Intellectual Property UK

  • August 07, 2026

    Auto Parts Maker Voids Rival's Engine Bearing Patent 

    A European appeals panel has revoked a Japanese manufacturer's patent for a sliding bearing component used in engines, ruling that earlier designs cited by a German parts maker already disclosed a number of its important features. 

  • August 06, 2026

    Xiaomi, Nera Settle UPC Patent Spat

    Technology company Nera has asked the Unified Patent Court to withdraw its bid to revive its patent infringement claim against Xiaomi, after the two companies settled out of court.

  • August 06, 2026

    Taiwanese Electronics Giant Blocks 'Deltia' TM

    Taiwanese tech giant Delta Electronics has convinced European officials to partially nix a German software company's trademark application for "Deltia," as customers would be likely to think it was linked to its "Delta" brand of AC and DC power systems.

  • August 06, 2026

    Air Freshener Biz Hangs On To 'Little Trees' TM In EU

    The company that owns the "Little Trees" brand of car air fresheners has defended its trademark in the European Union following a challenge from a German cosmetics business.

  • August 06, 2026

    Spanish Bank Loses Fight Over Finance Firm's 'Arkin' TM

    Spanish lender Arquia Bank has failed to block a French insurance broker's bid to register the trademark "Arkin" after European officials found Spanish consumers were unlikely to confuse the marks.

  • August 06, 2026

    Tech Biz Denies Copying Software To Win Phone Deal

    A software developer has denied unlawfully accessing a rival's database to steal a supply contract with a Three Mobile unit, telling a London court that it independently built a replacement data management tool at the telecom company's request.

  • August 06, 2026

    Estonian Translation Denies Tennis Co. 'Head' TM In EU

    The European Union has told tennis apparel retailer Head that its trademark application is out of bounds, ruling that Estonian-speaking consumers in the bloc would understand "Head" as meaning "good."

  • August 05, 2026

    BAT Nixes Japanese Rival's Patent For User-Friendly Vape

    British American Tobacco has convinced European officials to revoke a Japan Tobacco Group unit's patent for a vape, as a prior application already revealed the idea of having a cartridge showing users how much tobacco liquid was remaining without awkwardly bulking up the pen.

  • August 05, 2026

    Dolby Fails To Pause Acer's FRAND Counterclaim At UPC

    The Unified Patent Court refused on Wednesday to pause Acer's counterclaim seeking a fair license for Dolby's audio-coding patent while an appeal over the court's jurisdiction to hear the challenge is pending.

  • August 05, 2026

    Olympic Body Shoots Down Bow Maker's 'Olymparch' TM 

    The Olympics' governing body has blocked a Chinese archery equipment maker from registering the "Olymparch" trademark, finding that consumers are likely to believe it is officially connected with the Olympic Games.

  • August 05, 2026

    L'Oreal's 'Essie' Nail Polish Picks Off 'LumiEssy' Rival TM

    L'Oreal has persuaded European officials to fully reject a Chinese nail polish brand's application for "LumiEssy," arguing that shoppers would think it was somehow related to the French cosmetics giant's "Essie" brand.

  • August 05, 2026

    Biomaterial Biz Trims Aviation Group's 'Gözen' TM In EU

    A U.S. biomaterials producer has clipped the wings of an aviation company's "Gözen Digital" trademark application in the European Union, proving that consumers could confuse the sign with its own "Gozen" logo.

  • August 04, 2026

    Hendrix Bandmates' Estates To Appeal Sony's Royalties Win

    The estates of Jimi Hendrix's former bandmates are set to appeal against a London court ruling that Sony does not owe them any royalties from its streaming of the band's back catalog in the U.K.

  • August 04, 2026

    EPO Rejects Tech Biz's Bid To Revive Anti-Forgery Patent

    A technology company has failed to persuade European patent officials that its system for verifying banknotes and identity documents deserved patent protection, as an earlier patent had already disclosed its central method of checking how often certain data appears.

