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The Court of Appeal in Malaysia in the case of Microsoft Corporation v Yong Wai Hong [2008] 3 MLJ 309, recently overturned the decision of the High Court and granted relief to Microsoft Corporation in the form of a perpetual injunction on a summary judgment application. The High Court's decision, from which this appeal stems from, had in fact disallowed Microsoft's application for a perpetual injunction on the basis that the respondent had raised triable issues in good faith and that a perpetual injunction ought not to be granted summarily.

The Supreme Court of India has directed the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) to hear the Novartis matter on November 3 2008. During the recent patent row involving the cancer drug Glivec (imatinib mesylate) of Swiss pharma major Novartis, the constitution of IPAB came under scrutiny due to its reviews of the Indian patent office's decisions. The Supreme Court ordered the appointment of Dr PC Chakraborty, deputy controller general of patents and designs in the Kolkata office as the new technical member for hearing the Gleevec appeal. This was in response to the concerns expressed by Novartis over the existing member S Chandrasekharan, since he was the patent controller who rejected Novertis' beta patent. The IPAB is the board of appeals for intellectual property matters and consists of a chairman, one judicial member and one technical member.

Japanese giants, Matsushita Electrical Industrial Co. (Matsushita) brought opposition proceedings against the applicants, Pensonic Corporation Sdn Bhd, a Malaysian company that applied to register the mark Pensonic with the device of a letter P (trade mark no. T0503804C) for: "Electrical apparatus and instruments, radio and television receiving apparatus, tape and video recorders and combinations thereof, mechanisms for cassette and cartridge tape recorders, stereophonic sound reproducing apparatus and instruments, aerials, loud speakers, head-phones, microphones, radiogramaphones, sound amplifiers and parts and fittings, irons, electric steam irons, electric dry irons, electric flat irons, calculators; all being goods included in Class 9."

Israel boasts a prolific scientific community. Most Israeli innovations reach global markets by means of sales, licences or strategic cooperation involving non-Israeli entities. In addition to the inquiries relevant to all such transactions, a number of Israeli due diligence questions should be addressed before purchasing or licensing technology developed in Israel.

On September 1 2008 a new Act of Parliament has come into effect in Germany providing a considerable number of new and amended regulations on the enforcement of IP rights.

The Chilean Congress recently approved the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and its associated regulations. Approval of this Treaty is in harmony with the commitments assumed by the state of Chile upon its subscription to the 2002 Association Agreement with the European Union and the 2003 Free Trade Agreement with the United States.

Canadian representatives are involved in what have been termed plurilateral trade agreement talks aimed at the improved enforcement of intellectual property rights.

One of the major novelties introduced by the EPC 2000 is the central limitation proceedings (Articles 105(a), 205(c) and Rules 90-96), according to which the patent owner can request the central limitation of a granted European patent. According to the intention of the EPO, this should be a very quick administrative procedure. From the viewpoint of the national practitioner, the duration of the proceedings are especially interesting with respect to pending national revocation and/or infringement actions.

In 2002, Australia introduced a 12-month grace period for patent filings. The intention of the regulations was to discount the inventor's own disclosures within the 12-month period prior to filing when assessing prior art. It was also intended to reflect the grace period available in other jurisdictions, particularly the United States.

US Magistrate Judge Stephen Crocker has recently taken on a bigger role at the nation's latest patent rocket-docket. Eileen McDermott spoke to him about how the Court will continue to handle the heavy patent caseload minus one judge, as well as what the future holds