Tag archives: intellectual property

Are tougher days coming for approval of agribusiness certification trademarks in Australia?

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Amanda Caldwell (AU) on November 29, 2018 Posted in Advertising, Trademark

On 22 November 2018 the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) issued its initial assessment of the rules governing use of four certification trade marks in the name of OxoPak Pty Ltd, indicating its intention deny approval for the certification rules, and therefore the trade marks will be denied.… Continue reading

Australian Trademarks Law Review – Edition 2

By Frances Drummond (AU), Sophie Lees (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on November 26, 2018 Posted in Trademark

2018 marked the publication of the first Australian Trademarks Law Review from the Law Review series. The Law Review collates cross-border legal insights and analysis across a range of practice areas and is a useful resource for in-house counsel of global organizations. Following the publishing of the first edition of the Australian chapter of 2018 … Continue reading

Recent developments for IPR protection in China

By Justin Davidson (HK) on November 12, 2018 Posted in Copyright

On November 5th 2018, at the inauguration ceremony of the first-ever China International Import Expo held in Shanghai, President Xi Jinping reassured investors, especially foreign enterprises, on the administration’s determination to protect their intellectual property rights in China. In the speech, President Xi announced that in order to significantly increase the cost of infringing IPR … Continue reading

Bill C-86 — significant changes to Canada’s IP regime

By Amy Grenon (CA) on November 2, 2018 Posted in Copyright, General, Trademark

The federal government’s recent omnibus budget bill, Bill C-86 tabled October 29th, 2018, proposes significant changes to Canada’s IP laws. Division 7 of the Bill is intended to implement many aspects of the government’s IP strategy announced in April 2018, and targets the Patent Act, the Trade-marks Act, and Copyright Act; provides for a new … Continue reading

No use crying over spilt (plant-based-dairy-free-alternatives-to) milk?

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on September 24, 2018 Posted in Advertising

Every trendy café these days seems to have a selection of dairy-free milk alternatives as long as a wine list, from the usual suspects like soy, coconut and almond, to more unusual new favourites like rice, hemp, pea, flax and oat. With vegan, dairy-free or plant-based diets becoming more and more popular for health, environmental, … Continue reading

Amended Australian IP laws receive Royal Assent with little fanfare

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on September 24, 2018 Posted in Copyright, General, Trademark

On 24 August 2018, the creatively named Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Productivity Commission Response Part 1 and Other Measures) Bill 2018 quietly received Royal Assent, with some parts of the new Act entering into force the following day. As the name indicates, the primary focus of the new legislation is to implement the recommendations made … Continue reading

V Energy loses a mother of a battle over color trademark: Australia court’s decision in Frucor v Coca-Cola

By Helen Macpherson (AU) and Alyson Poole (AU) on August 13, 2018 Posted in Trademark

We, as consumers, regularly associate colours with our favourite brands as we stroll down supermarket aisles and peer at billboards and banners in shopping centres. But for brand holders, gaining protection for proprietary colours is not a walk in the (green) park. The recent decision of Frucor Beverages Limited v The Coca-Cola Company [2018] FCA … Continue reading

Mirror, mirror on the wall, what’s my taxable Insta value after all?

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on June 18, 2018 Posted in Advertising, Trademark

In sad news for celebrities and Instagram influencers across Australia, the introduction of the so-called ‘fame tax’ as part of a raft of integrity measures announced in the 2018/19 budget means that they could end up paying higher taxes on the income and non-cash benefits earned through the commercial exploitation of their image rights. In … Continue reading

Career Step – Lessons on joint authorship of copyright

By Sophie Lees (AU) on May 3, 2018 Posted in Copyright

A recent decision of the Federal Court of Australia, Career Step, LLC v TalentMed Pty Ltd (No 2) [2018] FCA 132 (Career Step) provides a useful reminder of the principles that apply when determining whether a new copyright work is the result of joint authorship. Joint Authorship – what does the law say? The question … Continue reading

Changes proposed regarding parallel imports – An exhausting concept for Australian trade mark owners?

By Frances Drummond (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on April 6, 2018 Posted in Trademark

In this article, we consider; the changes to the Trade Marks Act proposed in respect of parallel imports which the Draft Explanatory Memorandum states are aimed at ensuring that the law “better meet[s] the objective of facilitating the parallel importation of goods into Australia to the benefit of consumers by limiting the strategic use of … Continue reading

The European Commission has its say: EU trade marks post-Brexit

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Sophie Lees (AU) on March 15, 2018 Posted in Trademark

On 28 February 2018, the European Commission released its draft withdrawal agreement setting out a proposal on the arrangements for the withdrawal of the UK from the EU (Withdrawal Agreement). The full text of the Withdrawal Agreement can be viewed here: European Commission’s Draft Withdrawal Agreement dated 28 February 2018 (see Title IV on Intellectual … Continue reading

Cybersquatters – How to protect your brand from unwanted ‘guests’ online

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on March 9, 2018 Posted in Advertising, Trademark

