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I've recently qualified as a lawyer. What can I do to maximise my chances of getting a good job in IP when the economy picks up?

Eileen McDermott provides an insider's guide to the recruitment process

For applications filed after July 1 2004, The Singapore Patent Act provides a number of options for an applicant to obtain grant at 42 months from priority date under a fast-track system or at 60 months from priority date under a slow-track system. A decision to switch from a default fast track to the slow track must be done by requesting a block extension before 39 months have elapsed from the priority date.

The monarchy was overturned in Russia in 1917 and for many years there was no reason for mentioning the word other than to compare the beauty of socialism with atrocities of Czarism. Now that the image of socialism has somewhat tarnished, Czarism-related issues have surfaced again though from a different angle – a trade mark conflict.

The EPC entered into force for Norway on January 1 2008. Hence Norway is included among the designated states in European patent applications filed on or after that date. The legal framework has continuously been revised to harmonise with the EPC, thus only minor revisions to the legal framework were necessary upon entry. However, one addition to the Patent Acts that was effective by the date of accession is worth a discussion: namely third parties' right to request an administrative review before the Norwegian Industrial Property Office (NIPO).

On June 6 2009, the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) came into force in Peru. As a result, there are now three ways for obtaining protection for an invention: 1) the national application or direct application, 2) the application under the Paris Convention and 3) the application under the PCT system.

The Trade Marks (International Treaties and Enforcement) Amendment Bill is currently before Select Committee in New Zealand. The Bill deals with the proposed accession by New Zealand to the Madrid Protocol, the Nice Agreement and the Singapore Treaty among other things.

Mexico is closer than it ever has been in history to granting compulsory licences due to a national emergency.

Due to the recent debates over the rights of IP owners and public discontent, the Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia (MyIPO) has reviewed the Intellectual Property Laws of Malaysia and will soon be implementing amendments to resolve matters. The review and amendments will affect the Copyright Act, Trade Marks Act, Patents Act and Industrial Design Act as well as the Layout Design of Integrated Circuits Act and the Geographical Indication Act. Major amendments will include:

The report of the Technical Expert Group on Patent Law Issues, led by RA Mashelkar, was resubmitted to the Union Ministry for Trade and Commerce in March 2009. It was first submitted in December 2006 and was withdrawn for review owing to some technical inaccuracies in the Report.