Bolt succeed in invalidity action against Beebolt
Based on the grounds of likelihood of confusion, and reputation of an existing mark, the UK IPO has issued a decision confirming victory for the Estonian on-demand transportation platform, Bolt.
The Greenshoots Podcast by Appleyard Lees – episode 26 – Mediation: an alternative to litigation?
Appleyard Lees partners and solicitors Bill Lister and Chris Hoole discuss the benefits of mediation vs. court proceedings, and how mediation in intellectual property cases can differ to non-intellectual property cases.
OhPolly loses design infringement battle against Original Beauty: a crash course in quantifying loss
“Damages inquiries are rare in intellectual property cases”. Fortunately, every now and again, a case is heard on inquiry, providing practitioners and rights holders with a practical refresher on the calculation of damages in UK proceedings.
Successful copyright claim for the Duchess of Sussex
In early 2021, the High Court of England and Wales found that Associated Newspapers Limited, , had infringed copyright belonging to the Duchess of Sussex and unlawfully invaded her privacy. We analyse what led to the decision of infringement in the Duchess’ case.
A sense of déjà vu – M&S v Aldi
Trainee patent attorney Mykhailo Pokrachynskyi explains the latest legal proceedings between M&S and Aldi.
Intellectual property for start-ups in a post-COVID world: part three – managing commercial IP
This series of articles explores the effect of COVID-19-related disruption on start-ups’ management and monetisation of intellectual property (IP), giving practical guidance to start-ups to improve and preserve their position for the future. Part one of our series focuses on strategic considerations for managing patents during this unprecedented time Part two outlines strategies start-ups can […]
Blurred lines: is there still any point to unregistered design rights?
Following several high-profile cases including the famous “Stormtrooper” decision*, it was generally understood that for copyright to subsist in functional, three-dimensional products, they required some degree of artistic merit. In late 2019, the CJEU decision in Cofemel shifted the boundaries, removing any discretionary requirement at Member State level for artistic or aesthetic quality. The result: […]
Recent CJEU decision clears Amazon of trade mark infringement for mere storage of infringing goods on behalf of third parties
Summary of decision In Coty v Amazon, the European Court of Justice (CJEU) found that Amazon does not ‘use’ and therefore does not infringe third-party EU trade mark rights when merely storing goods on behalf of third parties, without knowledge of the infringement. Key facts Coty (a distributor of perfumes) holds a licence for the […]
Twitter rants, leaked documents and legal action
When Haas F1 entered the 2019 Formula 1 season, they brought with them a brand-new title sponsor, with a colour scheme on their livery to match. Rich Energy, a nascent UK energy drinks company with its targets set on Red Bull, signed up to a headline-grabbing sponsorship deal which was set to run until at […]
What fees are payable in the IPEC in relation to key stages of proceedings?
Our article Pressing pause on your intellectual property: Part two – litigation, give practical advice on slowing down IP litigation where COVID-19 disruption has made access to courts or stakeholders difficult, or where logistics make progressing litigation in a normal way, difficult. Every case in the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court (IPEC) will differ for many reasons, […]