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They have a saying in the north of England, where IP lawyer Anthony Gold plies his trade: "Where there's muck, there's brass."

The so-called Belgian torpedo action has become a popular defence to a cross-border patent action. But three recent cases threaten to undermine its effectiveness. Johann Pitz reports

Claims drafted overseas and filed in Australia are often accepted by the Australian Patent Office without being adapted to local laws. In particular, claims that have been examined and accepted by European or US Patent Offices are often forwarded to Australian patent attorneys for submission as is, or with perhaps with only minor modifications. This is especially the case with modified examination, where an Australian patent may be granted on the basis of a patent granted in the United States, a European convention country, Canada or New Zealand, provided it uses exactly the same wording as the granted patent. This can lead to problems during litigation.

Trade marks have a special economic importance, with their ability to attract and to keep customers, and are one of the major elements in companies´ strategies.

Trinidad and Tobago is a more attractive litigation forum than it first appears. Brien de Gannes, of JD Sellier & Company in Port of Spain, provides an insight into resolving trade mark disputes in the country

With the creation of an Intellectual Property Prosecution Office, as well as the substitution of the inquisitive criminal system, (in substitution of the accusatory system), Venezuela's judicial branch has expanded its range in protecting patentees from patent infringement.

According to the Benelux Trade Marks Act, the owner of a trade mark can in principle not prohibit the use of his trade mark in respect of goods that have been put into circulation within the European Economic Area either by himself or with his permission. (exhaustion principle). This means that in principle the owner of a trade mark right cannot invoke this exclusive title in respect of the further trade in goods originating from him. The Benelux Court of Justice has recently explained the exhaustion principle in more detail in its Kipling/GB Unie judgment (The Benelux Court of Justice, December 6 2000).

James B Lumenta, of Amroos & Partners in Jakarta, explains how improvements to the Trade Mark Law make it easier to protect rights in Indonesia

Ella Cheong & G Mirandah provide an overview of three important trade mark cases involving foreign owners during 1999

In April and May 2000, the Mexican Federal Administrative Proceedings Law was amended on a supplementary basis. The changes meant that standards for the administrative proceedings of the law became applicable to all actions filed before the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (the IMPI). These included trade mark registration, granting of patents, nullity and infringement actions.