News & opinion

With Halloween ‘creeping’ up on us, we’ve rounded up some ‘trick-y’ and ‘sweet’ case law updates to get us in the mood for the upcoming spooky festivities.

In September 2019, it was announced that Israel, Samoa and Vietnam deposited instruments of accession to the international design system at WIPO. Last year, Canada, Belize and San Marino also joined.

On 27 September, yet another country deposited its instrument of accession; Malaysia. This means that Malaysia can be designated in an international trademark registration (IR) as of 27 December 2019.

It’s one of the 1970’s most recognisable guitar riffs, but the opening of Led Zeppelin’s ‘Stairway to Heaven’ is becoming almost as well known for another reason: the accusation of copyright theft by US psychedelic rock band Spirit. 

Pennsylvania State University (‘Penn State’) has filed suit against Florida-based Sports Beer Brewing Company for trademark infringement over its use of the university’s name, brand and sporting mascot.

An application to register Uncle Sam as a figurative trademark has been refused by the USPTO on the grounds of its iconic character and cultural significance.

Commercial success for pharmaceutical companies is highly dependent on the acquisition and enforcement of IP rights. While speed to filing is important in most instances, registering a trademark too early could have a negative impact on validity, as Casper Hemelrijk explains.

Surrealist 60s British music group ‘The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band' is fighting to protect its name and logo after they were registered as a trademark by a third-party media company.

It looks as if the year is going from bad to worse for McDonald’s trademark portfolio. After the fast food chain’s EU registration for ‘BIG MAC’ was cancelled in January, the EUIPO has now partially revoked its EU word mark for ‘MC’. Casper Hemelrijk outlines the ruling.

English football club Sheffield Wednesday has objected to the registration of ‘WAWAW’, an acronym used by fans on social media to signify ‘We’re All Wednesday, Aren’t We’.

Regulation (EU) 2019/933 on Supplementary Protection Certificates (SPCs) entered into force on 1 July 2019. It amended Regulation (EC) No 469/2009 on SPCs by introducing a manufacturing waiver for generics and biosimilars within the EU.

Brazil’s accession to the Madrid System, on 2 October this year, is good news for businesses that operate globally/in the Americas.