Banksy, the British artist best known for his street art and political activism, has been found to have acted in bad faith in registering a trade mark of one of his best known works, The Flower Thrower. Banksy had registered the well known image as a trade mark with the European Union Intellectual Property Office … Read more
When it comes the economic tort of passing off there is an accepted 3 part test which a Plaintiff needs to pass in order to win an intellectual property case involving passing off. The test is as follows: you must prove Goodwill or reputation in a product Misrepresentation by someone which may lead to confusion … Read more
Can we be honest? Good ideas are hard to come by. They’re like hens’ teeth. Have you a good idea, but you’re afraid to discuss it for fear it will be robbed or copied? You’re well aware that you can register a trade mark or a patent, and you know you enjoy copyright protection for … Read more
If you are a retailer, a recent District Court decision in a case brought by the Phonographic Performance Ireland (PPI) organisation against a retailer in Dublin will be of interest. The PPI is licensed to collect royalties for leading music labels such as Sony, Warner, EMI and it issues notices to retailers for collection of … Read more
A CTM (Community Trade Mark) is effective across all 27 states of the European Union. However as it has unitary effect, that is recognised in all 27 states, if your trade mark registration application fails in one state then your application for a CTM will fail. Benefit of a Community Trade Mark The big benefit … Read more