Intellectual Property UK

  • April 02, 2026

    Illumina's 'Obvious Mistake' Not Enough To Chuck UPC Claim

    Element Biosciences failed to convince judges at the Lisbon Local Division of the Unified Patent Court to dismiss rival Illumina's infringement action over errors it argued crippled the claim.

  • April 02, 2026

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

    The past week in London has seen data giant Sportrader face action from software company Altenar over alleged market abuse, Mexican billionaire Ricardo Pliego sue a man who allegedly defrauded him out of $415 million, and Warner Bros. bring a copyright claim against a YouTuber who leaked set footage of the upcoming Harry Potter series. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K. 

  • April 02, 2026

    Sinocare Can't Scrap Abbott's Glucose Monitor Ban At UPC

    U.S. pharmaceutical company Abbott Laboratories has convinced appellate judges at the Unified Patent Court to uphold its preliminary injunction against Sinocare and its European distributor, marking the latest in Abbott's crackdown on rival glucose monitor makers.

  • April 02, 2026

    Powell Gilbert Promotes IP Barrister To Partnership

    Powell Gilbert LLP has announced the promotion of an intellectual property barrister to its partnership, elevating the lawyer after more than 10 years at the London-based law firm.

  • April 02, 2026

    Zara Owner Blocks 'Zayaa' TM Applications In European Union

    Zara owner Inditex SA has persuaded European Union officials to reject a pair of "Zayaa" trademark applications as it demonstrated that the brand could confuse shoppers because of its similarity to the "Zara" trademark.

  • April 01, 2026

    Emotional Perception AI Patent Stumbles At UKIPO Do-Over

    Emotional Perception's AI invention still does not qualify for patent protection, according to an early report from the U.K.'s Intellectual Property Office reconsidering whether to grant patent protections after the company's landmark win at the Supreme Court.

  • April 01, 2026

    Chopin Institute Strikes Sour Note For Distillers' 'Chopin' TM

    The Fryderyk Chopin Institute in Warsaw has successfully blocked a distillery from registering the trademark "Chopin" for alcohol and soft drinks, convincing European Union officials that the public would confuse it with the Polish 19th-century composer.

  • April 01, 2026

    IP Office Launches New Digital Patent Services

    The U.K.'s Intellectual Property Office launched new digital services Wednesday to apply for, manage or renew patents, marking the latest step in the office's ongoing "One IPO" transformation plan.

  • April 01, 2026

    Chemical Co. Wins Second Shot At Gas Purification Patent Bid

    Industrial gases company Praxair Technology Inc. has won a second shot at patenting a system for gas pre-purification, as a European appeals panel found the company had sufficiently clarified what its application related to.

  • April 01, 2026

    DLA Piper's London MP To Join Eversheds Sutherland

    Eversheds Sutherland said Wednesday that it has hired the managing partner of DLA Piper's office in London and another lawyer from the firm to boost its services to clients in intellectual property disputes.

  • April 01, 2026

    Banksy Wins Costs After Art Biz Drops £1.4M Libel Claim

    A London court said Wednesday that Banksy and his licensing company can recover the money they spent defending themselves against a street art retailer's £1.4 million ($1.9 million) libel claim that it later dropped.

  • March 31, 2026

    Microsoft Facing UK Biz Software Probe After Cloud Fixes

    Emboldened by changes Microsoft and Amazon agreed to make changes to their cloud services, Britain's competition enforcer on Tuesday said it has now launched an investigation into Microsoft's business software over concerns about its licensing practices and the integration of artificial intelligence.

  • March 31, 2026

    L'Oréal Beats Henkel's Appeal To Void Hairstyling Patent

    A European appeals panel has rejected Henkel's attempt to quash L'Oréal's hairstyling patent, ruling in a decision published Tuesday that the product is inventive enough to merit protection.

  • March 31, 2026

    Glaxo Wins Appeal Against Pfizer Inhaler Dose Patent

    Glaxo Group has persuaded European officials to revoke Pfizer's patent covering a dose-counting device for inhalers, as an appeals board found the design was not new because earlier devices already included similar features used to hold and dispense doses of medication. 

