In April 2016, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) released a report1 on global trade in counterfeit and pirated products. The report analysed nearly half a million customs seizures around the world over 2011–2013, and examined the impact of counterfeit goods on the economy and …
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The Productivity Commission has issued a draft report concerning intellectual property (IP) arrangements in Australia. It is a broad overview of the entire IP system in Australia. In August 2015, the then Treasurer, Joe Hockey, requested the Commission undertake an enquiry into Australia’s IP arrangements. For a Commission with no previous expertise in IP law, this was a …
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We’ve all heard the crowdfunding success stories from Pozible, Kickstarter and a plethora of other platforms. But with reward comes risk. Budding business owners must take steps to protect their IP before pushing the button on a crowd funding campaign. Failure to do so may result in a loss of IP rights or worse, litigation. …
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Despite taking more than a decade to put his OZEMITE product on supermarket shelves, entrepreneur Dick Smith has successfully defended his rights to his Australian trade mark. In 1999, the well-known Australian adventurer, philanthropist and businessman proposed a product, OZEMITE to rival Vegemite, an iconic yeast spread that was made in Australia, but owned at …
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The New Zealand Patents Act 2013 came into force just over two years ago. The most significant changes were to examine applications for inventive step, expanding the prior art base worldwide, limiting the time period to respond to examination reports and some subject matter exclusions. Although not heralded, new Section 34 of the Act …
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The Full Court decision in Actavis Pty Ltd v Orion Corporation [2016] FCAFC 121 potentially limits the effectiveness of a definition of “comprises” in a specification. Claim 17 of the patent defined: A method for preparing an oral solid composition comprising entacapone, levodopa, and carbidopa, or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt or hydrate thereof, wherein the …
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In the recent decision of Verrocchi v Direct Chemist Outlet Pty Ltd [2016] FCAFC 104, the Full Federal Court confirmed that Chemist Warehouse could not stop Direct Chemist Outlet from using the colour combination of yellow, red and blue, despite their concerns that use of these colours could cause confusion among their customers. The appellants, …
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Following the signing of the Intellectual Property Legislation Amendment (Fee review) Regulation 2016 by the Governor-General on 17 August 2016, official fees for patents, trade marks, designs and plant breeder’s rights are changing. Most of these changes will take affect from 10 October 2016, although changes to fees paid through the International Bureau in relation …
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On 3 August, POF hosted BioMelbourne’s ‘Women in Leadership’ lunch featuring guest speaker, Donny Walford. As the inaugural sponsor of BioMelbourne’s ‘Connecting Women’ luncheon, POF embraces diversity and proudly recognises the contributions of women in STEM. The event was held in acknowledgement of all nominees from the ‘Women in Leadership Awards’ in May, celebrating the …
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