Intellectual Property UK

  • January 26, 2026

    Zoom Loses One Of Its 'Zoom' TMs In EU Over Lack Of Use

    Zoom Communications has lost one of the trademarks over its name after a Japanese company persuaded European appellate officials that the videoconferencing giant hadn't actually used the sign for tangible devices in the last five years. 

  • January 26, 2026

    German VC Firm Wins 'RedStone' TM Clash At EUIPO

    Berlin-based venture capital firm Redstone has persuaded a European Union appeals panel to reject a Polish company's attempt to restore its full "RedStone" trademark application, proving that the chance of confusion is too strong.

  • January 26, 2026

    Danish Fashion Brand Blocks Chinese Co.'s 'Gianni Shoes' TM

    A Danish fashion brand has convinced European officials to cancel a Chinese firm's trademark application for "Gianni Shoes" after showing that shoppers would think the rival products were part of its Ganni brand.

  • January 26, 2026

    Beats Electronics Blocks Shenzhen's 'Eversolo' TM In EU

    Audio brand Beats has blocked a Chinese technology company's attempt to trademark "eversolo," persuading European Union officials that shoppers would confuse the brands when browsing for headphone products.

  • January 26, 2026

    Goldsmiths Accused Of Copying 88-Facet Diamond Designs

    A gemstone designer has accused Goldsmiths of copying his blueprints for a diamond that has 88 facets, asking a London court to stop the British retail chain from continuing its alleged infringement of his intellectual property.

  • February 02, 2026

    Squire Patton Adds New Head Of IP, Tech In Dublin

    Squire Patton Boggs LLP has hired a trademark and design lawyer to head its intellectual property and technology practice in Ireland, strengthening the international firm's Dublin office as it continues to expand in the country.

  • January 23, 2026

    Taxation With Representation: Vinge, A&O Shearman, Cassels

    In this week's Taxation With Representation, Swedish private equity company EQT buys U.K. secondaries firm Coller Capital, biopharmaceutical giant GSK PLC acquires Rapt Therapeutics Inc., and fusion energy company General Fusion announces plans to go public by merging with special purpose acquisition company Spring Valley Acquisition Corp. III.

  • January 23, 2026

    Portuguese Winery Loses 'EF' TM Clash Against Wholesaler

    A European Union court has rejected a Portuguese winery's latest attempt to block a booze wholesaler's "EF" trademark, ruling that consumers would not mistake the sign for the winery's earlier "EF – Ermelinda Freitas" mark.

  • January 23, 2026

    Mondelez Unit Can't Block Rival's 'Luna.Store' TM In UK

    A subsidiary of Mondelēz International has persuaded U.K. officials to partially throw out a trademark application from a nicotine pouch maker for "luna.Store" as shoppers could be misled into thinking the rival retail services were being offered by its Luna brand of healthy bars. 

  • January 23, 2026

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    This past week in London saw Travelers Insurance hit with a claim from a property buyer over a payout tied to collapsed law firm Axiom Ince, Swedish music group Pophouse Entertainment clash with the production company that helped it create the ABBA Voyage experience, and biotech company Vertex Pharmaceuticals sue rival entity ToolGen for patent infringement.

  • January 23, 2026

    Lubrizol Defends Turbo-Engine Oil Patent At EPO

    Lubrizol, a chemicals company owned by Berkshire Hathaway, has defeated a challenge to its engine oil patent from rival Infineum, persuading a European appeals panel to uphold a tweaked version of its registration.

  • January 23, 2026

    Dutch Retailer Hema Blocks 'Huma Eyewear' EU TM Bid

    Dutch household goods retailer Hema has persuaded European Union officials to veto an Italian sunglasses company's "Huma Eyewear" trademark after it proved that this was likely to lead to confusion between the two brands.

  • January 22, 2026

    Famous Names Not Enough To Distinguish Elton, Elon TMs

    A European court ruled Wednesday that public figures making the names "Elton" and "Elon" famous wasn't enough to ensure that consumers would distinguish between the names for appliances, upholding a victory for Swedish household goods maker Elon.

