Intellectual Property UK

  • July 20, 2026

    J&J Unit Infringed Blood Cancer Patent, US Gov't Says

    The U.S. has accused a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary of infringing a U.S. government patent covering a blood cancer treatment, stepping up its response amid an ongoing claim that the patent is invalid.

  • July 20, 2026

    Jaguar Puts Brakes On Ineos' Bid To Nix Defender Design

    Jaguar Land Rover has defeated Ineos Automotive's bid to invalidate the trademark protecting its classic Defender design, after European officials ruled the off-road vehicle's shape remains widely recognizable by consumers across the bloc.

  • July 20, 2026

    Atari Sues Alleged Copycat Firm In Passing Off Claim

    Video game giant Atari has sued an alleged copycat company, seeking damages and an injunction to prevent it from using the Atari name after claiming it deliberately infringed trademarks associated with its 54-year-old brand.

  • July 20, 2026

    Alibaba Co. Fined €550M By EU Over Illegal, Unsafe Products

    The European Union fined online retailer AliExpress €550 million ($629 million) on Monday for failing to prevent the sale of illegal, unsafe and counterfeit products on its platform, the largest-ever financial penalty handed for breaching the bloc's digital rules.

  • July 17, 2026

    InterDigital Drops Amazon UPC Case For Arbitration

    InterDigital has formally dropped its bid to block Amazon from infringing its video streaming intellectual property at Europe's patent court after the two companies agreed to resolve their dispute through arbitration.   

  • July 17, 2026

    Anne Frank Ruling Balances Public Access And IP Online

    A ruling by Europe's highest court that geo-blocking measures can sufficiently restrict public access to works from territories where copyright remains in force strikes an effective balance between protecting territorial IP rights and allowing public domain works to proliferate, experts say.

  • July 17, 2026

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    The past week in London has seen Snapchat and Dolby press on with a fresh infringement claim in their ongoing patent battle, The Telegraph face an intellectual property claim by a photo archive, a group of international human rights barristers and chambers sued, and oil business Equinor embroiled in a contract dispute with BP after recently acquiring full ownership in their offshore project. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • July 17, 2026

    UPC Scraps Inspection For Reactor Used In EU Research

    Europe's patent court has revoked an inspection order that allowed a sustainable technology company to open up a rival's containers to check whether a hydrogen reactor was infringing its patent, as the reactor was clearly being used for experimental purposes as part of an EU research project. 

  • July 17, 2026

    Nutella Can't Bin Mushroom Extract Brand 'Nutera' TM

    Chocolate giant Ferrero has failed to persuade European officials that shoppers would see "Nutera"-branded vitamin drinks and think they were linked to Ferrero's popular "Nutella" hazelnut chocolate spread, as their markets don't overlap enough.  

  • July 17, 2026

    Axed Sports Data Employee Denies Misusing Confidential Info

    A former employee of a sports data firm has denied misusing any confidential information in breach of his employment contract, telling a London court that he emailed himself documents only to preserve evidence during a "flawed" disciplinary process.

  • July 16, 2026

    L'Oréal Can't Block Rival's Hair Treatment Patent

    European officials have dismissed L'Oréal's attacks against a rival's hair bleaching and coloring kit that aims to reduce damage, ruling that the original claims were obvious but an amended form adding a specific ingredient was new. 

  • July 16, 2026

    Plastics Biz Denies Copying 'Dragons' Den' Shower Caddy

    A plastics manufacturer has pushed back against claims from a "Dragons' Den"-winning shower products company that it is infringing design rights over a rustproof, glue-on shower caddy, arguing the rights were invalid to begin with.

  • July 16, 2026

    Next Says Smiling Jellycat Toy Design Is Too Common To Be IP

    British retailer Next has pushed back against toymaker Jellycat's claims that a biscuit-shaped cushion and doorstop were copies of its "Amuseables" plush toy range, arguing that simple facial features on soft toys is not unique to the popular brand.

