Happy World IP Day! World Intellectual Property Day is celebrated every year on 26 April – the day on which the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Convention came into force in 1970 – and it is a day for increasing general awareness and understanding of IP. This year’s theme is Women and IP: Accelerating Innovation …
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The Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Raising the Bar) Act 2012 had an impact extending beyond the acquisition of patent and trade mark rights. Outside the patent attorney profession, few realised that the RTB Act included a short provision allowing patent attorneys to incorporate. Our lawmakers are unlikely to have suspected how profound this seemingly innocuous change …
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Some of the most significant changes to the requirements for a valid patent brought about by the Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Raising the Bar) Act 2012 have been in the area of support and disclosure. A key rationale for the grant of patent rights has always been that in return for a limited monopoly, the …
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Continuing our deep dive into the influence of the Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Raising the Bar) Act 2012, we now look at the changes made to Provisional Applications and the conflicting result that the Act had on a system originally aimed at saving time and cost to applicants. Before filing a complete patent application, an …
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The Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Raising the Bar) Act 2012 was intended to address six key areas, one of which was to raise the quality of granted patents. The aim of raising patent quality was to ensure that patents granted in Australia were more closely aligned with international standards and with those granted by our …
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Some may remember a time when business methods were patentable subject matter, and at first glance it seems that the increasingly popular AI, ChatGPT, would like us to return to these halcyon days. When pushed, however, ChatGPT does recommend that you seek the professional advice of a patent attorney. ChatGPT is a chatbot developed by …
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Congratulations to our Managing Principal, Ross McFarlane, for being named as one IAM’s Global Leaders for 2023. This is a very significant achievement as being awarded this status as Global Leader requires attorneys to already be ranked in IAM Patent’s Gold Tier. Ross has also been a highly recommended individual in the IAM Patent 1000 …
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In an all too common scenario, the iconic 1959 Mini design has recently attracted the interest of a Chinese electric vehicle company known as Beijing Estech Technology Co (BET). BET had filed a design with the Chinese Intellectual Property Office (CNIPA), heavily based on the classic 1959 Mini design, albeit with very minor changes. This …
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It has been several years since the ‘new’ New Zealand Patents Act came into force and we are beginning to see how the practicalities of this regimen are playing out. The recent decision, Intelli Particle Pty Ltd (‘Intelli’)[1], illustrates some important aspects of contemporary New Zealand practice. Despite being the subject of a Global Patent …
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Better Beer Co, the brainchild of The Inspired Unemployed and Torquay Beverage Co Pty Ltd, has prevailed in a dispute against Brick Lane Brewing over its carb-free beverage branded Better Beer. Brick Lane Brewing commenced proceedings against Better Beer in 2021 alleging that the promotion and sale of Better Beer in a get-up similar to …
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