Search results for

Entering into a sales agency agreement with an entity which has sales experience or relationships in a particular industry can often be a productive mechanism for a trade mark owner to expand its brand and to meet customers in a foreign country. When drafting an agency agreement, trade mark owners typically insist on a provision stipulating that the laws of a specific jurisdiction will govern in the event of a dispute under the agreement.

A recent patent assignment dispute in Taiwan addressed important issues.

For several months breastfeeding advocacy groups and the Pharmaceutical and Health Care Association of the Philippines (PHAP) have been at loggerheads over the implementation of the Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (RIRR) of Executive Order No 51, known as the Milk Code, which was to take effect on July 7 2006. However, the PHAP filed a petition for certiorari before the Supreme Court (GR No 173034) against Department of Health (DOH) officials, questioning the constitutionality of the RIRR, claiming it was inconsistent with the Milk Code that was issued on October 28 1986. The DOH secured a temporary restraining order enjoining the DOH from implementing the RIRR.

A recent (February 12 2007) judgment of Commercial Court 4 in Barcelona makes an interesting contribution to two issues: imitation and the requirements for imitation to be unlawful.

Irish Stock Exchange Ltd's Application Case R 1604/2006, OHIM (Second Board of Appeal) [2007] ETMR 75 concerned an appeal against the refusal of an application for registration as a Community trade mark of the mark Alternative Securities Market in classes 16 and 36. Despite the fact that the mark had already been registered in Ireland, its registration as a CTM was refused on absolute grounds (Articles 7(1)(b) & (c ), and 7(2), Council Regulation 40/94) because the words lacked distinctive character, and were descriptive.

Ondex Pte Ltd, a local anime distributor in Singapore, filed separate suits against the local Internet Service Providers (ISPs) SingNet, Starhub and Pacific Internet, requiring them to reveal information on the identities of customers alleged to have illegally downloaded popular Japanese anime titles that Odex imported. Odex alleged that a substantial number of illegal downloads had been made in Singapore over the past 10 months, causing their sales to plunge dramatically.

Italian search and description orders are proving highly effective, say Roberto Valenti and Giangiacomo Olivi of DLA Piper

Roberto Miranda spoke to Paola Frassi, professor of industrial property law at the University of Milan, about trade mark law practice, anti-counterfeiting and the impact of the London Agreement on Italy

From Fiona Rotstein and Andrew Christie

Microsoft has failed to overturn a decision in which it was found to have infringed patents belonging to z4 Technologies