We recently reported on a ruling of the new advertising authority in South Africa, the Advertising Regulatory Board (“ARB”). The dealt with the issue of misleading advertising. In this article, we’ll look at three more rulings that make it clear that the ARB deals with a range of important issues ...
South Africa recently held its general national election and the result was a win for the incumbent African National Congress (ANC) party. The election was fought against a backdrop of massive unemployment and a stagnant economy. During the course of the election, there was considerable focus on the issue of property rights and particularly, the possible expropriation of immovable property, especially farms ...
An article that appeared in the South AfricanDaily Mavericknews site, “Plain packaging for cigarettes is a bad idea”,suggests that the plain packaging debate is not yet over. A recap We’ve discussed plain packaging for cigarettes on a number of occasions. We’ve looked at how Australia has been at the forefront of this issue, with 2011 legislation requiring all brands of cigarettes to be sold in identical green packs featuring graphic images ...
A recent decision of the Mauritian Industrial Property Tribunal (the “Tribunal”) will provide some comfort to international brand owners. The case involved an application by a foreign company to cancel a trade mark registration obtained by a local party. The facts inStrategic Foods International Company LLC v Meher Banon Gokhoolwere all too familiar ...
On 31 May 2019, South Africa’s Department of Trade and Industry gazetted certain amendments to the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (“B-BBEE”) Codes of Good Practice. These amendments will become effective on 31 November 2019. The following are the key amendments to take note of ...
Use: it’s without question one of the biggest issues in trade mark law. It’s an issue that can come up in a number of scenarios. At least a genuine intention is needed to use a trade mark to get it registered. Considerable use may help get a trade mark registered in the face of various objections. Once registered, the trade mark needs to be used to make sure that the registration can’t be cancelled for non-use by a competitor ...
The Little Master himself, Sachin Tendulkar, is heading to court in Australia against sporting goods manufacturer Spartan. For some context: Tendulkar retired from international cricket shortly after winning the 2011 World Cup. Even in retirement, Tendulkar remains by some distance, the most revered cricketer to ever play the game and the famous Matthew Hayden quote “I have seen God. He bats at no ...
Back in 2013, we wrote an article about the Madrid Protocol, the treaty that regulates the international trade mark registration system. We expressed the view that it was high time that South Africa joined this ever-growing club of nations. We expressed the hope that it would happen soon. It’s now mid- 2019 and... well we’re still waiting. We’re told that accession to the Madrid Protocol is imminent. The Madrid Protocol has been in the news of late ...
The Porsche 911 is undoubtedly an iconic car. Instant product recognition is, of course, something that most companies strive for. But fame and familiarity can create their own problems when it comes to issues of intellectual property. Porsche recently suffered a setback when the EU General Court upheld a decision of the European Union Intellectual Property Office to cancel certain design registrations relating to the appearance of the Porsche 911 ...
A story that was widely reported on in the United Kingdom (“UK”) gives us an interesting insight into the world of copyright. A long time ago – some 22 years to be precise – a songwriter by the name of Richard Ashcroft assigned (transferred) the copyright in a hugely successful song calledBitter Sweet Symphonyperformed by a band called The Verve. If no bells are ringing, I suggest that you Google the song, chances are you will recognise it immediately ...
At the end of the 19th century, mechanisms that transformed natural resources into energy began. The conception of electricity as a private good, which fosters economies of scale and the promotion of transmission and generation megaprojects in the sector, consciously and interestedly omit sustainable energy alternatives from a social and environmental point of view. The causes that leave aside this type of projects are based on the lack of economic profitability for investment interests ...
Global Competition Review (GCR) published The European, Middle Eastern and African Antitrust Review 2020. The “Israel Overview” chapter was written by FBC’s Tal Eyal-Boger, Ziv Schwartz and Shani Brown. The Economic Competition Law, 5748-1988 (the Law) is the primary law dealing with antitrust issues in Israel and its objective is to prevent harm to competition or the public ...
The SGX has beefed up delisting rules, making it harder for controlling shareholders to privatise listed companies. Is this a victory for minority shareholders, or yet another restriction that will make us a less attractive listing venue? We all knew it was coming ...
The presidential election is over and the incumbent president of Indonesia, Joko Widodo,known familiarly as ‘Jokowi’, has officially been re-elected as the President of The Republic of Indonesia for the 2019-2024 term ...
On July 23, 2019, the Ohio Department of Commerce will conduct a public hearing regarding proposed amendments to several Medical Marijuana Control Program rules. The Medical Marijuana Control Program allows individuals with specified medical conditions, upon the recommendation of an Ohio-licensed physician, to purchase and use medical marijuana. The rules govern the activities of medical marijuana cultivators, processors, and testing laboratories ...
On July 2, 2019, the PTO announced it will implement a rule requiring U.S. counsel for foreign-domiciled trademark applicants and registrants. The new rule is effective August 3, 2019, and applies to all trademark owners with a foreign address. We discussed the rule in ourFebruary Alert. For any new filings after the effective date, licensed U.S. counsel must be designated ...
Effective August 1, employers with more than five employees working in the City of San Antonio must provide to all such employees paid sick leave (“PSL”) of up to 64 hours per year (for employers with more than 15 employees) or 48 hours (for employers with 15 or fewer employees) for a variety of reasons related to themselves or family members; employers with five or fewer employees are not required to comply with the PSL ordinance until August 1, 2021 ...
On July 1, Governor Newsom signed into law AB 97 with the intent to reduce the illicit cannabis market by bringing more people into the legal marketplace and to ensure that persons most harmed by cannabis criminalization be offered assistance to enter into the billion-dollar cannabis industry. Below is a summary of the most important aspects of AB 97 ...
California Assembly Bill No. 205 was approved by Gov. Gavin Newsom on July 9, 2019. Assembly Member Tom Daly, who represents California’s 69th district of Orange County cities Santa Ana, Anaheim, and Garden Grove, introduced AB-205 to expand the definition of “beer” under Business & Professions Code §23006, which is part of the Alcohol Beverage Control Act. The new law is set to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2020 ...
Under Dutch corporate law it is possible for the Enterprise Section of the Amsterdam Court of Appeal to order an inquiry into the policies and affairs of a company and to interfere with the internal organization of such legal entity in order to settle corporate disputes between shareholders, the management and supervisory boards and the works council. The present article creates an overview of these legal proceedings. 1 ...
Dating back to the historical conquests of Alexander the Great in the years 300 B.C., which provided an unprecedented foundation for commercial exchanges between Macedonia, Persia and Egypt, along with the Mongolian Empire’s ambitious Silk Road that ensured, since 130 B.C ...
As seen on Law360: The 2018 Farm Bill[1] relaxed restrictions covering hemp-based cannabis products, and it is causing a shift in business strategies in the industry. Instead of a full prohibition of trademark registrations covering cannabis goods or services, a narrow range of filings is now permitted, so long as they conform to the requirements of the Farm Bill and the latest USPTO guidelines ...
The Dubai Development Authority (DDA) (previously known as the Dubai Technology and Media Free Zone Authority (TECOM) and the Dubai Creative Clusters Authority (DCCA)) is the regulator of entities licensed to conduct business in Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City, Dubai Knowledge Park, Dubai Outsource City, and other clusters regulated by the DDA ...
Last month marked the 50-year anniversary of one of the more infamous and impactful environmental disasters to occur in the United States. On June 22, 1969, the Cuyahoga River, which runs through the heart of Cleveland before emptying into Lake Erie, caught fire for the 13th time. Time magazine ran a story that highlighted the river’s severe pollution ...
