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In a series of recent cases the French courts have ruled that freedom of speech can constitute a legitimate defence to trade mark infringement.

? EU: The European Parliament's September 11 vote on the draft Anti-Piracy Directive was rescheduled for November 4 when Janelly Fourtou, the MEP leading the debate on the Directive, failed to produce her final report on the draft.

Seven years on from the opening of the Community Trade Marks Office, the European courts have clarified many of the controversial issues faced by applicants. Pen Hosford, of Marks & Clerk in London, examines the most important cases

Is trade mark use on the part of a defendant a prerequisite to trade mark infringement? We reported in the last issue of Managing Intellectual Property that the answer to this question seemed clear and that "trade mark use" (that is, use to indicate the commercial origin of the goods or services concerned) is not a prerequisite to trade mark infringement.

On May 22 2003 the Law On Amending Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on Intellectual Property Protection was adopted. The new Law came into force on June 25 2003, and was passed to harmonize Ukrainian legislation with the provisions of the TRIPs Agreement. It covers a number of legislative innovations including the amendments introduced into special legislation, that is the Law On Protection of Rights in Trade Marks and Service Marks (the Trade Mark Law); the Law On Protection of Rights in Inventions and Utility Models; and others presented into the Codes of Civil and Commercial Procedure of Ukraine.

In a recent case, Momentum Creations Pte Ltd v Tan Eng Koon t/a De Angeli (2003 1 SLR 342), the Singapore High Court ruled that exclusivity was not a legal requirement to initiate a passing-off action.

The new Intellectual Property Bill, which was presented to Parliament in June 2003, was challenged in the Supreme Court in SC Case No 14/2003. The applications were filed by the Centre for Policy Alternatives and, in Case No SC 16 of 2003, by Dr Kamalika Abeyratne, chairperson of AIDS Coalition in Sri Lanka, and Nihal Fernando. The matter came up before the Supreme Court consisting of the Chief Justice Sarath N Silva and Justices Shirani Bandaranayake and J A N de Silva.

Three international law firms have closed their Hong Kong IP groups already this year. But, despite fundamental changes in the IP market, the mood is not one of doom and gloom. Practitioners are still looking forward to the future with optimism. Ralph Cunningham reports

The exclusive rights of a trade mark proprietor and the interests of competitors and the general public in free trade require a compromise, so that in certain instances third party use of the trade mark cannot be prohibited. Such constellations are inter alia mentioned in Section 23 of the 1994 German Trade Mark Act, which permits the use of a third party's own name or address (number 1), the use of an indication concerning the characteristics or features of the goods or services (number 2) or where such use is necessary to indicate the intended purpose of a product, in particular as an accessory or spare part or a service, insofar as the use is necessary for it (number 3), provided the use is not contrary to the principles of morality.

The Federal Circuit was born on October 1 1982, due in large part to pressure from US patent owners looking for judicial consistency to safeguard their innovations. With the court approaching its 21st anniversary, Sam Mamudi looks at how effectively it has fulfilled its mission