In a landmark decision, the European Union Intellectual Property Office (‘EUIPO’) has ruled that McDonald’s, one of the world’s largest fast food chains, will lose its EU trade mark for “Big Mac” ...
Some may be wondering what a “telekung” is as it is probably not a common term. A Telekung is a Muslim prayer outfit for females. The general perception of prayer outfits is that they are dull and unfashionable as they have to be modest rather than trendy. However, there has been a drastic shift in the fashion industry in recent years where there are an increasing number of fashionable yet modest clothes in both local and international markets ...
From re-sharing cat videos to creating memes, tweaks in our three-decade-old Copyright Act will help clarify what’s permissible and what’s verboten as we continue to indulge in our insatiable appetite for social media. Chinese New Year Eve, 2019. Social media was ablaze with a viral video (YouTube link) of an altercation between a Malay Gojek driver and his Chinese passenger objecting to a route that would incur ERP charges ...
Corporations and governments are ferreting out and squirreling away voluminous, detailed and private information about each and every one of us – and they are not afraid to use it. Should we be worried? Singapore’s Health Minister recently revealed that confidential details of 14,200 HIV-positive people, stolen from a government public health database, had been leaked online by a disgruntled US citizen who had been in a romantic relationship with a local doctor ...
The pervasiveness of the Internet of Things has spawned a recent fear that the devices are listening to the conversations of their users. For instance, the My Friend Cayla doll talks to children and answers their questions by connecting to the internet and using a combination of voice recognition software and Google searches to provide these responses ...
In a recent decision by the Technology and Construction Court (TCC), Judge Stewart-Smith has clarified the position when determining whether two adjudications are “the same or substantially the same” when a party challenges jurisdiction under Para 9(2) of the Scheme for Construction Contracts. He stated that thedecisionreached in the first adjudication must be considered as well as the disputesreferredto adjudication in each ...
Some brands simply seem to play a major role in our lives – Apple, Facebook, Google, Netflix. These are brands that for many of us have become something of an ever present. One brand that surely belongs on that list is Amazon, one of the most important, influential and high-profile brands in the world. Brand Finance recently declared Amazon to be the world’s most valuable brand, valuing it at USD 50 billion. So, it makes sense to keep abreast of what is going on there ...
The presence of a small amount of undeclared sesame in a particular product may seem trivial but, for those who are allergic, it can provoke a major reaction. Such was the predicament faced by Pret a Manger in July 2016, following the death of Natasha Ednan-Laperouse that same month due to the undeclared presence of sesame in a Pret baguette ...
Coordinating cross-border due diligence is a key skill that more often than not underpins complex, multi-jurisdictional merger and acquisitions (M&A) and private equity (PE)-led transactions. Where due diligence really adds value is in the early stages of the transaction, when local knowledge and expertise are vital to understanding the context of data room information ...
Whatever your views on Brexit, the deferment of the UK’s leaving date from the EU provided British industry some welcome breathing space to prepare for Brexit. Given the issues that still divide the two main political parties, the UK may yet leave the EU without a deal on 31 October ...
‘Fake news’ - information or news that is proven to be either verifiably false or misleading - has become a major, global concern. As news and opinion pieces are increasingly pushed to readers via online and social media channels, the speed of their dissemination has accelerated exponentially, as have the challenges around regulating news and opinion ...
The enactment of the General Data Privacy Regulations (GDPR) in the EU last year and the imminent proclamation of the effective date of South Africa’s own data privacy legislation, the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (“POPI”), has been the cause of disquiet for many organisations’ directors and compliance officers ...
Beginning next month, used car dealers in West Virginia may sell vehicles directly to consumers without a single warranty that the vehicles are operational or safe to drive. The so-called “As Is” bill – approved last March by the West Virginia Legislature – will allow merchants to make sales on an “as is” basis, effectively eliminating any implied warranties about a vehicle’s merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose ...
The Twenty-first Amendment—which repealed Prohibition—gives states broad authority to regulate alcohol within their borders. But can states impose residency requirements on alcohol retail licensees? The U.S. Supreme Court, by a vote of seven to two in Tennessee Wine and Spirits Retailers Ass’n v. Thomas, answered no. As state alcohol regulators adjust their licensing processes to comply with the ruling, retailers and wholesalers may see changes in the alcohol market ...
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 ...
For nearly the last 20 years, states have been legalizing hemp growth, production, and products.[1] While hemp remained illegal federally and was included in the definition of marijuana under the Controlled Substance Act, numerous states began exploring the validity of hemp as a viable product. Marijuana legislation was not far behind ...
On 29 July 2019 the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) concluded that website operators can be deemed joint controllers under the GDPR together with social media providers for using plug ins, such as Facebook Like buttons. However, the parties are joint controllers only in respect of the collection and transmission of personal data to the social media provider, and not in respect of subsequent processing by the social media provider ...
Anyone in Germany who wants to make calls outside the city is sometimes not able to do so due to the numerous "white spots" in the mobile network infrastructure. In most areas of Germany, a comprehensive infrastructure is not guaranteed. An expansion by the telecommunications companies (TC) is also not foreseeable in the next three years. Therefore, many municipalities and administrative districts want to eliminate these "white spots" on their own ...
A rose, said Shakespeare, by any other name would smell as sweet. But while the Bard may know his flowers, he clearly was no expert on branding Apples. Rodrigo Duterte, the Filipino president, would like to change his country’s moniker “because the Philippines is named after King Phillip”. He appears to be eager to distance his nation from its colonial past, the said monarch being a 16th century ruler of Spain ...
A website operator who has embedded a Facebook “like” button on its website qualifies as a “joint controller” together with Facebook and so can be held liable for the collection and transmission of data from the operator’s website visitors to Facebook. Background Fashion ID is a German online clothing retailer. Its website contained the famous Facebook ‘Like’-button ...
As early as September 23, 2019, the United States House of Representatives is expected to vote on the widely anticipated Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act ...
With the continuous and rapid advancement of technology and the increase in the use of digital technology, the provision and sale of digital content has become more and more appealing. This is evident from the emergence of a plethora of businesses the activities of which include engaging in the sale of digital content such as video games, ring back tones, music and videos as well as the rise in the demand for digital content sold through mobile phones ...
On 3 October 2019, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) published its groundbreaking ruling in case C-18/18 establishing that the EU enables national courts to order information societies such as Facebook to remove defamatory information. This also encompasses equivalent versions of previously declared illegal information. In doing so, the ECJ effectively held that EU law does not preclude injunctions issued by national courts from producing worldwide effects ...
Yesterday, in a closely-followed case, the Supreme Court decided not to hear an appeal brought by the Domino’s pizza chain, which sought to overturn the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal’s decision that entities selling online must make their websites and apps accessible to people with disabilities ...
