Intellectual Property UK

  • December 04, 2025

    Microsoft Loses 'Flip' TM For E-Classrooms Over Non-Use

    Microsoft has failed to hold onto its European Union trademark "Flip" for its online classroom platform, as officials held the company had not used it commercially in the last five years. 

  • December 04, 2025

    BioMarin Loses Hormone Patent In Europe

    A European appeals panel has stripped U.S. biotech firm BioMarin of its patent for a hormone that helps regulate heart and bone health, following a challenge from a Danish rival.

  • December 03, 2025

    Novartis, Swiss Marketer Want Out Of Trade Secrets Suit

    A Swiss marketing company and its founder have joined pharmaceutical giant Novartis in asking a Manhattan federal judge to release them from a hedge fund's suit accusing the founder of brokering business meetings with Novartis in a scheme to steal its strategy, claiming the suit is merely an attempt to punish Novartis for placing money with a competitor.

  • December 03, 2025

    Lucasfilm Asks Court To Toss CGI Peter Cushing Image Claim

    Counsel for Lucasfilm and a Disney subsidiary have asked the Court of Appeal to throw out a claim that it should have sought permission from another production company to reproduce Peter Cushing's likeness in "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story."

  • December 03, 2025

    European Board Denies Siemens Hydrocarbon-Making Patent

    European officials have rejected Siemens' bid to patent a method of making hydrocarbon products, ruling that its claims added details that weren't found in the original application and were therefore unpatentable.

  • December 03, 2025

    Abbott Defends Glucose Monitor Patents In Sinocare Fight

    Abbott has denied Sinocare's claims that its patents are invalid and asserted that the use of several screen features provided benefits to device users, accusing its rival once more of selling glucose monitors that infringe its intellectual property.

  • December 03, 2025

    InterDigital Seeks Arbitration In Amazon Patent Dispute

    InterDigital told a judge Wednesday that the English courts should not issue final license terms in its global patent licensing dispute with Amazon, arguing that the matter should be dealt with by way of arbitration.

  • December 03, 2025

    Lego Accuses UK Retailer Of Selling Knockoff Toys

    Lego has asked a London court to curb a British retailer's model toy sales, accusing the company of selling knockoff sets on two websites that infringe its copyright, trademarks and designs.

  • December 02, 2025

    Jorja Smith's Label Wants Royalties From Viral AI Hit

    The independent music label of British R&B singer Jorja Smith wants the producer of a viral artificial intelligence-generated track to hand over a share of his profits to Smith and her songwriters after copying her vocals, the label claims, writing in an Instagram post, "We cannot allow this to be the new normal."

  • December 02, 2025

    SEP Owner Wins OK To Forge Ahead With Vivo FRAND Claim

    Sun Patent Trust has asked the Unified Patent Court to determine a FRAND rate for its wireless device patents in a claim with Chinese smartphone company Vivo, according to a newly public order from the appeals court.

  • December 02, 2025

    Camper Footwear Brand Wins TM Battle At EUIPO

    Spanish shoe retailer Camper has persuaded European Union officials to block a Chinese company's "NuCamper" trademark application, proving that shoppers could muddle up the two brands.

  • December 02, 2025

    Disney Beats Designer's Bid For 'Mickey Is Free!' TM

    A Norwegian designer has failed to convince European officials that he should be able to sell streetwear stamped with the trademark "Mickey is Free!" — even with a disclaimer saying it had "nada, niente" to do with the Disney character. 

  • December 02, 2025

    US Musicians And Actors Say UK Breached Royalties Treaties

    Trade unions representing U.S. actors and musicians urged a London court Tuesday to reverse secondary legislation that altered U.K. copyright law, saying it had unlawfully breached international treaties governing royalty payments for audio recordings.

  • December 02, 2025

    Gola Trainers Owner Sues Clarks Over Stripe Design

    The owner of the classic Gola trainer has accused Clarks of selling shoes that copy a specific protected stripe logo on its side, which it said was confusing shoppers and leading them to buy the rival footwear. 

