Category: Trademarks

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PERSONALITY RIGHTS – THE POWER OF INFLUENCE, ITS MISUSE AND PROTECTION

INTRODUCTION Publicity rights play an important role in India based on the culture of celebrity worship and the importance of the name, image, and likeness of sports, television and media personalities, political figures, musicians, etc. Indian intellectual property laws do not directly or explicitly recognize personality rights, but several regulations and provisions address the same. … Continue Reading

Case Law Update: The Australian Federal Court’s approach to non-English word trade marks

In her recent decision in Caporaso Pty Ltd v Mercato Centrale Australia Pty Ltd [2024] FCA 138 (Caporaso v Mercato), the Honourable Justice Charlesworth of the Federal Court of Australia has demonstrated how Australian courts approach the use of non-English words as trade marks in Australia.… Continue Reading

Proposed Changes to Canadian Trademark Regulations: Enhancing Efficiency and Addressing Official Marks

As discussed in my short article of July 10, 2024, important changes to the Canadian Trademark Regulations have been proposed. The changes have not yet come into effect and are still subject to change. The consultation period closed on July 8, 2024. In future articles, I will discuss comments that are being debated and next … Continue Reading

Important Amendments to Canadian Trademark Regulations

On June 8, 2024, proposed amendments to Canada’s Trademarks Regulations were published in the Canada Gazette. The public consultation period is open until July 8, 2024, and comments will be posted on the Canada Gazette website following the end of the consultation period. A coming-into-force date has not yet been set but the Canadian Intellectual … Continue Reading

IP ├ IP???: The Logic Of Election Year Legal Disputes Over Proprietary Intangibles

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

New Guidance on the Subject of Comparative Advertising and Dilution of Goodwill

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

Should Disclaimers Always Be Made in U.S. Trademark Applications?

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

Comma, Comma, Comma, Comma, Comma Chameleon: How Punctuation Can Color IP & Other Legal Rights

“[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

Usage of ad words by a competitor does not amount to trademark infringement

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

Australian Intellectual Property Reforms Ahead

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

UK appeal court: beware of the “side-by-side” trade mark comparison

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

Can U.S. Trademark Registrations Be Strengthened Against Invalidation?

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

2023: The Year of the Burgers

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

Duties involving IP matters at the beginning of the corporate term in Colombia

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

With Friends Like These: Copyright Implications Of Novelists Drawing Inspiration From The Real Lives They Cross

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

Australian trade mark law: Defending your well-known brand with a defensive trade mark registration

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

Does food flavouring constitute a “work”?

Introduction In this case before the Multi-member Court of First Instance of Thessaloniki, the plaintiff requested judicial protection of his recipes (i.e., dishes and seasonings) as works of IP. (1) He made this request on grounds including trademark law and unfair competition law. However, the Court rejected the action as:… Continue Reading

PRE-DETERMINED INDEMNIFICATION REGULATIONS FOR TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT ACTIONS IN COLOMBIA

When litigating trademark infringement cases in Colombia, the issue arises as to how the plaintiff should provide valid evidence of the damages arising from the unauthorized use of a trademark, as well as to what admissible evidence may be used to prove the amount of the indemnification claimed in the proceeding.… Continue Reading

Make Your Mark On History: Connecting Tradenames To Landmark Events, People & Places

The phrase “make your mark on history” is a commonplace one with several meanings and connotations.  It is one offered at many high school and college commencement speeches as an exhortation to graduates to have an impact beyond themselves–as future-President, then-Senator John F. Kennedy said when telling Northeastern’s graduating class in 1956 “to make your … Continue Reading

When must public performances of musical works be reported to CMOs?

The introduction of Law 4481/2017 into the Greek legislation aimed to regulate the collective management of IP and relative rights, thus amending the EU Collective Rights Management Directive. (1) Specifically, in its regulation of the public performance of musical works incorporated in legitimately released sound carriers, stores, and undertakings, article 24 of Law 4481/2017 introduced a … Continue Reading
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