Our December 19, 2019, newsletter reported Myanmar’s “soft launch” of new trademark applications, which at the time was expected to commence on December 20, 2019. The new confirmed start date is now October 1, 2020. As noted in our earlier article,More
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board: Title of Single Book Capable of Trademark Significance
By Julia Belagorudsky
Shannon DeVivo v. Celeste Ortiz, ___ U.S.P.Q. 2d. ____(T.T.A.B., March 11, 2020)
The title of a single book cannot be registered as a trademark in the United States, but a March 11, 2020, precedential decision of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board holds that other uses of the title,More
Trinidad and Tobago: New Trademark Laws
A modern trademark regime has come into force in Trinidad and Tobago with the implementation of The Trademarks Act of 2015. The new Act repeals the prior Trademark Act, which had been in effect for over six decades since 1955.More
Romania: New Trademark Law Introduces Sweeping Amendments to Important Provisions
By Sahil Yadav
Romania substantially amended its trademark legislation via Law 112/2020 which entered into force on July 13, 2020. Amendments to the Implementing Regulations are expected in September 2020. The new law was enacted to implement the EU trademarks Directive 2015/2436 and make it a part of Romanian law by amending and supplementing the older Law 84/1998.More
Mexico: New Law on the Protection of Industrial Property
On July 1, 2020, the new Federal Law on the Protection of Industrial Property (“FLPIP”) was published in the Mexican Official Gazette. The FLPIP contains important changes to laws governing intellectual property in Mexico, which were made to comply with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (“USMCA”) (in Mexico officially known as T-MEC,More
Mexico: Accession to the Hague System
On June 6, 2020, Mexico acceded to the Hague System for the International Registration of Industrial Designs, governed by the Hague Agreement. Under the Hague Agreement, industrial designs protect ornamental aspects of an object. However, each country has its own legislation for the protection of industrial designs.More
Germany: Federal Court Confirms Respondents Should be Heard in Preliminary Injunction Requests
Gewerkschaft der Polizei – Bundespolizei v. Deutsche Polizeigewerkschaft (case no. 1 BvR 1246/20)
Germany is known as a jurisdiction where ex parte preliminary injunctions are relatively easy to obtain. But in a June 3,More
Supreme Court of the United States: Defense Preclusion Must “Slim-Fit” into Either Collateral Estoppel or Res Judicata
Lucky Brand Dungarees, Inc. v. Marcel Fashions Grp., Inc., __ U.S.__, 140 S. Ct. 1589 (2020)
The Supreme Court of the United States—in the context of a two-decade-long trademark dispute between clothing brand Marcel Fashions dba Get Lucky and jean maker Lucky Brand—ruled that the traditional theories of claim preclusion could be extended to bar a defendant from asserting defenses in a later suit that were not raised or fully litigated in an earlier suit. More
Supreme Court of the United States: Categorical Rule Against Registration of “Generic.com” Trademarks Rejected
By Allison Strickland Ricketts
United States Patent and Trademark Office v. Booking.com B.V., 591 U.S. ___ (2020)
In United States Patent and Trademark Office v. Booking.com B.V., 591 U.S.More
England and Wales: Use of Trademarks as Search Term Keywords
Cosmetic Warriors Ltd & Lush Limited v. Amazon.co.uk Ltd & Amazon EU SARL [2014] EWHC 181 (Ch) (10 February 2014)
In February 2014, the High Court of England and Wales issued a ruling which provides some key guidance on permissible Google AdWords usage and usage of trademarks as search terms more generally.More