Intellectual Property UK

  • September 04, 2025

    ECJ Says Experts Not Needed To Weigh Design Rights In Lego

    Europe's highest court ruled Thursday that the question over whether a product infringes on design rights doesn't need to be answered by a technical expert, saying an informed user should be able to make the call in a dispute over protections for Lego pieces.  

  • September 04, 2025

    Poland Must Pay Commission €8M For Copyright Failings

    The European Union's highest court ordered Poland on Thursday to pay the European Commission €8.3 million ($11.1 million) alongside daily fines for adopting the bloc's copyright law reforms three years after the deadline had passed.

  • September 04, 2025

    Energy Giant OMV Gets Hygiene Biz's TM Nixed On Appeal

    Austrian energy major OMV has persuaded a European Union court to nix an identical mark of its name, overturning an earlier ruling that the reputation of its brand in the oil sector did not overlap with the other company's feminine hygiene products.

  • September 04, 2025

    3M Loses Appeal For Hand-Held Spray Gun EU Patent

    3M Innovative Properties Co., a unit of U.S. tech conglomerate 3M, has lost its appeal against a decision that blocks its European patent for a hand-held spray gun.

  • September 04, 2025

    UKIPO Weighs Protection For AI-Generated Designs

    The U.K. Intellectual Property Office said Thursday that it is reviewing whether artificial intelligence-generated designs should be eligible for protection in Britain.

  • September 03, 2025

    Italian Police Take Assets Of Cos. Accused Of €40M VAT Fraud

    Italian authorities seized assets Wednesday from two software companies, uncovering evidence that they defrauded European governments of around €40 million ($46.7 million) in value-added taxes, the European Public Prosecutor's Office and Italian Financial Police said.

  • September 03, 2025

    The Biggest UK IP Developments Of 2025 So Far

    British courts have opened the doors for brand owners to crack down on look-alikes, gone back and forth on whether parties should agree to a license mid-patent dispute, and are staring down the barrel of a future where European courts can rule on infringement of U.K. patents.

  • September 03, 2025

    HP Bars German Co. From Selling Rival Ink Cartridges In EU

    HP convinced Europe's patent court on Wednesday to stop a German shop from selling rival ink cartridges while it continues to fight HP's infringement claims because shoppers might permanently switch to cheaper knockoffs and irremediably undercut HP's market position.

  • September 03, 2025

    Japanese Biz Gets Brake Friction Material Patent Trimmed

    The European Patent Office has partly upheld an appeal by a German trade association, cutting a patent held by Japanese manufacturer Akebono Brake Industry Co. Ltd. over copper-free friction materials for brake pads.

  • September 03, 2025

    Warner Bros. Beats German Production Co.'s 'W&B' TM

    Warner Bros. convinced a European Union court on Wednesday to nix a German production company's trademark application for "W&B TV," after proving that the public would mix up the sign with its shield logo.

  • September 03, 2025

    Beats Electronics Can't Block Chinese Rival's 'Db Debra' TM

    Audio retailer Beats has lost its attempt to prevent a Chinese rival from getting a "Db Debra" trademark in the U.K. as it failed to prove that there is a risk of confusion because a similar "b" icon appears in its mark.

  • September 02, 2025

    Meril Forces Edwards To Help Pay Legal Costs In UPC Spat

    Meril Life Sciences convinced the Unified Patent Court on Tuesday to force Edwards Lifesciences to pay 25% of its legal costs because it had partially succeeded in its bid to nix the rival's heart valve technology.

  • September 02, 2025

    Boston Scientific Unit Defends Heart Valve Patent From Abbott

    A subsidiary of Boston Scientific has convinced appellate officials to uphold a patent for a stent device that props open damaged heart valves, showing that scientists wouldn't have similarly arranged pockets on its seal to prevent blood from leaking.

  • September 02, 2025

    Payments Co.'s NFT Patent Denied Over 'Flawed' Fraud Claim

    U.S. payments company Blackhawk Network Inc. has been denied a U.K. patent for a method of buying non-fungible tokens using a scannable code, after officials found that the system does not prevent fraud as the business had claimed.