  • December 01, 2025

    HP Gets Early Ink Cartridge Injunction At UPC

    American computer giant HP has convinced the Unified Patent Court to bar a Chinese rival from selling ink cartridges that infringe its patents, marking the latest preliminary injunction involving those patents that the court has handed down.

  • December 01, 2025

    Record Label Sues Partner Over £4M Royalty Dispute

    A specialist record label has accused two music promotion companies of failing to pay almost £4 million ($5 million) in license fees and other royalties, asking a London judge to stop the former business partners from further infringing its IP. 

  • December 01, 2025

    Takeda Defends UK Patent Protection For ADHD Drug Elvanse

    Takeda has swung back after a German rival asked a London court to call time on its extended patent protections for the ADHD treatment Elvanse, arguing that its U.K. supplementary protection certificate covering the drug is valid.

  • December 01, 2025

    EU Launches IP Protections For Regional Crafts

    The European Union launched a dedicated system on Monday to protect the names of craft and industrial products whose characteristics can be attributed to their geographic origin, in a longstanding effort to boost intellectual property protections for regionally produced artisanal products. 

  • December 01, 2025

    EU Blocks 'European Basketball League' TM

    A U.S. company has failed to net a "European Basketball League" trademark in the European Union, giving up on its challenge against an earlier ruling that the sign lacks any distinctive character.

  • November 28, 2025

    Regeneron Claims Biocon Drug Mimics Its Patented Medicine

    Regeneron Pharmaceuticals has countersued Biocon to block it from infringing on its patents upholding its medication to treat macular degeneration, denying that the Indian pharmaceutical group's formulation would not infringe on its intellectual property in the U.K.

  • November 28, 2025

    Building Cladding Co. Hits Back At Bid To Nix Fire Safety IP 

    A building facade supplier has asserted that a cladding specialist is infringing its patent and design rights, pointing out that the rival's director had toured its factory years ago and received a demonstration of the products he later copied. 

  • November 28, 2025

    Loft Supplies Co. Takes Aim At Rival's UK Patents

    A loft supplies company has denied infringing a rival's flooring system patents, telling a London court that the U.K. registrations are not valid because they contain nothing inventive.

  • November 28, 2025

    Financial Analysts' Body Suffers Blow In Fight Over 'CEFA' TM

    The European Federation of Financial Analysts Societies has lost its bid to register a trademark for "CEFA EFFAS Certified European Financial Analyst" as a European court ruled that examiners had correctly found it was too similar to an existing sign. 

  • November 28, 2025

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

    This past week in London has seen the National Crime Agency target an Azerbaijan politician and a subsidiary of Withers over a disputed £50 million ($66 million) property portfolio, the eldest son of a British aristocratic family challenge the trustees of their multimillion-pound estate, and a sports lawyer suspected of dishonesty face action by the Solicitors Regulation Authority following his firm's closure.

  • November 28, 2025

    French Clothing Biz Wins 'Sol' TM Battle At UKIPO

    A French clothing company has persuaded U.K. officials to block a British opponent's "Sol Sleep" and "Sol Beach" trademark applications, proving that shoppers could mix up the brand with its earlier "SOL'S" registration.

Expert Analysis

  • Coordinating Patent Strategies Across PTAB And EPO

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    The positions, arguments and prior art raised in U.S. post-grant proceedings at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board may influence European Patent Office oppositions involving counterpart cases. Understanding the procedural similarities and differences between the two jurisdictions is key, says Drew Schulte of Haley Guiliano LLP.

  • New EU Patent Guidelines May Affect Companies' AI Strategy

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    As compared to the European Patent Office’s guidelines for artificial intelligence and machine learning — which take effect on Thursday — the U.S. eligibility framework may prove to be more favorable to innovators, say Jennifer Maisel and Eric Blatt of Rothwell Figg Ernst & Manbeck PC​​​​​​​.

  • Intellectual Property Caught In US-China Trade Crossfire

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    Earlier this year, President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Chinese products as a response to China’s trade practices concerning technology transfer, intellectual property and innovation. The U.S.-Chinese trade war highlights the need to approach investments in China differently, taking a broad view of intellectual assets and looking beyond basic legal protection, says Holly White, a consultant at Rouse & Co.

