Blog & News

Joint Ownership of Trade Marks: A Guide for SMEs and Creative Businesses

If you’re an SME or a creative business, owning a UK registered trade mark can be a powerful asset. But what happens when more than one party shares ownership of…

Trade Mark Infringement: The Complete Guide

  Have you seen a business using a name similar to yours? Or does their logo look like yours? Or have you received a cease-and-desist letter and you’re wondering what…

Major update to EU design law

Registered designs protect the shape and/or appearance of a product. They are an invaluable (and cheap) part of the IP toolkit whose importance we have written about a number of…

IPO Report Reveals How The Media & Public Perception Has Shaped The IP Landscape

A new report from the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) has shed light on how the United Kingdom’s news reporting on Intellectual Property (IP) rights has evolved over the past…

Unregistered Trade Marks in the UK: What Protection Do I Have?

  The Importance of Registering a Trade Mark Registering a trade mark for your brand name and/or logo when you establish your business is crucial. A registered trade mark grants…

How to protect against the theft of confidential business information

Protecting confidential business information is essential for ensuring the success and longevity of any company. Here are some steps you can take to protect your business information from theft: Identify…

Artists – copyright & designs

Copyright Copyright is one of the most important IP rights that will protect artistic works. For artists, understanding copyright means it may be utilised to protect your original works and…

Should you mention a competitor’s product in your advert?

Advertising that in any way identifies a competitor, or a competitor’s product, is known as comparative advertising. With comparative advertising, there is a fine line between encouraging fair competition and…

Can you obtain a patent for inventions made by AI?

The recent decision by the UK Supreme Court in Thaler v Comptroller-General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks [2023] UKSC 49 (“Thaler”), authored by Lord Kitchin, has provided some clarification…

Consultancy Agreements: The Importance of a Clear Scope

Consultants can be extremely valuable to businesses by providing specialised expertise, skills, and an outside perspective that may be lacking internally. However, given how involved consultants often become in handling…

The Importance of Trade Mark Clearance Searches: FAQs

Is clearing my trade mark necessary before launching it, and how do I go about it? Response: While it may not be mandatory in many jurisdictions to conduct a trade…

The UK Intellectual Property Office’s 2023 Facts and Figures

The UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) is the official government body with responsibility for intellectual property (IP) rights. Its remit is wide as it is responsible for granting trade marks,…

Slaughter and the Dogs’ Dog Fight

For those of you that don’t know, Slaughter and the Dogs are an English punk band founded in 1975 who did not register their name as a trade mark (but…

I’ve seen that before!

Television, a lot has happened to this marvel since its invention nearly 100 years ago not just in terms of the technology but also what is broadcast or streamed to…

Can my brand be protected on the web?

Protection of brands is just as important on the internet as it is in other media.  With the propensity to search for company, business, product names through search engines such…

How can I protect my brand?

In a competitive market place it is important to protect the visual identity of your business.  An effective brand protection strategy secures the value in your brand.  One of the…

Design Rights in Articles of Clothing

Clothing designs can be protected by both registered and unregistered design rights (as well as copyright).  A registered design right can protect the appearance of the whole or part of…

What is the Berne Convention?

The Berne Convention is a treaty enacted in 1886 so to provide better protections for artists of literary and artistic works throughout the world. It is based on three basic…

Taylor Swift and Trade Marks – A Love Story

Taylor Swift is known to be a prolific songwriter, indeed at the time of writing she has released 274 tracks. But did you know that she’s also a prolific trade…

Evans v John Lewis Plc & Anor

Excitable Edgar, the mischievous dragon and star of the 2019 John Lewis Christmas advert, captured the hearts of many – except, that is, for Fay Evans. The children’s book author,…

Social Media and IP, What’s the worst that can happen?

Ah yes, social media, from the beginnings of MSN messenger and Myspace to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and everything in between, it is the phenomenon that won’t stop growing and creeping…

Best Practices – Wrap Terms and Conditions

Wrap terms and conditions, such as clickwrap and browsewrap agreements, play a pivotal role to digital based businesses. They allow businesses to streamline the process of obtaining user consent to…

Traditional Agreements vs Standard Terms

Contracts are essential for safeguarding your business and can be established through various means such as oral agreements, behaviours, and written documents. To minimise misunderstandings, it’s best to have contracts…

Registered Designs & Disclosure: How much can you reveal?

Introduction On 16 December 2014, Rihanna posted a picture on Instagram which displayed a white Puma trainer with thick black soles – little did she know this would result in…