  • September 02, 2025

    DexCom Loses EU Patent For Glucose Sensor Design

    European officials have deprived DexCom Inc. of its protections for a continuous glucose monitoring device, ruling that the medical device maker's description of the technology exceeded the scope of its original application. 

  • September 02, 2025

    EPO Won't Interpret Patents Narrowly Based On Descriptions

    A European Patent Office appeals panel has ruled that it will not perform "interpretive somersaults" to read the wording of patent claims more narrowly based on features set out in the description of the invention.

  • September 01, 2025

    J&J Units Can't Get Early UPC Injunction Over Stapling Tech

    Two Johnson & Johnson subsidiaries have failed to secure an injunction blocking a German distributor from selling surgical stapling instruments that allegedly infringe one of its patents, as Europe's Patent Court ruled they waited five months too long to file their request. 

  • September 01, 2025

    Thaler Loses Fight To Claim Invention He'd Credited To His AI

    An English court on Monday dismissed a bid by computer scientist Stephen Thaler to register divisional patent protections for an invention that he had previously claimed were created by his artificial intelligence system, DABUS.

  • September 01, 2025

    Bayer Can Keep Xarelto Profits Earned During Sales Ban

    A London court ruled Monday that Bayer can keep the profits it banked from selling blood-thinning treatment Xarelto during an interim sales ban that stopped generic-drugmakers infringing the now-revoked patent.

  • September 01, 2025

    Siemens Fails To Get Computer-Aided Design Patent At EPO

    Siemens has lost its latest attempt to secure a European patent for its computer-aided design technology as it failed to persuade an appeals panel that its application sets out the invention with the necessary clarity.

  • September 01, 2025

    Vogue Owner Blocks Entrepreneur's 'Vogue Couture' TM In UK

    The owner of Vogue magazine has blocked an individual from registering "Vogue Couture" as a trademark to sell clothing, convincing British officials that shoppers would think his products were a pricier catalog in the fashion magazine's brand.

  • September 01, 2025

    Gateley Buys IP Biz Groom Wilkes & Wright For Up To £9M

    Gateley (Holdings) PLC said Monday that it has bought Groom Wilkes & Wright, a boutique intellectual property firm, in a transaction worth up to £9 million ($12 million) as the professional services group seeks to broaden its business.

  • August 29, 2025

    Telecom Body Backs EU Bid To Revise Product Law Regime

    The European Telecommunications Standards Institute has backed the European Commission's plans to reform the New Legislative Framework for product marketing, specifically requesting that the bloc restore the presumption of conformity.

  • August 29, 2025

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

    This past week in London has seen Prosecco DOC Consortium bring an intellectual property claim against a distributor, the Serious Fraud Office bring a civil recovery claim against the ex-wife of a solicitor jailed over a £19.5 million fraud scheme, and law firm Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen LLP sue its former client, the bankrupt Indian tycoon Vijay Mallya. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • August 29, 2025

    Decathlon Trims Lidl's Patent Invalidity Counterattack In UPC

    Decathlon has convinced Europe's patent court to disregard part of Lidl's latest written response to the sports equipment retailer's patent infringement case over a pop-up camping tent.

Expert Analysis

  • AI And Copyright: Tracking The Ownership Issues

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    The rise of generative AI has created copyright and ownership challenges in creative industries, but contractual agreements, intellectual property law and AI-specific regulations can be used to address these issues, says Kimiya Shams at Devialet.

  • How Ed Sheeran's Serenade May Have Swayed The Jury

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    While Ed Sheeran's performance of his hit song "Thinking Out Loud" at trial could not protect him from the subconscious copying doctrine, it may have tapped into jurors' intuitions about independent creation, winning him the copyright infringement suit over the song, says Christopher Buccafusco at Duke University School of Law.

  • An Overlooked Tool To Fight USPTO 'Restriction'

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    Over the last several years, we have seen the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office more commonly impose flimsy restrictions on patent applications under the "one invention per application" rule, and practitioners underutilize petition as a means to challenge them, say George Chaclas and Emily Ferriter Russo at Day Pitney.

