Patent owners with robust continuation filing strategies can breathe a sigh of relief as the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) has withdrawn a proposed rule, which would have weakened patents linked to one another via a terminal disclaimer(s) ...
Are you an influencer? Take note! The Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority has now published guidelines that influencers should follow when uploading sponsored posts on social media platforms. We all know how important advertising is in the business world and, with the number of sponsored posts that are flooding social media platforms, businesses have taken to use influencers as the new powerhouses of digital marketing ...
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has released its long-anticipated final rule on patent fee adjustments (“Final Rule”). Set to take effect January 19, 2025, these changes represent the most significant fee restructuring since 2020. The changes aim to generate sufficient revenue to recover the USPTO's operational costs, while promoting efficient patent prosecution practices. Here's what patent applicants and owners need to understand about the upcoming changes ...
The Gaming Authority has already initiated an audit to identify which websites are subject to blocking, and many gambling companies have already received pre-warning letters from the Gaming Authority. Also, “circumvention” of the payment transaction ban (Norwegian banks are required to block payment transactions for foreign gambling offers) is now, according to the authorities, considered to be sufficient for a gambling offer to be “aimed at” Norway ...
On November 7, 2024, Bill C-244, An Act to amend the Copyright Act (diagnosis, maintenance and repair)1 received royal assent, adding a new exception to the provisions governing technological protection measures (TPM) in the Copyright Act (CA). This legislative amendment adds section 41.121 to the CA, making it legal to circumvent TPMs for product maintenance, repair and diagnosis. What it means The new section 41.121 is expected to have a limited impact on the Canadian repair market ...
On November 15, 2024, the U.S. Trademark Office issued a final rule that will not only cost trademark owners more in 2025, but also change the way applications are filed going forward. The new rules and fees are set to go into effect on January 18, 2025, (except for the new Section 66 filing fee, which does not go into effect until February 18, 2025). In this alert, we share the three things you need to know, along with responsive strategies to implement right away ...
The Krogerus Data Symposium 2024 brought together hundreds of data and AI experts on 23 October at Lasipalatsi to discuss the upcoming changes brought by the Data Act and the AI Act. This year, the programme highlighted both the practical challenges and opportunities that technological advancements and the EU legislator's responses to them will present to companies' operations ...
Integrating AI tools at work is not without danger. Three experts from the independent Belgian law firm, ALTIUS, explain how companies should best guard against ethical risks, data protection, intellectual property rights, and trade secrets. “It is essential that organisations teach their people to work with AI safely and responsibly ...
SyCipLaw Partner and Head of Intellectual Property Department Vida M. Panganiban-Alindogan authored the Philippine chapter of the newly released International Comparative Legal Guide (ICLG) - Copyright Laws and Regulations 2025. Spanning 17 jurisdictions, the guide explores common issues in copyright laws and regulations, including copyright subsistence, ownership, exploitation, owners' rights, copyright enforcement, and criminal offenses ...
Under 35 U.S.C. § 101, patent claims may be challenged if they are found to be directed to patent ineligible subject matter, such as laws of nature, natural phenomena, products of nature or abstract ideas. On September 9, 2024, in Contour IP Holding LLC v. GoPro, Inc., the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit provided additional clarity with respect to the application of § 101 ...
In August 2024 the European Commission published draft guidelines on the application of Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (“TFEU”) to abusive exclusionary conduct by dominant undertakings. Rather than the current guidance on enforcement priorities, this document has taken the shape of guidelines proper, similar to those found in respect of Article 101 TFEU ...
Under 35 U.S.C. § 102, the “on-sale bar” invalidates a patent if an inventor has sold or made the invention publicly available more than one year before filing the patent application.[i] Recently, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit decided Celanese Int'l Corp. v. International Trade Commission, and held to the traditional rule that the on-sale bar clock starts when an inventor sells a product made with a patented process ...
