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There is no international exhaustion in Germany. But the law on parallel imports is complicated and remains controversial. Johann Pitz examines how the courts have treated patent, trade mark and other disputes

In three crucial areas, the UK is under pressure to adapt its traditional trade mark practice to European standards. Lee Curtis argues that such harmonization is a culmination of the changes introduced in the 1994 Trade Marks Act

Author: Sophia Tickell, Senior policy adviser, Oxfam

Uexkull & Stolberg, Hamburg

Ukraine faces US sanctions The US is ready to take punitive action against Ukraine, if the eastern European country does not clamp down on copyright pirates immediately.

A district judge in the US has given the go-ahead to bakers, chefs and restaurants to make biscuits with familiar seasonal designs.

Copyright piracy remains the biggest headache for rights owners in the Asia-Pacific region. But governments are showing an increasing willingness to crack down. Tabitha Parker reports

It will soon become easier for foreign companies to obtain domain names in Brazil. The Brazilian Internet Administration Committee is about to change its policy which requires a local presence to register a domain name in the country.

AUSTRALIA: The Australian government is due to announce that the country will accede to the Madrid Protocol in March 2001. The Protocol will then be implemented in June or July 2001. Submissions were tabled in Parliament in October 2000, and a decision is due before the end of February. Once the Protocol is implemented, both international and domestic applications will have a first report published within 18 months. The Trade Mark Office is now recruiting more examiners to improve its service. COSTA RICA: The Legislative Assembly has adopted eight laws relating to intellectual property, including laws on enforcement of IP rights, trade marks, copyright, layout designs and integrated circuits and approval of the two WIPO Copyright treaties of December 1999, as well as the PCT. COLOMBIA: The Patent Cooperation Treaty came into effect in Colombia on February 28. Consequently, any PCT applications filed after that date can include Colombia (code CO) as a designation. KOREA: The Trade Mark Law has been amended and will come into effect on July 1 2001. The law includes amendments to join the Madrid Protocol. Korea is likely to ratify the Protocol by the early 2002. SPAIN: A new law on Civil Procedure came into force on January 8 2001. It aims to make cases more efficient and rapid, and covers intellectual property and unfair competition actions, but does not supersede the Patent Law. The new law governs matters such as evidence, witnesses, documentation and litigation procedure. TAIWAN: The Legislative Yuan is considering amendments to the Trade Mark Law in preparation for joining the World Trade Organization. The new law will be compatible with the Law of Administrative Proceedings; substantive examination of trade marks will be abolished; and border control measures will be introduced. The amendments should be enacted before the end of this year.

Eastern Europe is an unfortunate bridge between pirates to the east and markets to the west. Tabitha Parker finds that this is making enforcement difficult