The internet is now the normal conduit for everyday personal, commercial and social transactions. It is more important than ever to ensure that your consumers know where to find your business online, and that no third parties are seeking to trade off your reputation in the online space. Domain names are the primary form of … Continue reading

Shocking your clients just became passé: US Court takes away the edge from scandalous brands

By Frances Drummond (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on February 15, 2018 Posted in Trademark

Thanks to two recent rulings of the US Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals of the Federal Circuit Court, trade marks containing “disparaging”, “immoral” and “scandalous” matter are no longer barred from obtaining registration in the United States of America. In the past, the US Patent and Trade Mark Office (USPTO) had the power … Continue reading

Back to Basics – Australian Trade Mark Law 101

By Frances Drummond (AU) and Sophie Lees (AU) on February 14, 2018 Posted in Trademark

2018 marks the publication of the first Trademarks Law Review from the Law Review series. … Continue reading

Trade mark update: 11th Edition of the Nice Classification came into force on 1 January 2018

By Frances Drummond (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on January 21, 2018 Posted in Trademark

As many of you will know, the Nice Classification is the international system used to classify goods and services for trade mark purposes. The World Intellectual Property Office regularly updates and amends the Nice Classification in order to ensure that the lists remain current and include new products and services that come to market. On … Continue reading

What Brexit means for IP: The UK Law Society, the IP Bar, CIPA and CITMA weigh in on Brexit strategy

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on January 21, 2018 Posted in Advertising, General, Trademark

It’s no surprise that many in the professional and legal services industries are putting increasing thought into what the post-Brexit world will, or should, look like. The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) in the UK has been the latest body to put its two cents (or pennies) into the mix. Brand owners from all … Continue reading

New country of origin food labelling requirements for Australia – is your packaging up to scratch?

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on November 28, 2017 Posted in Advertising

Businesses have until 1 July 2018 to transition to a new system of country of origin labelling for food products in Australia. The incoming Country of Origin Food Labelling Information Standard 2016 (Standard) imposes stricter labelling requirements on “priority”, as opposed to “non-priority”, foods and is intended to help consumers better understand where their food … Continue reading

IP funding opportunities to take your start-up to the next level

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on November 27, 2017 Posted in Trademark

As all start-ups know, having a great idea is important, but it’s not enough to ensure your idea gets off the ground – and stays there! The sad reality is that the vast majority of start-ups are destined for failure: for every Facebook, Uber and Airbnb, there are many more whose names you’ve never heard … Continue reading

Managing your products when a patent expires – how good brand management can maintain product and brand awareness, and build market share

By Georgina Hey (AU) on November 21, 2017 Posted in Advertising

The Australian Government’s recently expressed interest in cracking down on misuses of market power may have left some patent holders with concerns about the proposed amendments to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (the Act). All the fuss relates to section 46 of the Act: the provision which prohibits a company with a substantial degree … Continue reading

‘Apples, Beatles and four decades of litigation’ – Cautionary tales for start-ups settling on a new brand name

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on October 31, 2017 Posted in Trademark

Apple: the world’s most successful company, with an estimated worth of three-quarters of a trillion dollars. It’s no wonder that would-be tech entrepreneurs around the world are sitting around in black turtlenecks, jeans and New Balance sneakers, poring over Steve Jobs’ biography and trying to work out how they might emulate his success in their … Continue reading

Rebranding 4.0: Why authenticity matters to socially-aware consumers, and how to convey it

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on October 17, 2017 Posted in Advertising, Trademark

Increasingly affordable renewables, coupled with consumers’ sensitivity to environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, are driving a profound shift in energy markets worldwide. Nowhere is this more apparent than in brand equity, and the trust levels displayed by the public towards traditional energy businesses versus green, dynamic start-ups. Rebranding is a powerful tool to close … Continue reading

Promoting an innovation economy – Australian Government responds to Productivity Commission’s report into IP arrangements

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on September 14, 2017 Posted in Copyright, Trademark

We recently published an article on the potential impact on the Productivity Commission’s Inquiry Report on Intellectual Property Arrangements (Report) on Australia’s innovation economy. The Australian Government has now responded to the Report, supporting the Commission’s recommendations to reform the patent system, but stopping short of embracing the extensive copyright overhaul recommended in the Report, … Continue reading

Court decision highlights difficulty in challenging innovation patents

By Helen Macpherson (AU) on August 21, 2017 Posted in Advertising

Late last month, Justice Burley handed down his decision in Doric Products Pty Ltd v Asia Pacific Trading (Aust) Pty Ltd [2017] FCA 849. The decision provides a useful illustration of how Australian Courts will approach construction, infringement and validity issues in innovation patent proceedings, and emphasises the difficulties respondents face when challenging the validity … Continue reading

Rebranding in the energy market – The issues to consider

By Georgina Hey (AU) and Sophie Lees (AU) on August 1, 2017 Posted in Advertising

A number of energy giants have recently undergone corporate rebranding exercises. The motivations of these powerhouses often vary, from unifying a group after a series of mergers and acquisitions, to repairing reputational damage, to just aligning with a new corporate vision. Tesla dropped “Motors” from its branding in 2016 to promote its clean energy solutions … Continue reading