By Désirée Fields (London) and Ulrike Grübler (Hamburg) Although some time has passed since the UK’s vote to leave the EU, the full implications of Brexit for trademarks and designs remain unclear. Statements made by EU and UK officials have not changed that position, nor did Theresa May’s Brexit speech in January 2017 provide any indication … Continue Reading
By Ruth Hoy On 2 August 2016, the IPO published its first statement since the referendum that considers the impact Brexit will have on intellectual property rights. The main message is that the UK remains a part of the EU until the negotiations to exit are concluded. The statement provides little by way of substantive information … Continue Reading
The UK’s vote to leave the European Union in a so-called ‘Brexit’ referendum throws up a host of issues for the Media, Sport and Entertainment sector, many of which will hinge on the outcome of negotiations following the triggering of Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty: Regulation in the EU Media Landscape There will be … Continue Reading
Authored by: Satnam Sahota and Jim McDonnell The former members of defunct UK reggae/pop band UB40 are currently in dispute over the goodwill of the group, and in particular use of the band’s name. A preliminary issue in this matter was recently settled by the High Court, which decided that a purported assignment of goodwill (after … Continue Reading
Authored by James Clark Earlier this month, the UK data protection authority, the Information Commissioner’s Officer (“ICO”), published guidance on safely processing personal data derived from Wi-Fi location analytics. This guidance is important not only to retail businesses who provide Wi-Fi networks to their customers, but also to companies who just provide Wi-Fi access solely … Continue Reading
By Ruth Hoy and Emily Leach (London) Social responsibility in the fashion industry is a hot topic. Fashion brands need to be wary of scrutiny for creating aspirational advertising that can be perceived as socially irresponsible. The use of size zero models, both on the catwalk and in advertising, is a trend that has been … Continue Reading
Reposted from Media, Sports, and Entertainment Blog By Holly Pearlman, Sam Churney, Katherine Mullally The Court of Appeal recently ruled on the ownership of the copyright in the music and lyrics (the “Copyright“) of thirteen Bob Marley songs, including one of Marley’s most famous songs “No Woman, No Cry” (the “Songs”). Marley had deliberately misattributed … Continue Reading
By Matthew Duncombe (Leeds) The last 12 months have seen significant change to the consumer law landscape in the UK, culminating most recently with the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (which came into force in October 2015). Changes in consumer law commenced last year with the implementation of the Consumer Rights Directive into English law by … Continue Reading
By Laura Brooks DLA Piper has conducted a study on behalf of the European Commission investigating the legal framework for cloud contracts. The study provides guidance to the European Commission on existing laws, case law and administrative guidance applicable to cloud computing contracts in 27 EU Member States and the U.S. level. The study investigates … Continue Reading
By Jack Randles and John Wilks The UK’s Committee of Advertising Practice (“CAP”) has introduced changes to the provisions of its advertising code which deal with the running of sales promotions, including prize promotions. The full regulatory statement explaining and setting out the changes is here. The amendments to Chapter 8 of the CAP Code … Continue Reading
Repost from LAW À LA MODE, Issue 13 – April 2014 By Robert Russell and Peter Manley (Manchester) In this article on the changing landscape of UK fashion retail, we consider the challenges and changes faced by the industry and comment on the opportunities available for existing players and potential new entrants to the market.… Continue Reading
The DLA Piper Fashion, Retail and Design group distributed the 11th edition of “Law à la Mode” to over 1000 clients. Special thanks to all who contributed to this edition, especially the U.S. Editorial Team, which consisted of Ann Ford, Gina Durham, Tamar Duvdevani, Radiance Harris, Kiran Gore, Melissa Reinckens, and Airina Rodrigues. Please click … Continue Reading
By John Wilks and Charles Harvey UK IP legislation is changing. First, the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 (which received Royal Assent on 25 April 2013), has just been published, and modifies UK copyright law (though not as drastically as some would have liked). Secondly, the Government announced in the Queen’s Speech that it … Continue Reading
By John Wilks and Catherine Beloff The CJEU has handed down its decision on the copyright questions referred by the UK High Court in the long-running battle between ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 and TV Catchup (“TVC”). Copyright owners will be relieved that the CJEU has confirmed that streaming content via the internet constitutes … Continue Reading
The eight recipients of the British Fashion Council’s (“BFC”) NEWGEN MEN, sponsored by TOPMAN, initiative were announced earlier this week. DLA Piper is partnering with the British Fashion Council to provide tailored legal and commercial advice to the designers who have been selected. The aim of the NEWGEN MEN program is to assist emerging designers … Continue Reading
This past weekend, over 200 DLA Piper attorneys traveled to Schaumburg, Illinois for the Intellectual Property & Technology (IPT) Practice Group Conference (“Conference”). The Conference’s theme was “Celebration and Commitment.” This three-day event focused on networking across offices, celebrating the achievements of the IPT practice, and committing to goals to expand and improve the IPT … Continue Reading
By Damian Herrington Nominet, the internet registry responsible for “.uk” domain names, has announced a three month consultation on proposals for new, shorter domain names, backed by enhanced security features. The plan is for shorter “.uk” domains to be offered alongside the existing “.co.uk” suffix used by many UK businesses. Nominet claims the new service … Continue Reading
By John Wilks This year’s conference of Marques, the European brand owners’ association, took place in the European Union’s most troubled and ancient capital, Athens, under the lamentably resonant strapline “Sign of the Times”. Among the many interesting topics shoe-horned under this banner, one theme seemed to keep resurfacing: the challenge of locating internet infringers. … Continue Reading
By John Wilks and Damian Herrington, DLA Piper UK The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has just announced that the target “Reveal Day” for its new generic Top Level Domain (“gTLD”) program – the day when the list of gTLDs that have been applied for is announced – will be 13 June 2012. … Continue Reading
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Director General Francis Gurry said the day “is an opportunity to celebrate the contribution that intellectual property makes to innovation and cultural creation – and the immense good that these two social phenomena bring to the world.” WIPO posted a number of suggestions for celebrating World IP Day. This year’s … Continue Reading
By Ruth Hoy, John Wilks, and Nick Edbrooke On 20 February 2012 the UK High Court issued a decision relating to the infamous “Pirate Bay” website. The decision provides a useful example to copyright owners of how to combat online piracy, especially where the infringer eludes UK proceedings by operating from abroad. It is the … Continue Reading
Reposted from DLA Piper’s Media & Sport Group Bulletin Editorial Team: Nick Fitzpatrick, Duncan Calow and Patrick Mitchell The consultation following up recommendations in the Hargreaves Review outlines Government plans to improve copyright laws. The consultation, which will run for 14 weeks and conclude on 21 March 2012, is in line with the Government’s “response” to the Hargreaves Review … Continue Reading
Reposted from DLA Piper’s Media & Sport Group Bulletin Editorial Team: Nick Fitzpatrick, Duncan Calow and Patrick Mitchell The High Court has ruled that Google did not have “actual knowledge” of defamatory material where complaints were not “sufficiently precise and well substantiated”. On 25 November 2011 the High Court ruled in favour of Google; setting aside an order that … Continue Reading
Reposted from DLA Piper’s Law à la Mode Edition 4 – Winter 2011 By: Michael K. Barron, Sarah Phillips and Nadea Taylor (Boston and London) “AdWords,” the paid, subscription-based Google referencing service which allows users to advertise their companies alongside Google search results, has recently been the subject of much legal scrutiny. In late September, the European … Continue Reading