  • August 04, 2026

    Oura Ring Maker Trims Chinese Rival's 'Aurafit' TM In EU

    Oura Health has convinced European officials to trim a Chinese entrepreneur's application to register the trademark "Aurafit," after the Finnish technology company demonstrated that consumers could confuse the sign with its health monitoring ring. 

  • August 04, 2026

    Lush Scrubs Chinese Co.'s Bid For 'Lushvibe' TM

    Lush has successfully contested a Chinese company's bid to register the trademark "Lushvibe," as European officials ruled that the name could confuse shoppers looking to buy the British cosmetic company's signature bath bombs.

  • August 11, 2026

    K&L Gates Adds 9-Person Team From German Firm Wende IP

    K&L Gates has expanded in Munich by hiring a nine-strong team from German boutique law firm Wende IP to strengthen its capability in advising clients on patents and other intellectual property matters.

  • August 04, 2026

    Music Publishing Confederation Loses Out On EU TM

    The European Union has refused a music publishing group's request for a trademark over its slogan, ruling that "the global voice of music publishing" is not distinctive enough to deserve protection.

  • August 03, 2026

    Baker Botts Hires Litigators In DC And London

    Baker Botts LLP has hired two litigators who focus on representing companies in highly regulated and technically sophisticated industries as partners in its offices in Washington, D.C., and London, the firm announced Monday.

  • August 03, 2026

    Hair Care Brand Olaplex Trims 'Qplex' EU TM Application

    U.S. hair care brand Olaplex has persuaded European officials to pare back a Chinese company's "Qplex" trademark application, after showing that consumers could confuse it with Olaplex's beauty range.

  • August 03, 2026

    UKIPO Remits Computer Patent After Emotional Perception

    Officials at the U.K.'s Intellectual Property Office must re-examine a patent application for a "virtual dial gauge" after failing to properly evaluate whether the patent claims met new standards for software patentability outlined in the landmark Emotional Perception ruling.

  • August 03, 2026

    Dutch Property Portal Partly Grounds Venezuelan Airline's TM

    The Netherlands' largest online property portal has convinced European officials to partially reject a Venezuelan airline's trademark application for "FundaLaser," after proving that clients might confuse some services with those provided under its "Funda" mark. 

  • August 03, 2026

    Bosch Blocks Lidl Cordless Drill Sales In Germany, France

    Bosch has convinced Europe's patent court to prevent Lidl from marketing two own-brand cordless drills, securing an order to bar the retailer from selling the tools in Germany and France.

  • August 03, 2026

    IV Drip Biz Says Franchisor Lied About Regulatory Approval

    An intravenous drip provider has sued its franchisor for £1.4 million ($1.9 million) in a London court, accusing it of falsely claiming that franchisees could begin operating without first securing regulatory approval.

  • July 31, 2026

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

    The past week in London has seen George Michael's estate bring an intellectual property claim against the late star's friend over footage shared online, collapsed law firm Axiom Ince sue the U.K. branch of State Bank of India and Ryanair face a group claim from 262 people. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

Expert Analysis

  • Opinion

    AI-Generated Works Should Not Have Copyright Protection

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    The U.S. Copyright Office has correctly determined that works created solely by artificial intelligence do not qualify for protection, as granting exclusive rights to such works would be unwise for a number of reasons, says Thomas McNulty at Lando & Anastasi.

  • Examining The New UK Service Guidance For TM Proceedings

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    A new much-anticipated U.K. Intellectual Property Office practice notice affects situations where there is no valid U.K. address for service of documents in trademark and registered design proceedings, and will mean rights holders are on notice at an earlier stage of proceedings, with limited time in which to respond, says Nina O'Sullivan at Mishcon de Reya.

  • A Look At M&S' Registered Design Claim Win Against Aldi

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    Adding to the long line of cases seeking to restrain Aldi's attempts to mimic market-leading products, Marks & Spencer's recent success in the U.K. High Court based on registered designs demonstrates that supermarket copycat products may no longer be able to sail so close to the wind, says Alex Borthwick at Powell Gilbert.