  • January 22, 2026

    Puma Can't Kick Out Chinese Co.'s Stripe Logo At EU Court

    Puma has failed to convince a European court to toss out a Chinese company's application for a logo consisting of a widening upward-curving line with a short apostrophe, concluding it looked nothing like the sportswear giant's trademarks.

  • January 22, 2026

    Activision Wins 'Modern Warfront' TM Battle At UKIPO

    Activision has wiped out a video game developer's "Modern Warfront" trademark in the U.K., proving that the brand closely resembles the "Modern Warfare" series within its Call of Duty franchise.

  • January 22, 2026

    Sisvel Launches New Wi-Fi Patent Pool

    Sisvel said Thursday that it was launching a new patent pool, giving licensees access to standard essential patents owned by giants such as Huawei and Panasonic that are central to using the latest Wi-Fi technology.

  • January 22, 2026

    P&G Beats Turkish Textiles Co.'s 'Gold Fairy' TM

    Procter & Gamble has persuaded European officials to nix a Turkish company's trademark application for "Gold Fairy" on the basis that shoppers buying the rival cleaning products would link it to P&G's "Fairy" brand, despite the addition of a beetle image. 

  • January 22, 2026

    Aldi Can't Freeze Ice Cream Maker's 'Yuki Mochi' TM Bid

    Aldi has lost its attempt to block a Portuguese company's application for a "Yuki Mochi Ice Cream" trademark in the European Union, failing to show that shoppers could muddle up the sign with its existing "Mucci" trademark.

  • January 21, 2026

    Syngenta Settles EU-Wide Herbicide Claim After UPC Ban

    Syngenta Ltd. has dropped its patent infringement claim against rival plant protection company Sumi Agro, after convincing the UPC to bar sales of its herbicide in the EU and successfully extending claims to cover non-European jurisdictions including the U.K. and Poland.

  • January 21, 2026

    Music Promoters Fight Free Music Giant's £4M Royalty Claim

    Two music promotion companies have denied owing £4.1 million ($5.5 million) in license fees and other royalties to a royalty-free record label, arguing that the disputed deal ended in 2017 and the label had previously agreed to accept payment in installments.

  • January 21, 2026

    'Wonkitos' TM Too Close To 'Wonka' Brand, EU Says

    A Ferrero-linked company has persuaded European Union officials to block most of a "Wonkitos" trademark application after proving that the brand could cause confusion with the famous "Wonka" brand.

  • January 21, 2026

    US Performers Lose Challenge Over UK Royalties Legislation

    Trade unions representing more than 230,000 U.S. singers and performers can't overturn secondary legislation that restricts their right to fair royalty payments, as a London court found Wednesday it lacks the power to decide whether the law violated unincorporated international treaties.

  • January 21, 2026

    Instagram Blocks Greek Basketball Team's 'Paogram' TM

    Instagram has convinced European officials to revoke a Greek basketball club's trademark application for "Paogram," ruling that the social media site's strong reputation might transfer to the basketball club and unfairly "stimulate" sales.

  • January 20, 2026

    Tiger Woods' Golf League Escapes EU TM Challenge

    Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy's golf league has moved closer to securing a "Los Angeles Golf Club" trademark in the European Union after a California retailer dropped its attempt to quash the application.

  • January 20, 2026

    Adidas Fails To Block Salomon's Trainer Design Patent

    European appellate officials have granted Salomon a patent over a shoe design despite attacks from Adidas, ruling that skilled inventors wouldn't have incorporated the same elastic woven material or its shoe-like layers to improve comfort and user feel. 

Expert Analysis

  • Takeaways From EU's Draft AI Code Of Practice

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    The European Union AI Office’s recently published first draft of the General-Purpose AI Code of Practice sheds some welcome light on which Artificial Intelligence Act compliance issues the office finds particularly knotty and, importantly, acknowledges where further guidance will be necessary, say lawyers at Akin.

  • The Rising Tide Of EU Antitrust Enforcement In Pharma

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    The European Commission’s recent record-breaking €463 million fine of Teva for abusing its dominant position confirms that European Union competition law enforcement in the pharmaceutical sector remains a priority, with infringements drawing serious financial exposure, say lawyers at Cooley.

