20th July 2016
Withers & Rogers IP Law Update
Withers & Rogers IP Law Update provides a round-up of articles covering some of the most recent IP case law, as well as important developments in the IP landscape in both the UK and Europe.
2016 has been a busy year so far, with a range of interesting decisions in all areas of IP. It has also witnessed many aspects of the Unitary Patent Court (UPC) being finalised.
A number of high profile trade mark decisions have been handed down including those involving big names such as Adidas and H&M; there have been helpful cases clarifying the UK courts’ approach to patent claim construction, especially in the pharmaceutical sector; and guidance from the UK Supreme Court has been provided on how registered design rights are to be interpreted.
There have also been significant changes to the EU trade mark regime, including to the body responsible for overseeing registered community trade marks and designs and new decisions in the field of supplementary protection certificates.
There is a lot of noise and speculation at the moment on what the UK’s EU membership referendum result will mean for IP in Europe. At present, the UK is still a member of the EU, so nothing has changed. Should an exit actually happen, there is a high degree of confidence that appropriate UK legislation will be passed to effect a seamless transition to national IP rights.
In addition, we will continue to be able to act before the EPO, and we are confident that measures will be put in place for Withers & Rogers to continue representation before the EUIPO for trade mark and design matters.