After long negotiations between the United Kingdom and the European Union, the UK has exited the EU as of 31 January 2020 and entered an 11-month transition period from 1 February to 31 December 2020. During this period, the UK will continue to operate under the laws of the EU, including those in relation to …
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On 27 September 2019, Malaysia became the latest country to join the Madrid Protocol which provides for the international registration of trade marks. It became the 106th Member of the Protocol, which now covers 122 countries. Applicants from any of the 106 Members, including Australia, will now be able to file multi-national trade mark applications …
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A number of provisions of the Trade Marks Act refer to the concept of “substantially affecting the identity” of a mark. These provisions relate to whether use of an amended mark counts as use of the mark as registered; whether a pending application is “substantially identical” to a prior mark; whether amendment can be made …
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JB Hi-Fi has won its battle to retain its Australian trade mark registration for STACK, its popular entertainment news brand, successfully challenging the Trade Mark Registrar’s proposed revocation. The trade mark STACK is used for JB Hi-Fi’s magazine and website, providing news and reviews for games, movies, tv and music[1]. The retailer acquired the unregistered …
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Brazil has become the latest member of the Madrid System. From 2 October this year, Australian trade mark owners will be able to seek protection in Brazil when filing an application for international registration using the Madrid System. The Madrid System enables trade mark owners to file a single international trade mark application to seek …
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The US Patent and Trademark Office has announced that, as of 3 August 2019, all foreign-domiciled trademark owners must be represented by an attorney who is licensed to practice law in the US. Currently it is possible for foreign-domiciled owners to file submissions at the USPTO directly on their own behalf, although if they do …
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In 2014, the Herald Sun broke the explosive story of an unnamed barrister moonlighting as a police informer. She was dubbed ‘Lawyer X’ and soon became Australia’s most infamous barrister. Shortly after her identity was recently revealed, it was announced that Foxtel and News Corp Australia had commissioned a drama mini-series titled ‘Lawyer X: The …
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We’re delighted to announce that POF is the winner for ‘Trade Mark Prosecution Firm of the Year – Australia’ as part of Managing Intellectual Property (MIP)’s IP Stars awards. This also marks the sixth year in a row that POF has ranked as a Tier 1 firm for Trade Mark Prosecution. MIP is the leading …
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Red Energy Pty Limited v Registrar of Trade Marks [2018] FCA 1449 A recent decision of Justice Beach in the Federal Court may have breathed new life into appeals from Trade Marks Office decisions during prosecution. Background Energy retailer Red Energy filed Australian Trade Mark Application No. 1746950 for the mark EVENPAY for various goods …
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Australian Federal Court not impressed with parallel AU/US proceedings Earlier this year, in a decision¹ made by O’Callaghan J of the Federal Court of Australia, Kraft was restrained from proceeding with arbitration proceedings against Bega in the US. The dispute arose in the context of the sale and promotion of BEGA branded peanut butter produced …
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