Local Insights

Social media-fuelled demand for luxury counterfeits such as the ‘Takealot Tirkin’ is reshaping consumer culture across Africa and raising pressing questions for brands. Haadya Mosafeer of INLEX finds a potential answer in Mauritius’ response

Cwengile Cwele, with oversight from Chyreene Truluck of Spoor & Fisher South Africa, explains how the new process works and the implications for practitioners and rights holders

Pravir Palayathan of INLEX explains Mauritius’ customs-led system for protecting trademarks, regulating authorised importers and exporters, and swiftly seizing counterfeit goods

In a decision published on June 26 2020, the Indonesian Supreme Court affirmed a lower court’s ruling against a celebrity who sought to acquire prior rights to a disputed mark and then cancel a competitor’s trademark. The decision demonstrates some limit on the jurisdiction’s first-to-file position, which has historically been strictly applied and enforced both by courts and by the Indonesian IP Office. The Supreme Court also upheld the cancellation of some of the celebrity’s trademarks due to his previous work for the defendant as a brand ambassador, serving as a cautionary tale to potential bad faith plaintiffs.

Track and trace smartphone applications used in the fight against COVID-19 are representative of a relatively new industry falling between the healthcare, IT, medical devices and pharmaceutical sectors.

Mānuka is the Māori name for the Leptospermum scoparium, a species of flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Mānuka nectar is renowned for producing 'liquid gold', a pure honey possessing unique medicinal and antibacterial qualities.

A Turkish case highlights the importance of Article 138(3) when patent claims are amended during an invalidation action, say Selin Sinem Erciyas, Aysel Korkmaz Yatkın, and Bengü Şen Gürakan of Gün + Partners

Jakob Pade Frederiksen of Inspicos provides a status update on the pending case in the lead-up to oral proceedings before the EPO Enlarged Board of Appeal on May 8 2026

Igor Charles and Fatima Chirazi of INLEX report on the rejection of Decathlon’s design, unfair competition, and parasitism claims over snorkelling masks, confirming a narrow scope of protection where design freedom is constrained

Eduardo Hallak, Juliana Neves, and Gabriela Monteiro of Licks Attorneys explain how Brazilian courts have reshaped divisional patent practice and assess the practical impact of the current framework

María Aurora García of Berken IP examines how Argentine courts are using dynamic injunctions to tackle illegal sports streaming, particularly in the context of major events such as the football World Cup

Brazil is establishing itself as a hub for biological agricultural formulations. Eduardo Hallak, Rafaella Oliveira, and Gislaine Zulli of Licks Attorneys analyse a fast-developing market and a decade of related patent activity

Luis Emilio Moncada of Becerril, Coca & Becerril explains why provisional measures are an increasingly valuable mechanism under Mexican intellectual property law as the country prepares to co-host the football World Cup

Fernanda Villalobos of Becerril, Coca & Becerril explains how Mexican trademark law now allows descriptive signs to acquire protection through market use and consumer recognition

Stephania Cardiel of Becerril, Coca & Becerril examines how recent reforms signal a regional move towards faster, more internationally aligned innovation systems

Raluca Vasilescu of Cabinet M Oproiu considers how patent applicants may need to adapt their approaches as a result of widespread political and economic uncertainty

Jean-Paul Wagner and Tiago Leal of Ipsilon Luxembourg explore recent judicial advancements and global trends shaping the future of AI innovation, and how to turn informed intellectual property strategies into engines of commercial success

Raluca Vasilescu of Cabinet M Oproiu finds that AI assistants are not very helpful for building and enforcing patent strategies – and explains why