With the rise in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in all forms, the question is becoming more present than ever – who owns the intellectual property in a work created with the use of AI? In Australia, there is currently no law specific to the ownership of intellectual property created in computer-generated works, whether … Continue Reading
Title? Typo? Cryptic code? Equation? Really it is a combination of three of the four. In other words, it is not a typo (You can look elsewhere in this piece for those). One key to understanding the reference above is the mathematical logic symbol ├, which is known as the “’turnstile’…because of its resemblance to a … Continue Reading
The United States is among the minority of large economies in the world without a comprehensive national privacy law. In the absence of such a law, numerous states are filling the void with a complex assortment of often inconsistent privacy laws. However, unexpected legislative developments in the U.S. House of Representatives will potentially resolve the … Continue Reading
In 2023, the Federal Court of Canada released its decision in Energizer Brands, LLC and Energizer Canada Inc. v. Gillette Company (2023 FC 804). The decision clarifies some of the laws applicable to comparative advertising in this country and should guide the conduct of parties that engage in this form of commercial activity. Energizer sued … Continue Reading
Suppose you have a pending U.S. trademark application for your trademark on goods or services for your business and a term or wording in the trademark is descriptive of your goods or services. During the examination of your trademark application, the examining attorney refuses registration because the term is merely descriptive of your goods or services … Continue Reading
“[T]he comma…this capricious bit of punctuation…” United States v. Ron Pair Enterprises, Inc., 489 US 235, 249 (1989) (O’Connor, J, dissenting) For want of a comma, we have this case.” O’Connor et al. v. Oakhurst Dairy et al.,851 F.3d 69, 70 (1st Cir. 2017) “But, when pressed, I do find I have strong views about … Continue Reading
Google AdWords have long been used by businesses to ensure that their business listings feature on top of the Google search results when the users search for particular terms (which have been bought by a business from Google). While this process may sound perfectly fine when the ad words pertain to one’s trademarks or generic … Continue Reading
2024 appears to be a year of change in the Australian Intellectual Property realm, with the adoption by IP Australia of the Madrid Goods and Services List and the introduction of the Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Regulator Performance) Act 2023. Adoption of the Madrid Goods and Services List In January 2024 IP Australia announced that … Continue Reading
Iconix Luxembourg Holdings SARL v Dream Pairs Europe Inc & Anor [2024] EWCA Civ 29 (26 January 2024) When assessing the likelihood of confusion between two marks in a trade mark clearance or infringement context, the orthodox approach of the diligent IP practitioner might be to set the two marks out next to one another, … Continue Reading
The protection of works created from the human intellect, under the legislations that have adopted a droit d’auter system, is centered on the relationship existing between the individual who created the work, and the piece that constitutes the protected work. Therefore, the legal regulations which govern the prerogatives that the creator has concerning the protected … Continue Reading
Suppose that you have obtained a U.S. trademark registration for your trademark on goods or services for your business. Can your trademark registration be cancelled with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office based on it being invalid? Can you file anything to strengthen your trademark registration against invalidation? The answer is YES! if the trademark … Continue Reading
The Quebec Charter of the French Language (the “Charter”) was adopted nearly 50 years ago to protect the status of the French language in the province of Quebec. It includes many rules, several of them directed at the language of business in Quebec, and some regarding the use of French on both product packaging and … Continue Reading
In the United States, an original work of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression (meaning the work can be communicated in a visual or audio form) is a protectable copyright. This means that the owner has the exclusive right to reproduce, adapt, publish, perform, and display the work. Because copyright protection has a … Continue Reading
Last year saw the introduction of Law 4996/2022, which brought significant changes to IP legislation in Greece, amending several provisions of the existing Copyright Law 2121/1993 as well as Law 4481/2017 on Collective Management.… Continue Reading
From the Big Mac v Big Jack to the KFC v HFC – 2023 was the year of the burger. In Australia, the burger debate was first brought to our attention in 2020 following a marketing campaign by Hungry Jack’s Pty Ltd (Hungry Jack’s) for its limited-edition Big Jack burger. Hungry Jack’s (better known as … Continue Reading
“Headlines” and “titles” are related, sometimes interchangeable, items appearing atop news stories. But, in this space, headlines are usually a source of inspiration (so we can write about intellectual property issues that may interest more than just IP attorneys), and titles a bit of fun (so we can draw in those looking for a bit … Continue Reading
Suppose you have an inventor or applicant who asks you to file a patent application in the U.S. However, the applicant has limited financial resources for filing the patent application. Should you claim small entity status or micro entity status for the applicant at the time of filing the patent application? The answer depends on … Continue Reading
Canadian brand owners should prepare now for fee increases coming into force in 2024. Overall, fees are set to increase by 20 to 35%. In particular, the government fee for filing a Canadian trademark application is increasing to $460 for the first class and $140 for each additional class (the current fees are $350 and … Continue Reading
Introduction This case(1) concerned a collective management organisation’s (CMO’s) application for the temporary determination of related and neighbouring rights and copyrights. This was for equitable remuneration for public reproduction of intellectual works by catering businesses (ie, coffee shops). The judgment also dealt with the presumption of management and protection representative authority for CMOs.… Continue Reading
The end of the calendar year is also, for legal purposes, the end of the corporate and accounting year, under Colombian Law. The beginning of a new corporate year, on January 1, triggers, for corporate entities and branches of foreign companies, the need to carry out several duties, both in the form of legal obligations … Continue Reading
Fiction writing has a curious claim on truth. We learn this at the youngest age, listening to fairy tales when the child in us “intuitively comprehends that, although these stories are unreal, they are not untrue …” Bettelheim, The Uses Of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales (at 73). We hear this in … Continue Reading
Australia’s trade mark legislation provides trade mark owners with the ability to register (in certain circumstances) their well-known brands as ‘defensive trade marks’ in respect of particular goods and/or services, even if the owner of the mark has no intention of using the mark in respect of those goods and/or services.… Continue Reading
For this edition, we decided to make a compilation of answers to questions that we frequently receive from clients who intend to protect their trademarks in Colombia. … Continue Reading
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry has recently published a set of draft amendments (“Draft Rules”) to the Indian Patent Rules, 2003. The amendments are currently open for comments from the public. The draft amendment rules can be accessed at – https://ipindia.gov.in/writereaddata/Portal/Images/pdf/248296.pdf.… Continue Reading
