Welcome to our review of the significant developments in protection and enforcement of brands, designs and copyright in 2017. Key themes last year included the proper boundaries of what is registrable as a brand, and the ongoing challenge of ensuring that IP law keeps up with technological change.
In 2018, we will learn the Supreme Court's views on the question of who should pay to implement website blocking orders against sites selling counterfeit products: the brand owners or the ISPs. We should also receive some much-needed clarity from the Government as to the treatment of unitary IP rights post-Brexit. Whilst the EUIPO and Commission has issued a 'doomsday notice' stating that EUTMs and designs will no longer extend to the UK post-Brexit, we anticipate the Government will put in place a system to preserve those rights. However, details on the exact model are yet to be agreed, and rights holders will be watching the ongoing discussions very closely.
If you would like to discuss any of the issues discussed, please get in touch with me or your usual contact. We hope you enjoy reading the Review.