A podcast series that explores privacy themes within some of the most well-known movies. In this season finale, William Moore and Nikita Kanda look at the 1990’s cult movie, ‘The Truman Show’. Whether you are a film buff, a privacy advocate, or simply curious about the intersection of storytelling and privacy, take a journey with us as we explore how the big screen tackles privacy ...
At a time when Canada and many other countries are taking steps to protect users from harm online,1a decision was handed down by the Supreme Court of British Columbia (the “Court”) on January 15, 2024, regarding the conduct of a competitor with respect to complaints about intellectual property infringement made on Amazon’s e-commerce website ...
The Regulation1 specifying the new obligations of Bill 962 was published in the Gazette officielle du Québec on June 26, 2024. It modifies the current Regulation respecting the language of commerce and business.3 These changes were expected considering the questions raised by the passage of Bill 96 in June 2022, which required clarification ...
On July 26, 2024, in a precedential decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) upheld and expounded on the estoppel provision set forth in 37 C.F.R. § 42.73(d)(3)(i). The CAFC confirmed that the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) had the authority to promulgate such a regulation while limiting the application to new claims or amended claims, but not to previously issued claims ...
On July 5, 2024, the Financial Market Commission (“CMF”) updated its "Frequently Asked Questions" document related to General Rule No. 502 (“NCG 502”). The NCG 502 regulates the registration, authorization, and obligations of financial service providers under Law No. 21.521, known as the "Fintech Law ...
A podcast series that explores privacy themes within some of the most well-known movies. In this episode, William Moore and Paula Kelly return to the Wizarding World to once again discuss the Harry Potter films. Whether you are a film buff, a privacy advocate, or simply curious about the intersection of storytelling and privacy, take a journey with us as we explore how the big screen tackles privacy ...
Shoosmiths’ Commercial Energy and Mobility partner, Chris Pritchett moderated a panel discussion on the progress towards net zero adoption in passenger vehicles at the recent SMMT International Automotive Summit 2024. An overarching theme applying to all sessions across the day was the industry roadmap for the transition to net zero ...
Malta has been a forerunner in regulating digital assets with the introduction of the Virtual Financial Assets Act, Chapter 590 of the Laws of Malta (the “VFA Act”) back in 2018. Following its approval in 2022 and publication in 2023, Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 of the European Parliament and Council on markets in crypto-assets (“MiCAR”) has an 18-month window to become fully enforceable by 30th December 2024 ...
Ban on foreign information security services from “unfriendly” jurisdictions Decree No. 250 of the Russian President dated 1 May 2022 “On Additional Measures to Ensure the Information Security of the Russian Federation” previously imposed restrictions on the ****use of foreign information security means**** ...
Interim (preliminary) injunctions in English intellectual property litigation are rare. Among other things the Court considers whether there will be irreparable harm to the intellectual property owner. What matters? Interim (preliminary) injunctions in English intellectual property litigation are rare. Among other things the Court considers whether there will be irreparable harm to the intellectual property owner ...
The State Duma will consider a draft law on the possibility for the plaintiff to receive personal data (“PD”) of the defendant Amendments are planned to be made to the ****Civil Procedure Code**** of the Russian Federation. It is proposed to grant the plaintiff the right to file a ****motion**** to the court for assistance in ****establishing information about the defendant****, which is necessary to file a claim in court, but the plaintiff does not have ...
What’s worse than wanting to go to a concert for your favorite music artist and spending one-third of the ticket price in “convenience fees”? Apparently, getting hacked and losing roughly 560 million individual’s personal data—which is exactly what happened to Ticketmaster on May 20, 2024 ...
The Federation Council clarified how the Russian Digital Code will look like Work on the ****Digital Code****, which will become the basis for legal regulation of relations in the field of ****information**** and ****digital technologies****, will take at least another ****year****, and a significant part of the future document is planned to be devoted to the protection of ****personal**** and ****biometric data**** ...
