Firm

On August 28 2020, the Chinese Supreme People's Court (SPC) granted the very first anti-suit injunction in the standard essential patent (SEP) royalty dispute case of Huawei v Conversant, which enjoined Conversant Wireless Licensing (Conversant) from seeking enforcement of the Dusseldorf regional court's injunction ruling against Huawei Technologies (Huawei). This case thus opened the door for Chinese courts to issue anti-suit injunctions (ASIs).

In the present case (X ZR 14/20), the German Federal Court of Justice again dealt with the question to what extent a third party who is not party to the nullity proceedings should be granted access to the files of the nullity proceedings.

One of the most radical changes introduced by the new Greek Trademark Law, effective since March 20 2020, is that the decisions of the Trademarks Administrative Commission handed down in cancellation action proceedings, either on grounds of invalidity or non-use, can be appealed before the specialised IP Single Bench Court of First Instance in Athens. Under the previous law, it was the Administrative Court of First Instance in Athens that ruled on appeal in these cases.

The Working Statement which patentees need to file every year continues to be a controversial subject. The frequent changes in the forms and varying stands of the patent office have added to the confusion.

In the midst of a pandemic that has disrupted economic activity so much so that Indonesia recently entered its first recession in over two decades, a proposed law on job creation brought thousands of protesters out to Jakarta's now almost deserted streets. The law weakens worker and environmental protections in the name of increasing business ease and underwent a somewhat unconventional and confusing path to implementation (there were four separate final drafts circulating at one point with differences of hundreds of pages). As a result, the law has been controversial from beginning to end. In its final form, it is over 1,100 pages long and amends approximately 75 separate laws, packaged together as the Job Creation Law No. 11 of Year 2020 or just the Omnibus Bill.

A recent trademark decision by the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPONZ) reveals the importance of submitting reliable and probative evidence in invalidation proceedings, even when the invalidation proceedings are undefended by the trademark owner.