  • Patent Eligibility Assessments: US Approach Vs. UK Approach

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    Techniques used to address questions of obviousness in the U.K. may prove useful to practitioners addressing questions of patent eligibility in the U.S., say Christopher Carroll and Charles Larsen of White & Case LLP.

  • Surveying The CRISPR Patent War

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    Following this week’s oral argument at the Federal Circuit in University of California v. Broad Institute, there has been a surge of interest in the long-running CRISPR patent dispute. There are battles raging on multiple fronts, particularly in Europe, with several more on deck in the U.S., and maybe even in China, says Michael Stramiello of Paul Hastings LLP.

  • UK Patent Ruling Sharpens Contrast With US Practice

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    The U.K. Court of Appeal's decision last month in Regeneron v. Kymab is significant because it aligns the U.K.’s approach to the assessment of insufficiency with that of the European Patent Office. It also highlights, for U.S. companies, the stricter standard to which patent specifications are subject in Europe, say Edward Kelly and Regina Sam Penti of Ropes & Gray LLP.

  • IP Considerations For UK Open Banking App Developers

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    Since January of this year, consumer-facing banks in the U.K. have been required to make customers' banking data available to authorized third parties in a standardized format. As competition between open banking app developers increases, intellectual property rights will become a key legal tool, say Rajvinder Jagdev and Peter Damerell of Powell Gilbert LLP.

  • The Case For Early Mediation Or Arbitration In IP Disputes

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    Alternative dispute resolution is one of the best ways to resolve disputes involving patents, copyright, trademark, trade secrets and other intellectual property issues. While not every situation lends itself to ADR, it is more accessible than many parties assume, says Jerry Cohen of Burns & Levinson LLP.

  • International Arbitration In 2018: A Year Of Rule Revisions

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    Though still in its relative infancy, 2018 is shaping up to be a year of arbitral institution rule updates. Neil Newing and Ryan Cable of Signature Litigation LLP explore some of the more innovative and trending rule changes expected or predicted this year.

  • A Look At Chemical Supplemental Examination Requests

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    If used strategically, supplemental examination at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office can provide a powerful tool for chemical patent owners to add to their armamentarium of options for Orange Book-listed patents when conducting a due diligence analysis of their patent estate prior to Orange Book listing, say attorneys with Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner LLP.

  • Cloud-Based Patent Claims — And How Providers Can Help

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    Cloud customers may be exposed to liability for open source technologies that are buried deep within their providers’ offerings. In-house legal teams and developers need to be aware of the risk of patent litigation and the extent to which cloud providers can help mitigate these risks, says R. Paul Zeineddin of Zeineddin PLLC.

  • Comparing EU And US Standard-Essential Patent Guidance

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    The European Commission's long-awaited guidance on litigating and licensing standard-essential patents clarifies what conduct may insulate an SEP owner from abuse claims under competition law, in sharp contrast to the U.S., where the Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Justice have declined to adopt any views on the subject, say Edward Kelly and Regina Sam Penti of Ropes & Gray LLP.

  • Strategic Considerations In Selecting Emergency Arbitration

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    In recent years, all of the major arbitral institutions have introduced an emergency arbitration procedure, yet studies suggest that parties rarely avail themselves of emergency arbitration and instead turn to local courts in times of crisis. Attorneys with Kirkland & Ellis LLP explore several considerations when determining where to pursue emergency relief.

  • Strategies For Protecting Biotechnology In Brazil And China

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    Brazil and China have taken important steps to become significant contributors to the future success of the bioeconomy. Understanding options for quickly procuring and challenging patents in Brazil and China can be key for companies looking to expand their bioeconomy investments outside the U.S. and Europe, say attorneys with Sterne Kessler Goldstein & Fox PLLC.

  • How The FTC Has Erred On Innovation Policy Issues

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    Maureen Ohlhausen, the acting chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, recently delivered a sobering attack on the agency, noting that it and other antitrust agencies have “lost sight of core antitrust principles.” From such a highly competent federal official who is also a recognized legal scholar, this critique deserves our full attention, says David Teece, chairman of Berkeley Research Group LLC.

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