recipe...

In such cases, it is important to realize that advocating the mark through to registration does not now solve all your problems. Even if we had...

How to protect an idea from being stolen?

You take a risk no matter what you do in these cases. But the only thing you can do is to enter into some kind of legal relationship with them and...

Can my US based band use a name currently being used by a band in the UK?

Of course. But if the band has been operating in the US they might be able to claim prior use rights to the name under common law. If they are only...