EU

The revised Rules of Procedure at the EPO’s Boards of Appeal (RPBA), known as ‘RPBA 2020’, came into force on 1 January 2020. The revised rules apply to any appeal pending on, or filed after, this date.

If a trademark office deems a potential trademark to be contrary to public policy or accepted principles of morality, it can refuse to register the mark. Following a recent CJEU decision, concrete evidence will be necessary to substantiate that decision, as Casper Hemelrijk explains. 

A recent judgement by the District Court of The Hague shows the importance of documenting comprehensive and consistent evidence of trademark and trade name use.

Announcement last week that the UK ‘will not be seeking involvement’ in the Unified Patent Court and Unitary Patent system is the latest blow for the much delayed EU patent, as Robert Balsters explains. 

Such has been the success of the comedy movie Fack ju Göthe, its production company sought to register the title as a word mark. Casper Hemelrijk examines the public policy and morality objections within both the European and Benelux trademark contexts.

France’s new PACTE law has set out to modernise utility certificates by increasing their term of protection and adding new provisions to allow applicants to transform utility certificate applications into patent applications.

Celebrities are advised to protect their names as trademarks if they are to take action against unauthorised use by third parties, as Megan Taylor explains.

A recent judgement by the Court of Justice of the EU has considered whether failing to specify goods and services clearly and precisely in trademark applications is a sign that the applicant acted in bad faith.

Service offering customers the opportunity to pay to name a star, in return for a certificate, found to be misleading for the purposes of trademark registration, as Louise van de Mortel explains. 

Will the PACTE law, which seeks to tighten up the way in which patents are issued in France, result in stronger French patents or a gradual abandonment of its measures?

Find out how Novagraaf assisted the University of Bordeaux and University Medical Centre of Bordeaux’s IP management organisation, SATT Aquitaine Science Transfer, to protect a new breakthrough treatment. 

While “natural wine” is growing in popularity with consumers, there is currently no official label, legal definition or regulation to describe what makes a wine “natural”, says Manon Brodin.