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Copycats got the cream?
One of the biggest IP issues faced by rights owners in trying to protect their brand (and their market share) is “copycat” products. The latter deliberately avoid copying any third party registered...
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Battle of the bubbles – Cristal champagne v Cristalino cava
The High Court in England has held that the sale of “Cristalino” cava in the UK was an infringement of the CRISTAL trade mark owned by Champagne Louis Roederer (CLR). Cristal champagne can cost...
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Social Media – #trademarkingthehashtag
With the rise of using social media for brand-recognition and brand-promotion purposes, many clients wonder if a logo or slogan that starts with or includes a # can be trademark-protected. Many...
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Trust and the trade mark system – how far can that trust go?
The National Trust for Scotland, best known for its ownership of a large number of historically significant buildings and land – very much tangible property – is now expanding its portfolio in the...
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Lord Lyon 1 – 0 Ayr United?
Ayr United Football Club has been threatened with criminal prosecution over the design of its club badge. Reports (see here) suggest that a mischievous rival fan referred the matter to the Court of the...
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Merry Christmas and an IP New Year – Our Predictions for 2016
As we welcome in the New Year, Gill Grassie’s focus turns to the key IP issues of 2016… Unitary Patent Opt-Outs? Oil and gas, biotech sector and other IP rich businesses will start to wake up to time...
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Chocolate wars – has Cadbury broken Kit Kat?
Today the English High Court issued its decision in the long running dispute between Nestle and Cadbury about Nestle’s trade mark application for the 3D shape of the 4-finger Kit Kat chocolate bar. Mr...
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Intellectual property insurance – protect your key assets
For many businesses intellectual property assets (IP) created through innovation and hard work are the most valuable ones, allowing them to stay ahead of competitors and be able to charge premium...
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A Fair Result?
A recent newspaper story has highlighted the merits of resolving IP disputes without resorting to litigation, where issues of reputation are at stake. Fashion giant Chanel has apologised to Fair Isle...
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Loss of trade mark rights by default?
Owners of registered community trade marks (CTMs) filed before 22 June 2012 may soon lose the full scope of coverage that they thought they had in terms of types of goods and services covered by their...
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