  • What The Future Of AI In Financial Services Looks Like

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    Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming the global financial services industry, with a hybrid model likely to evolve where AI handles routine tasks and humans focus on strategy and decision-making, so financial institutions should work with regulators to establish ethical standards and meet regulatory expectations without stifling innovation, say lawyers at Womble Bond.

  • The EU Design System Changes US Cos. Need To Know About

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    With a number of major reforms to the European Union's design protection system set to take effect in the first half of 2025, U.S. companies need to stay informed about specific details to maintain effective intellectual property management in the EU market, say lawyers at Finnegan.

  • What New Int'l Treaty Means For Global AI Regulation

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    Lawyers at Bird & Bird consider how global artificial intelligence regulation will be affected by the first international AI treaty recently signed by the U.S., EU and U.K., as well as its implications for business and several issues that stakeholders should be aware of.

  • HMRC Transfer Pricing Guide A Vital Resource For Businesses

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    HM Revenue & Customs' recent guidelines on common transfer pricing compliance risks should be required reading for affected businesses in indicating HMRC's expected benchmark for documents and policies, say Tomoko Ikawa and Kapisha Vyas at Simmons & Simmons.

  • Comparing Apples To Oranges In EPO Claim Interpretation

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    A referral before the Enlarged Board of Appeal could fundamentally change the role that descriptions play in claims interpretation at the European Patent Office, altering best drafting practices for patent applications construed there, say lawyers at Finnegan.

  • Why India May Become A Major Patent Litigation Forum

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    India is reinventing itself with the goal of becoming a global hot spot for patent litigation, with recent developments at the Delhi High Court creating incentives for plaintiffs to assert patent rights in India, say Ranganath Sudarshan at Covington and IP litigator Udit Sood.

  • Takeaways From UPC's Amgen Patent Invalidity Analysis

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    The Unified Patent Court Central Division's decision in Regeneron v. Amgen to revoke a patent for lack of inventive step is particularly clear in its reasoning and highlights the risks to patentees of the new court's central revocation powers, say Jane Evenson and Caitlin Heard at CMS.

  • UK Approach To AI Patentability Appears Settled For Now

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    After a High Court ruling upended the status quo last year, the Court of Appeal’s recent decision that Emotional Perception’s artificial neural network is not patentable represents a return to the U.K.’s familiar, albeit often complex, approach to patentability of artificial intelligence technology and computer programs generally, say lawyers at Potter Clarkson.

  • AI Reforms Prompt Fintech Compliance Considerations

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    With the EU Artificial Intelligence Act's Aug. 1 enforcement, and the U.K.'s new plans to introduce AI reforms, fintech companies should consider how to best focus limited resources as they balance innovation and compliance, says Nicola Kerr-Shaw at Skadden.

  • 10 Ways To Manage AI Risks In Service Contracts

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    With the European Union Artificial Intelligence Act coming into force on Aug. 1 and introducing a new regulatory risk, and with AI technology continuing to develop at pace, parties to services arrangements should employ mechanisms now to build in flexibility and get on the front foot, says James Longster at Travers Smith.

  • What Future May Hold For AI Innovation In UK Under Labour

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    Labour’s recent King's Speech was notable in its absence of discussion of a comprehensive artificial intelligence bill, and while this may indicate to many that the UK is open for business, the party’s approach to cross-sectoral engagement will be critical for shaping Britain's AI landscape in the near term, says Alexander Amato-Cravero at Herbert Smith.

  • Don't Wing Settlements: Lessons From Morley's TM Ruling

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    In Morley's v. Sivakumar, the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court recently found that a fast-food franchiser had breached a fried chicken franchise's trademark rights, despite a prior settlement agreement, offering lessons on drafting express terms to ensure IP protection, say Nessa Khandaker and Clare Cornell at Finnegan.

  • Use Or Lose It: European TM Ruling Stresses 'Genuine Use'

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    The European Union General Court recently dismissed an action to revoke trademark protections for a lack of use in Sta Grupa v. EU Intellectual Property Office, offering significant insight into the intricacies of assessing evidence of genuine use in revocation actions, says Sumi Nadarajah at FRKelly.

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