Last year, a new role was created within the Informals – Welfare Officer. The predominant driving force behind creating the role was the charity Jonathan’s Voice – a charity founded in 2017 in memory of Patent Attorney Jonathan McCartney, who tragically took his own life that year.
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A highlight of the networking year for a life science trainee patent attorney based in Manchester is the Bionow awards dinner usually held in December.
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Every exam is stressful. I don’t believe (or rather, I envy) anyone who says otherwise.
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As provided in the recent UK budget announcement, the UK corporation tax rate is set to rise from 19 to 25 percent from 1 April 2023. As a result, companies should now be thinking about whether they can make use of the tax relief provided by the Patent Box scheme.
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It is possible to patent computer-implemented inventions at the European Patent Office (EPO). In particular, it is possible to patent computer-implemented inventions (CIIs) which function in the real-world.
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Updated Examination Guidelines published by the EPO in March 2021 include stricter requirements for making a patent description consistent with amended claims. We discuss the knock-on effect this new approach may have in subsequent patent disputes.
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Indian patent law requires all patentees to file an annual Statement of Working, by means of a Form 27. This Statement sets out the extent to which the patented invention has been worked (or not) on a commercial scale in India.
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In a case of British “David” v. US “Goliath”, Ironburg v. Valve demonstrates the value for UK based companies to pursue a global patent strategy to protect their innovation overseas, particularly those in the gaming industry for which the US is a major market.
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Appleyard Lees acted for the operator of an ecommerce website which successfully defended a High Court claim for trade mark infringement brought by its international suppliers, in one of the first trials held in the Intellectual Property & Enterprise Court remotely during the Coronavirus pandemic. The client recovered its legal costs in full up to the IPEC costs cap.
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In one of the last IP rulings before Brexit, the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court (the IPEC) recently handed down its judgment in Rothy’s Inc v Giesswein Walkwaren AG [2020] EWHC 3391 (IPEC) finding that Rothy’s Inc’s (the claimant) Registered Community Design (RCD) in relation to a shoe depicting a Pointed Loafer was valid and infringed by Giesswein Walkwaren AG (the defendant).
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The revised Rules of Procedure of the Boards of Appeal (RPBA 2020) came into force on 1 January 2020. One of the revised rules covered ‘remittal’ – the practice of a Board of Appeal sending the case back to the department of first instance (the Opposition Division for oppositions) to continue examination.
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