31st Oct 2019
Last week the Supreme Court ruled that an inventor, Professor Shanks, was entitled to compensation for an invention he devised while employed by Unilever in the 1980s. Such successful decisions are extremely rare (there is only one other case, Kelly and Chiu), and this is the first time that the Supreme Court has considered this corner of the Patents Act.The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the rulings of the lower courts and award £2m to Professor Shanks is a landmark decision that could pave the way for further successful claims.
30th Oct 2019
This is the first blog in a new regular series summarising some of the new case law concerning registered Community designs. This blog covers invalidity decisions issued by the EUIPO during the third quarter of 2019, from 1 July 2019 to 30 September 2019.
23rd Oct 2019
Brewing giant Carlsberg recently unveiled two prototypes for a “paper beer bottle”, as part of the firm’s Together Towards Zero environmental initiative.
21st Oct 2019
Electroceuticals are therapeutic agents that help to heal the body with minute pulses of electricity. Treating the human body with electricity has a chequered history, but the understanding that the nervous system can be stimulated by electricity impulses is attributed to the experiments of Galvani in the late 18th century.
14th Oct 2019
On Saturday 12 October 2019, Eliud Kipchoge became the first person ever to run the marathon distance in under two hours, when he completed the INEOS 1:59 Challenge in a staggering 1:59:40. Gavin Dundas investigates the technology that helped him to achieve this.
10th Oct 2019
Last month, as the fashion spotlight returned to London for another London Fashion Week (LFW), there was a strong focus on positive, sustainable fashion. During a visit to the sustainability exhibitions at LFW, we saw many inspiring examples of designers who are innovating to reduce the environmental impact of the fashion industry. In some cases, this is through the recycling or upcycling of waste materials whilst in other cases, it is through the development of new, more sustainable and biodegradable materials. Either way, the fashion world is turning to science and nature to find solutions.
9th Oct 2019
In order for a Registered Community Design to be valid, the design shown in the RCD must be novel over all prior designs that have been made available to the public before the earliest filing date of the RCD application. However, there are cases where it can be commercially advantageous to invalidate a Registered Community Deign – so how can you go about this?
8th Oct 2019
Hot off their memorable 2-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League Final this summer, Liverpool FC thought it wise to bolster their brand protection to stop others from also benefiting from their success by selling imitation products. And rightly so, but it seems Liverpool FC might have been a little too ambitious in what they thought they could protect as their ‘brand’.