  • March 31, 2026

    Bruschetta Marks Too Different To Confuse, EUIPO Says

    A Bulgarian-based food production company can't stop a baking business from registering its trademark for bruschetta over its alleged similarities with an earlier "Bruschette" mark, as a European office concluded that there is no likelihood of the public confusing the two.

  • March 31, 2026

    Nestlé Loses Bid To Patent Swallowing Disorder Formula

    Nestlé has lost its attempt to patent a formula for treating swallowing disorders, with European appellate officials ruling that the company failed to explain how the formula could be put into practice. 

  • March 31, 2026

    'Bezos' TM Bid Sunk Over Bad-Faith Link To Amazon CEO

    Intellectual property officials in Britain have invalidated a software company's bid to trademark "Bezos," finding that it was seeking to capitalize on the reputation of Jeff Bezos, chief executive of Amazon.

  • March 30, 2026

    Squire Patton Appoints Andrew Wilkinson As European Chief

    Squire Patton Boggs LLP on Tuesday named a senior commercial lawyer in its London office as European managing partner for the next three years.

  • March 30, 2026

    Dior Wins Fight To Block Chinese 'Hydior' Perfume Bottle TM

    Dior has won its battle to nix a Chinese perfume bottle seller's "Hydior" brand, with a European intellectual property authority concluding the mark took unfair advantage of Dior's fame.

  • March 30, 2026

    L'Oreal Blocks Chinese Co.'s 'Tressora' TM Bid At EUIPO

    L'Oréal has blocked a trademark application by Chinese company "Tressora" after the French cosmetics giant proved that consumers in the European Union could confuse the mark with the "Trésor" perfumes it sells through its Lancôme subsidiary.

  • March 30, 2026

    Formula One Loses EU TMs Over 2 Concept Logos

    Formula One has lost two European Union trademarks that covered concept logos after an individual based in Germany argued that the motorsport series has not put the signs to proper use.

  • March 30, 2026

    Walmart Bags Win Against Italian Grocer's 'WeMart' TM

    Walmart has blocked an Italian grocer from bagging the trademark "WeMart," as European Union officials found that consumers are likely to confuse the name with the retail giant's own branding.

  • March 30, 2026

    OpenAI Blocks 'CallGPT' TM In UK Over ChatGPT Confusion

    OpenAI has stopped a rival artificial intelligence company securing a "CallGPT" trademark in the U.K., proving that its similarity to "ChatGPT" could cause confusion among consumers.

  • March 27, 2026

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

    The past week in London has seen Apple hit back at a tech company's wireless charging patent claim, a flurry of businesses bring COVID-19 pandemic insurance claims as a key deadline draws closer and Ipulse Partners LLP file a claim against a luxury yacht company it represented in a trademark dispute. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • March 27, 2026

    Estée Lauder TM Fight Shows Pitfalls Of Eponymous Brands

    Celebrities looking to cash out by selling their own-name brands are effectively handing over the rights to the use of their names for marketing, and could potentially scupper any future ventures, experts say.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • 7 Key Takeaways For Litigating Willful Patent Infringement

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    Brian Nolan and Manuel Velez at Mayer Brown explore the impact of the Federal Circuit's 2021 SRI International v. Cisco Systems decision, and six other areas recent parties have focused on when litigating willful infringement in the latest case law.

  • Trademark Ruling Brings Clarity To Product Defect Liability

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    The recent Court of Justice of the EU ruling in Fennia v. Philips, its first concerning the trademark aspect of producer liability in Article 3(1) of Directive 85/374, brings greater clarity to the question of compensation in the event of a claim for defective products, say Radboud Ribbert and Thomas van Weeren at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Appointments Shape EU Unified Patent Court Before Launch

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    A series of judiciary appointments at the EU Unified Patent Court help put the court on track for its April opening, while also reflecting a patent-friendly enforcement system, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • 5 Considerations In Preparing For EU's New Patent System

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    With the upcoming implementation of the unitary patent and Unified Patent Court, Europe gets closer to its long-term goal of one EU patent that can be enforced in one court, and non-EU patent owners and applicants will have strategic decisions to make, say Fabian Koenigbauer at Ice Miller and Thomas Kronberger at Grünecker.

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