  • Opinion

    AI-Generated Works Should Not Have Copyright Protection

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    The U.S. Copyright Office has correctly determined that works created solely by artificial intelligence do not qualify for protection, as granting exclusive rights to such works would be unwise for a number of reasons, says Thomas McNulty at Lando & Anastasi.

  • Examining The New UK Service Guidance For TM Proceedings

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    A new much-anticipated U.K. Intellectual Property Office practice notice affects situations where there is no valid U.K. address for service of documents in trademark and registered design proceedings, and will mean rights holders are on notice at an earlier stage of proceedings, with limited time in which to respond, says Nina O'Sullivan at Mishcon de Reya.

  • A Look At M&S' Registered Design Claim Win Against Aldi

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    Adding to the long line of cases seeking to restrain Aldi's attempts to mimic market-leading products, Marks & Spencer's recent success in the U.K. High Court based on registered designs demonstrates that supermarket copycat products may no longer be able to sail so close to the wind, says Alex Borthwick at Powell Gilbert.

  • UK Teva Ruling Brings Patent Remedy Into Question

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    Arrow declarations have been considered an extremely effective tool for patent litigators, but following the recent U.K. Court of Appeal decision in Teva v. Novartis it appears that courts are looking to take a more conservative view, say David Holt and Tony Proctor at Potter Clarkson.

  • How CJEU Case Shifts TM Liability For Platforms Like Amazon

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    The EU Court of Justice's recent ruling on Amazon's liability for trademark infringement in relation to fake Christian Louboutin shoes advertised by third parties on its website may leave web platforms that sell third-party vendors' products alongside their own brands more vulnerable to infringement claims, say Louisa Chambers and Helen Reddish at Travers Smith.

  • Europe's New Unitary Patent System Will Affect IP Agreements

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    Marco Stief at Maiwald discusses key points in intellectual property agreements that legal practitioners will need to consider in Europe's soon-to-open centralized patent court, including regional exclusivity in different contracting member states.

  • EU Medicine Reboxing Ruling Gives Guidance To Pharma Cos.

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    The recent landmark decision of the Court of Justice of the EU in Novartis Pharma on repackaging medicines has provided pharma companies with a much-needed framework, with better protections for trademarks and clearer protocols for handling imported products, say Ulf Grundmann and Elisabeth Kohoutek at King & Spalding.

  • A Look Ahead At Key UK Intellectual Property Cases

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    Anticipated 2023 U.K. intellectual property decisions include robotics, artificial intelligence, and clean energy matters that have also been heard in the U.S., while other areas to watch include global fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory issues, as well as COVID-19 patent litigation, say Tom Oliver and Claire Robinson at Powell Gilbert.

  • Lessons That May Be Learned From The Demise Of Made.com

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    With Made.com going into administration, companies that may face similar challenges should take on board that the earlier adequate preemptive planning is considered, the more financial and legal options there will be to avoid last minute firefighting and to focus instead on strengthening the business, says Eleni Michaela at Faegre Drinker.

  • Teva Case Aims Europe's Pharma Crackdown At IP Loophole

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    The European Commission's recent allegations against Teva signal not only the EU competition watchdog's continued focus on intellectual property violations in the pharmaceutical sector but also its new enforcement interest in exclusionary disparagement, say Robert Bell and Malgorzata Janiec at Armstrong Teasdale.

  • Determining Whether To Opt Out Of New Unified Patent Court

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    The new United Patent Court, made up of judges from all European Union member states, will cover the new unitary patent and European patents unless the owner chooses to opt out during the transition period, so patent proprietors must consider whether to opt out for each patent family, say Steffen Steininger and Anna-Katharina Friese-Okoro at Hogan Lovells.

  • 10 Things To Know About The Coming EU Unified Patent Court

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    When the Unified Patent Court opens next year, it will represent a paradigm shift for adversarial patent proceedings in Europe, and practitioners should familiarize themselves now with this new, centralized litigation system, say Fabian Koenigbauer at Ice Miller and Thomas Kronberger at Grünecker.

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