  • UK Teva Ruling Brings Patent Remedy Into Question

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    Arrow declarations have been considered an extremely effective tool for patent litigators, but following the recent U.K. Court of Appeal decision in Teva v. Novartis it appears that courts are looking to take a more conservative view, say David Holt and Tony Proctor at Potter Clarkson.

  • How CJEU Case Shifts TM Liability For Platforms Like Amazon

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    The EU Court of Justice's recent ruling on Amazon's liability for trademark infringement in relation to fake Christian Louboutin shoes advertised by third parties on its website may leave web platforms that sell third-party vendors' products alongside their own brands more vulnerable to infringement claims, say Louisa Chambers and Helen Reddish at Travers Smith.

  • Europe's New Unitary Patent System Will Affect IP Agreements

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    Marco Stief at Maiwald discusses key points in intellectual property agreements that legal practitioners will need to consider in Europe's soon-to-open centralized patent court, including regional exclusivity in different contracting member states.

  • EU Medicine Reboxing Ruling Gives Guidance To Pharma Cos.

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    The recent landmark decision of the Court of Justice of the EU in Novartis Pharma on repackaging medicines has provided pharma companies with a much-needed framework, with better protections for trademarks and clearer protocols for handling imported products, say Ulf Grundmann and Elisabeth Kohoutek at King & Spalding.

  • A Look Ahead At Key UK Intellectual Property Cases

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    Anticipated 2023 U.K. intellectual property decisions include robotics, artificial intelligence, and clean energy matters that have also been heard in the U.S., while other areas to watch include global fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory issues, as well as COVID-19 patent litigation, say Tom Oliver and Claire Robinson at Powell Gilbert.

  • Lessons That May Be Learned From The Demise Of Made.com

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    With Made.com going into administration, companies that may face similar challenges should take on board that the earlier adequate preemptive planning is considered, the more financial and legal options there will be to avoid last minute firefighting and to focus instead on strengthening the business, says Eleni Michaela at Faegre Drinker.

  • Teva Case Aims Europe's Pharma Crackdown At IP Loophole

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    The European Commission's recent allegations against Teva signal not only the EU competition watchdog's continued focus on intellectual property violations in the pharmaceutical sector but also its new enforcement interest in exclusionary disparagement, say Robert Bell and Malgorzata Janiec at Armstrong Teasdale.

  • Determining Whether To Opt Out Of New Unified Patent Court

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    The new United Patent Court, made up of judges from all European Union member states, will cover the new unitary patent and European patents unless the owner chooses to opt out during the transition period, so patent proprietors must consider whether to opt out for each patent family, say Steffen Steininger and Anna-Katharina Friese-Okoro at Hogan Lovells.

  • 10 Things To Know About The Coming EU Unified Patent Court

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    When the Unified Patent Court opens next year, it will represent a paradigm shift for adversarial patent proceedings in Europe, and practitioners should familiarize themselves now with this new, centralized litigation system, say Fabian Koenigbauer at Ice Miller and Thomas Kronberger at Grünecker.

  • 7 Key Takeaways For Litigating Willful Patent Infringement

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    Brian Nolan and Manuel Velez at Mayer Brown explore the impact of the Federal Circuit's 2021 SRI International v. Cisco Systems decision, and six other areas recent parties have focused on when litigating willful infringement in the latest case law.

  • Trademark Ruling Brings Clarity To Product Defect Liability

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    The recent Court of Justice of the EU ruling in Fennia v. Philips, its first concerning the trademark aspect of producer liability in Article 3(1) of Directive 85/374, brings greater clarity to the question of compensation in the event of a claim for defective products, say Radboud Ribbert and Thomas van Weeren at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Appointments Shape EU Unified Patent Court Before Launch

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    A series of judiciary appointments at the EU Unified Patent Court help put the court on track for its April opening, while also reflecting a patent-friendly enforcement system, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

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