Local Insights

Pravir Palayathan of INLEX explains how the ruling strengthens protection for well-known marks and clarifies parasitism and unfair competition in disputes

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

Ranjan Narula of RNA, Technology and IP Attorneys examines the AI copyright dispute of ANI v OpenAI, and whether a compulsory licensing framework could reconcile innovation objectives with the rights and commercial interests of creators

Ranjan Narula and Abhishek Nangia of RNA, Technology and IP Attorneys explain how the ruling clarifies the limits on the use of personal names in pharmaceutical trademarks

Min Son of Hanol IP & Law outlines the new system’s key mechanisms and implications for evidence gathering in civil litigation, with a particular focus on technology-related disputes

Paris will welcome the summer Olympic Games in 2024. This is a huge challenge for the Organising Committee.

An example of an international trade mark that Austria considered for registration is Access the Inaccessible for goods and services all connected to mountaineering, climbing and work at height. This English language word mark had, among others, a designation for the UK and for Austria. In the UK, the trade mark was finally registered in spite of some difficulties. The Austrian Patent Office and the appellate court did not find it relevant that the mark was approved in the UK. Registration in a foreign country, even in a country where the relevant language is the official language spoken by the whole population, can never be binding for Austria. The reasons behind this are not only formal legal reasons (for example, territoriality), but also that the English authorities examine the trade mark from the viewpoint of English consumers while the Austrian authorities examine the same trade mark from the point of view of Austrian consumers. These perspectives might well be different since the understanding of the meaning of the foreign words might not be identical to that in a foreign country.

The question of the protection of spare parts by designs has always been controversial.

Eduardo Hallak, Rafaella Oliveira, and Laís Souza of Licks Attorneys explain how the provision operates in practice, highlighting evidential hurdles and best practices for patent applicants

Emilio Berkenwald of Berken IP says that although the move potentially eases prosecution, several issues – particularly concerning second medical use claims – remain

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

Soledad Betanzos-Lara of Becerril, Coca & Becerril explains how Mexico’s pharmaceutical and biotech patentability criteria are being reshaped by evolving examination practice

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

Raluca Vasilescu of Cabinet M Oproiu considers how the use of AI assistants may influence clients’ general expectations regarding patent attorneys’ work

An outdated and fragmented framework is creating growing operational risk amid heightened geopolitical tension and accelerating dual-use innovation, says Dirk Pieters of IPSILON Belgium

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