Search results for

Elle is a familiar trade mark, perhaps even to those who do not closely follow fashion trends. It has been owned by Hachette Filipacchi Presse since 1987 (trade mark certificate 83647 in respect of goods in Class 16 ICGS – see image).

In Taiwan, a divisional application can be filed any time during the pendency of the parent application. However, unlike other countries where the deadline for filing divisional/continuation applications is before grant or abandonment of the parent application, the window for filing a divisional application in Taiwan is linked to the date of the applicant's receipt of the final office action or notice of allowance and varies with the stage of examination.

As part of our series of articles on the Unitary Patent and UPC, Adrian Tombling and Andrea Fleuchaus weigh up the factors to be considered when filing applications under the new system, and look at some hypothetical case studies

The question whether or not the subject matter of a claim is inventive, is routinely determined by the so-called problem-and-solution approach (PSA) before the European Patent Office. European case law further teaches that the discovery of an unrecognised problem may give rise to patentable subject matter even in the case where the claimed solution is retrospectively trivial and in itself obvious (see T 2/83). However, the absence of a hint that there might be a problem does not provide proof for the existence of an unrecognised problem (T 252/10).

The Swiss Federal Patent Court has allowed a facilitated recovery of illicit profits in favour of the owner of an infringed patent in a recent judgement.

If a hashtag is functioning as a trade mark, should you seek to register it? And what can you do if someone else is using your mark in a hashtag?

Malaysia's IP Marketplace was launched by the Malaysian Intellectual Property Office (MyIPO) on June 27 2014. Similar to the IP Marketplace in Brussels, the objective of the Malaysian IP Marketplace is to create a portal that allows IP owners to put their respective trade marks, copyright, patents and industrial designs up for sale or licensing. This allows both investors and entrepreneurs alike to begin to treat their IPRs as tangible assets, improve access to financing or create a portal for them to connect with potential partners for innovation projects.

Singapore’s new Copyright Law provides a means for rights holders to secure an order to block access to flagrantly infringing websites. Yew Kuin Cheah and Malobika Banerji explain how it works and how it compares to site-blocking systems in other jurisdictions

The Philippines' Supreme Court is not a trier of facts and as a general rule it defers to the appreciation and evaluation of the evidence by the lower court. This rule, however, is not absolute and admits of exceptions such as in the following instances: (i) when the factual findings of the Court of Appeals and the trial court are contradictory, (ii) when the conclusion is a finding grounded entirely on speculation, surmises, or conjectures, (iii) when the inference made by the Court of Appeals from its finding of facts is manifestly mistaken, absurd or impossible, (iv) when there is a grave abuse of discretion in the appreciation of facts, (v) when the Appellate Court, in making its findings, went beyond the issues of the case and such findings are contrary to the admissions of both appellant and appellee, (vi) when the judgment of the Court of Appeals is premised on a misapprehension of facts, (vii) when the Court of Appeals failed to notice certain relevant facts which if properly considered would justify a different conclusion, (viii) when the findings of fact are themselves conflicting; (ix) when the findings of fact are conclusions without citation of the specific evidence on which they are based, and (x) when the findings of fact of the Court of Appeals are premised on the absence of evidence but such findings are contradicted by the evidence on record.

So-called IP Box regimes offering tax advantages are popular with both governments and businesses. But, as Afzana Anwer reports, the OECD and EU Commission are putting them under threat