In August 2019, the Costa Rican Trademark Office announced a new independent procedure to request a declaration of notoriety of a trademark, outside the context of any particular opposition or invalidity case. The full name is the Procedure for Declaration of Brand Notoriety,More
Canada: Supreme Court Interprets Scope of Crown Copyright
Keatley Surveying Ltd. v. Teranet Inc., 2019 SCC 43
Background
Section 12 of Canada’s Copyright Act (“Where copyright belongs to Her Majesty”) addresses Crown copyrights owned by the government. It provides that “where any work is,More
Australia: Court Tests Limits of Style Names
Pinnacle Runway Pty Ltd v Triangl Limited [2019] FCA 1662
Rather than use long alphanumeric codes to identify each available product, fashion houses often use style names to assign an identifiable shorthand name to a particular article of clothing.More
Argentina: New Invalidation and Non-Use Cancellation Procedures
We recently discussed amendments to the Argentinean trademark law here. Subsequently, on October 8, 2019, the Argentine National Institute of Industrial Property (INAP) issued Resolution No. 279/2019 and corresponding annexes, which introduce new procedures for invalidation and non-use cancellation actions,More
China and UAE: FEE REDUCTIONS
Brazil: ACCESSION TO THE MADRID PROTOCOL; NEW TRADEMARK PRACTICES
Poland: CHANGES IN TRADEMARK LAW
Certain changes to the Polish Intellectual Property Law came into force on March 16, 2019. The most significant changes were in response to EU Directive 2015/2463 of the European Parliament and of the Counsel of December 16,More
European Union: CLINICAL TRIALS AS GENUINE TRADEMARK USE – TIMING IS EVERYTHING
Viridis Pharmaceutical v. EUIPO, Case No. C-668/17 (July 3, 2019)
Viridis Pharmaceutical Ltd.’s (Viridis) use of BOSWELAN in connection with clinical trials for a drug to treat multiple sclerosis was held to be insufficient evidence of genuine use to defeat a non-use cancellation action against its EUTM registration for pharmaceutical and healthcare products.More
European Union: LOUBOUTIN SUCCESSFULLY DEFENDS AGAINST CANCELLATION OF RED SOLE REGISTRATION
By Joseph A.R. Gerber
Christian Louboutin in May 2019 walked away unscathed from another challenge to his famous Red Sole trademark, this one before the Cancellation Division of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (“EUIPO”). Competitor Van Haren Schoenen (“Van Haren”) lodged a cancellation action against the iconic designer in an attempt to boot the Red Sole off the EU trademark registry.More
China: AMENDMENTS TO TRADEMARK LAW TAKE AIM AT BAD FAITH FILINGS
Earlier this year the Chinese legislature announced that it had approved amendments to the country’s trademark law, effective November 1, 2019. This round of amendments focuses on bad-faith trademark applications and those who file them.
Pursuant to the amendments,More