  • July 16, 2026

    Publishers Can Claim Author Copyright Share, EU Court Told

    Publishers who own certain copyrights should be able to claim a share of authors' compensation for the reproduction of their works alongside any standard cut they may receive as publishers, an adviser to the European Union's top court said Thursday.

  • July 16, 2026

    Chanel Blocks Chinese Rival's 'Amococo' Skin Cleanser TM

    Chanel has persuaded European Union officials to block a Chinese company's application for an "Amococo" trademark covering skin cleanser and other goods, proving that the brand comes too close to its famous "Coco" label.

  • July 15, 2026

    OpenAI Name Too Descriptive For TM, EU Court Says

    A European court on Wednesday rejected OpenAI's bid for another shot at registering its name as a trademark, finding the term focused too heavily on describing artificial intelligence and related tech that the company offers.

  • July 15, 2026

    Halozyme Can't Block MSD From Selling Cancer Jab In Europe

    A Dutch court refused to grant Halozyme an injunction against Merck Sharp & Dohme stopping it from marketing an injectable cancer treatment in a slew of European countries, ruling that the rival hadn't made any promises to avoid the market while the case was ongoing.

  • July 15, 2026

    Security Co. Accuses Distributor Of Selling Copycat Tech

    A security firm has accused its U.K. distributor of copying its unregistered rights in two security towers used for autonomous 360-degree surveillance, after allegedly identifying products that looked similar to its own in a LinkedIn post.

  • July 15, 2026

    Photographer Sues Luxury Lifestyle Co. Over Image Use

    A photographer has sued Fairfax & Favor over allegations that the English luxury brand has continued using his copyrighted work beyond the terms of their initial licensing agreement and has profited from doing so without his consent. 

  • July 15, 2026

    Gap Unit Fails To Stop Vetements' 'Spinning' Windmill TM

    Fashion brand Vetements has persuaded European officials to reject a bid by a Gap athleisure subsidiary to block a trademark application for a windmill-shaped logo, as it found that consumers would immediately be able to tell the two brands apart. 

  • July 15, 2026

    Google's Attack On Cloud Computing Patent Meets Pushback

    A U.S. company has defended its data processing patent amid an ongoing infringement claim against Google, urging a London court to dismiss the tech giant's argument that the patent contains nothing inventive.

  • July 14, 2026

    Display Maker Says AI-Made Images Don't Infringe Rival's IP

    An exhibition stand supplier has pushed back against claims that it infringed a rival's copyright by using copycat photographs to market products online, arguing that it used artificial intelligence tools to create ultimately distinct images.

  • July 14, 2026

    Snapchat Sues Dolby In Clash Over Patented Video Tech

    Snapchat has brought an action against Dolby in a London court after the two companies recently clashed in the U.S. and Brazil over the audio technology giant's patented video compression technology.

  • July 14, 2026

    UPC Opens Simpler Path To Defense Of Dependent Claims

    European appellate judges have clarified that patent owners need not amend their patents to defend dependent claims, strengthening their ability to rely on narrower fallback claims when broader ones are challenged.

  • July 14, 2026

    HDMI Connector Shape Can't Function As TM, EUIPO Says

    The licensing company for the HDMI technology standard cannot register a trademark depicting the front-facing connecting component of a cable, as European officials ruled that shoppers would not see this shape as expressing anything beyond HDMI compatibility.

Expert Analysis

  • AI Inventorship Patent Options After UK Supreme Court Ruling

    Author Photo

    The U.K. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Thaler v. Comptroller-General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks that an AI system cannot be an inventor raises questions about alternative approaches to patent protection for AI-generated inventions and how the decision might affect infringement and validity disputes around such patents, says David Knight at Brown Rudnick.

  • Acquisition Of AI Tech Poses Challenges For Media Industry

    Author Photo

    The artificial intelligence regulatory landscape is changing quickly, and media and entertainment companies planning to acquire AI technology through a merger, acquisition or licensing deal should be mindful of potential new compliance requirements and AI-specific insurance products, say lawyers at Covington.

