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While FICPI and other stakeholders have once again appealed to legislators to reconsider a variety of issues around the envisaged unified EU patent system, most observers have good reason to fear that the proposal, including a unified patent court, will be rushed through under the current Danish EU presidency.

A new dispute resolution proceeding for domain names named Syreli entered into force on November 21 2011. Then, on December 6 2011 the registration of .fr was extended to all persons located in the EU, Norway, Gibraltar, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. New extensions have also been opened:

In Germany, a granted preliminary injunction may be revoked if a change in circumstances occurs after grant. In a recent decision the District Court in Düsseldorf decided on a case where a request for revocation of a preliminary injunction was filed based on the fact that the utility model (the subject of the injunction) had been partially cancelled by the German Patent and Trademark Office (GPTO).

Indian law allows a holder of IP rights, including patents, to prevent the import of infringing products through the mechanism established under the Intellectual Property Rights (Imported goods) Enforcement Rules, 2007, notified under the Customs Act, 1962. As per the Rules, clearance of goods suspected to infringe is suspended and once it is determined that the goods are infringing, they are confiscated, then seized and eventually destroyed or disposed of otherwise than in the normal course of trade.

Malaysia's Patents Act 1983 provides a different set of rules and requirements for the conferment of protection upon minor inventions: utility innovations. An advantage of utility innovations in contrast with regular patents is that they have a lower threshold for patentability.

A recent High Court decision, Interpharma (NZ) Limited v Commissioner of Patents, considered the question of whether a patent amendment after acceptance is open to judicial review.

There is new practice in Norway related to SPCs on combination products following recent Court of Justice decisions in Medeva and Georgetown University.

The District Administrative Court has issued an interesting judgment concerning foreign names registered as trade marks in Poland.

In the case of Gemma Ong aka Maria Teresa Gemma Catacutan v People of the Philippines on November 23 2011, the Supreme Court held that "the defence of denial is unavailing when placed astride the undisputed fact that there was positive identification of the accused". This case began 13 years ago, upon a complaint of infringement of the Marlboro trade mark by the Economic Intelligence and Investigation Bureau (EIIB). Armed with a search warrant, on September 25 1998 the EIIB went to the premises of one Jackson Ong where the accused, supposedly the spouse or common law wife of Jackson Ong, was found. The accused initially refused the EIIB entry but they were eventually able to search the premises and found several boxes containing boxes of fake Marlboro cigarettes.

When selecting a new name and ascertaining whether it is available for use as a trade mark, a company cannot simply disregard third-party uses of confusingly similar marks that are made in connection with non-competitive goods or services. It is a common misperception that a new use of a mark will not infringe a senior use of a confusingly similar mark if the two uses are made in connection with products or services that do not compete with one another.