The Complete Guide to Design Rights
What Are Design Rights? Design rights can protect the shape, configuration or appearance of the whole or part of a product. In the UK, the two main design rights which…
Trade Mark Infringement: The Complete Guide
Have you seen a business using a name similar to yours? Or does their logo look like yours? Or have you received a cease-and-desist letter and you’re wondering what to…
The Most Popular Fakes In The World
Counterfeit products are everywhere. From the tacky, replica football jerseys you find on holiday to pristine copies of handbags, shoes and watches that are near-impossible to tell apart from the…
Check the signature block before you sign that contract!
When signing a contract on behalf of a client (as an agent) or on behalf of your business or an employer, it is important to check that the signature block…
Deliberate breaches are still caught by exclusion clauses and cap on liability clauses
Most commercial contracts (such as distribution and manufacturing contracts) have exclusion clauses. These clauses exclude the contracting parties’ liability in the event of certain breaches (e.g., liability for loss of…
Covid-19 plays a key role in transferring a claim from the High Court to the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court
The general rule in High Court litigation in England and Wales is that the Court will order the losing party to pay the winning party’s legal costs. However, the High…
How Do You Defend A Claim For Copyright Infringement?
Copyright is a right to stop copying. If there is no copying, there is no copyright infringement. However, how do you defend a copyright claim?
Don’t terminate on the basis of your counterparty entering into an insolvency procedure
Commercial contracts usually have written terms that allow a party to immediately terminate the contract in the event of the counterparty becoming insolvent. Summary of CIGA As from 26 June…
Functionality does not necessarily hinder copyright protection
Can a functional object, such as the iconic Brompton Bike, be protected by copyright law? This was a question that the Court of Justice of the European Union (the CJEU) had to consider recently in Case C‑833/18, SI, Brompton Bicycle Ltd. v. Chedech / Get2Get.
Court forces out a force majeure clause
A recent High Court decision has confirmed the restrictive approach applied by the Courts when interpreting force majeure clauses. Whether a force majeure clause is enforceable or not has become…
To Register Or Not To Register My Logo?
Brand logos can be protected by copyright, as artistic works, and registered as trade marks. Clients often ask us whether it is worth applying to register their logo as a…
Briefing note: What can I do if Covid-19 is causing problems to my company’s commercial contracts?
As Covid-19 continues to have an impact on the global supply chain, we consider how it may affect clients’ commercial contracts and which contractual provisions they can rely on to…
Making mass produced products protectable by copyright
The High Court has recently set out a new test and some helpful guidance as to whether 3D objects are protected by copyright as works of artistic craftsmanship. The upshot…
Get rid of that libellous post and while you are at it anything else with an equivalent meaning!
Does Facebook, or other social media platforms, have an obligation not just to delete defamatory posts, but other posts with an equivalent meaning? This was a question that the European…
No contract no liability?
If someone does work for you, but you have yet to sign a written contract (or even orally agree to a contract), can you still be held liable to pay…
A step forward for copyright protection
A recent landmark decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has expanded the scope of copyright protection in the UK for 3D objects, such as furniture,…