  • Cos. Should Weave Metaverse Considerations Into IP Strategy

    Author Photo

    In light of the increasing importance of intellectual property protection in digital contexts, including a growing number of court rulings and recent updates to the classification of digital assets, companies should include the metaverse as part of their trademark strategy to prevent potential infringements, says Gabriele Engels at D Young & Co.

  • Mitigating Compliance And Litigation Risks Of Evolving Tech

    Author Photo

    Amid artificial intelligence and other technological advances, companies must prepare for the associated risks, including a growing suite of privacy regulations, enterprising class action theories and consumer protection challenges, and proliferating disclosure obligations, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.

  • Major EU AI Banking Ruling Will Reverberate Across Sectors

    Author Photo

    Following the European Court of Justice's recent OQ v. Land Hessen decision that banks' use of AI-driven credit scores to make consumer decisions did not comply with the General Data Protection Regulation, regulators indicated that the ruling would apply broadly, leaving numerous industries that employ AI-powered decisions open to scrutiny, say lawyers at Alston & Bird.

  • English Could Be The Future Language Of The UPC

    Author Photo

    While most Unified Patent Court proceedings are currently held in German, the recent decisions in Plant-e v. Arkyne and Amgen v. Sanofi potentially signal that English will be the preferred language, particularly in cases involving small and medium enterprises, say lawyers at Freshfields.

  • Arbitration Remains Attractive For Digital Disputes In 2024

    Author Photo

    Recent regulatory and digital forum developments highlight that, in 2024, arbitration will continue to adapt to new technologies, such as artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency, and remain an attractive forum for resolving digital disputes due to its flexibility, confidentiality and comparative ease to enforce cross-border awards, says Peter Smith at Charles Russell.

  • US And UK Law Firms Continue Trend Of EU Expansion

    Author Photo

    A broad spectrum of U.S. and U.K. law firms are now seeking fresh opportunities in Europe's fastest growing and constantly evolving sectors by opening offices in strategic locations across the continent, says James Lavan at Buchanan Law.

  • Looking Ahead At AI Regulation In The EU And UK

    Author Photo

    With AI regulation agreed upon in Europe and a U.K. regulatory authority on the horizon, organizations developing AI should consider deploying governance, addressing accountability and establishing internal guardrails to achieve a balanced approach to responsible innovation while managing risk, says Chris Eastham at Fieldfisher.

  • 2024 Will Be A Busy Year For Generative AI And IP Issues

    Author Photo

    In light of increased litigation and policy proposals on balancing intellectual property rights and artificial intelligence innovation, 2024 is shaping up to be full of fast-moving developments that will have significant implications for AI tool developers, users of such tools and rights holders, say lawyers at Mishcon de Reya.

  • The Most-Read Law360 UK Guest Articles Of 2023

    Author Photo

    Benefits of the new EU Unified Patent Court, artificial intelligence regulation and M&A trends amid rising inflation were among the hot topics U.K. Expert Analysis articles explored this year.

  • So You Want To Write A Guest Article?

    Author Photo

    If your New Year's resolution is to spend more time writing, here's everything you need to know to pitch guest article ideas to Law360.

  • 9 Takeaways From The UPC's First 6 Months In Session

    Author Photo

    Six months after its opening, the Unified Patent Court has established itself as an appealing jurisdiction, with its far territorial reach, short filing deadlines and extremely quick issuance of preliminary injunctions showing that it is well-prepared to provide for rapid legal clarity, says Antje Brambrink at Finnegan.

  • The Year In FRAND: What To Know Heading Into 2024

    Author Photo

    In 2023, there were eight significant developments concerning the fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory patent licensing regime that undergirds technical standardization, say Tom Millikan and Kevin Zeck at Perkins Coie.

  • How Int'l Student-Athlete Law Would Change The NIL Game

    Author Photo

    Recently proposed legislation to allow international student-athletes the opportunity to profit from their name, image and likeness without violating their F-1 nonimmigrant student visa status represents a pivotal step in NIL policy, and universities must assess and adapt their approaches to accommodate unique immigration concerns, say attorneys at Phelps Dunbar.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Intellectual Property UK archive.