Insights
Court decisions highlight challenges using copyright to protect designs in Denmark
By AWA | Posted on June 24, 2020
Two eagerly-awaited decisions from the Danish courts serve as a reminder that registered design rights offer greater protection over copyright in cases concerning lookalike products Both designers Ilse Jacobsen with rubber boots and Anne Black with a hanging flower pot, vase and jar with lid stated these products enjoyed copyright protection, but as seen in...
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Tags: copyright, Denmark, design rights, designs, Infringement, marketing
How to fast track patent applications in China through prioritised patent examination
By AWA | Posted on June 24, 2020
The Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) is often used by applicants to expedite patent examinations. In China, an alternative to speed up examinations is the prioritised patent examination. Prioritised patent examination is not a new concept in China. It was first introduced in 2012 and most recently amended in 2017 in the Administrative Measures for Prioritised...
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Tags: china, CNIPA, green technology, new technology, patents, PPH, Priortised Patent Examination
Upcoming amendments to China’s Copyright Law
By Ai-Leen Lim | Posted on June 24, 2020
Long-awaited amendments to China’s Copyright Law introduce punitive damages for the first time, provide greater powers to the authorities when investigating infringement and capture the rapid developments in digital technology First enacted in 1991 and amended in 2001 and then 2010, China’s lawmakers began reviewing the third amendment (Draft) to the Copyright Law on April...
Tags: china, copyright, digital technology, enforcement, Infringement, punitive damages
Brands must take extra caution against counterfeits during Covid-19 pandemic
By Mette Parlev | Posted on June 5, 2020
Enhanced online brand protection and anti-counterfeiting measures are needed due to the current pandemic: as demand from e-commerce consumers increases, so does the market for counterfeits. Background A recent report from EUROPOL, the European Union’s law enforcement agency, provides an overview of how criminals are adapting to profit from the covid-19 pandemic. Findings include that...
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Tags: anti-counterfeiting, Coronavirus, COVID-19, enforcement, EU, Europe, trademarks
Danish outerwear brand Rains wins court battle against Zara
By AWA | Posted on May 28, 2020
This case concerns whether three raincoats produced and marketed by Zara infringed on two raincoats from Rains, the Long Jacket and Parka Coat, under the Danish Copyright Act and the Danish Marketing Act. The Danish Maritime and Commercial Court handed down its judgement on May 15, 2020 between Rains Aps and Zara Denmark A/S and...
Tags: copyright, designs, marketing, Rains, Zara
China becomes top international patent filer
By AWA | Posted on May 20, 2020
China filed 58,990 applications through WIPO’s Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) System last year, ending the US’s stronghold on the top position since the PCT began operations in 1978 by 1,150 applications. The numbers echo a sophisticated and coordinated effort to advance innovation and realise a high-value economy from the Chinese government. This is especially true considering in 1999,...
Tags: BOE, china, Huawei, IPR, Oppo, patents, PCT, Ping An, SPC
Punitive damages case appears in list of top 10 IP cases from China’s Supreme People’s Court
By Ai-Leen Lim | Posted on May 20, 2020
On April 21, 2020, China’s Supreme People’s Court released a list of the top 10 intellectual property law cases of 2019. The cases cover patent (invention and design), trademark, copyright and unfair competition. One of the cases selected involved a US Pilates company where punitive damages were awarded. While punitive damages are well-established in terms...
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Tags: Balanced Body, Infringement, IPR, punitive damages, SPC, statutory damages, trademarks, Yongkang Elina
Clarifying the patentability of medical use inventions in China
By AWA | Posted on May 20, 2020
At the end of 2019, the new Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) emerged. It has gone on to infect millions of people worldwide and so far, claimed the lives of over a quarter of a million people. COVID-19 has disrupted the world economy like never before. At the same time, it has brought unprecedented global attention to disease...
Tags: china, CNIPA, EPO, Gilead, inventions, JPO, medical use, patents, Remdesivir
EPO rules plants and animals exclusively obtained by essentially biological processes not patentable
By AWA | Posted on May 18, 2020
It has been clear that essentially biological processes for the production of plants or animals are explicitly excluded from patentability under Article 53(b) EPC. However, patentability of products of the essentially biological processes, such as plants and animals, has been questioned and repeatedly visited by the Enlarged Board of Appeal in recent years. On 14...
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Tags: animals, biological, Board of Appeal, EPO, interpretation, patents, plants
What patent protection does Gilead’s COVID-19 treatment Remdesivir have?
By Anders Heebøll-Nielsen, Michael Bech Sommer | Posted on April 30, 2020
On 29 April 2020 Gilead announced that its drug Remdesivir has a positive effect in the treatment of COVID-19 from a phase three trial of the drug. The investigation was so successful that for ethical reasons it was “unblinded” – the effect observed was so significant that retaining the group on placebo would prevent those...
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Tags: applications, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Gilead, IPR protection, patents, PCT, Remdesivir
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