UK and EU laws state that a design may be asserted in the appearance of the whole or a part of a product. On this basis, designers therefore have the choice of deliberately disclaiming features of the product to which the design is applied and for which they do not wish to seek protection.
Marks & Clerk is delighted to have been recognised by Canadian national newspaper, The Globe and Mail’s Report on Business, as one of Canada’s Best Law Firms - 2022!
The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has continued its efforts to improve examination processing times, and has introduced options for trademark owners to expedite examination.
Canadian copyright law may soon allow copyright holders to obtain “dynamic” site blocking orders, to address infringement of live content (such as broadcasted sports events, concerts, and award shows).
Copyright ownership has hit the spotlight again following a series of lawsuits filed against Disney to seek termination of an assignment of copyright, which could result in Disney losing ownership of the rights to iconic characters like Spider Man, Thor and Iron Man.
March 2021, the General Court of the European Union handed down their judgement on an appeal filed by Lego A/S in respect of Lego’s registered design number 1664368-0006: Lego was successful in defending their registration, overturning an earlier decision by the Board of Appeal at the EUIPO to revoke the design.
According to a recent CNIPA announcement, paper trademark registration certificates will no longer be issued from 1 January 2022 and electronic certificates of registration can be downloaded from CNIPA online database instead.
