News and insight

Following its 2017 review into gender stereotypes in adverts, the ASA has announced its plan to ban harmful gender stereotyping in advertising from June 2019.

The General Court has dismissed St Andrews Links’ appeal of the EUIPO’s rejection of its application for the mark ST ANDREWS in relation to the majority of Class 41 services applied for.

The Court of Appeal has held that a financial advantage derived from Google AdSense advertisements did not take unfair advantage of the distinctive character or repute of Argos’ trade mark.  

The CJEU has annulled the EUIPO’s decision that Nestlé’s 3D KitKat mark had acquired distinctiveness across the EU.

The European Court of Justice decides that Louboutin’s trade mark does not fall within one of the absolute grounds of refusal.

GDPR's impact is already being felt in the courts. ICANN's publication of personal data on the WHOIS domain name registry is now in the spotlight.

The Court of Appeal has held that BeeMoved was not liable for passing off where, without its knowledge, a third party website reverted to old (and incorrect) wording.

The Supreme Court has overturned earlier decisions in Cartier v British Telecoms & others, finding that ISPs should not have to bear costs of implementing website-blocking injunctions.

Whisky glass ruling illustrates the high threshold of ‘irreparable harm’ that is needed for IP rights holders to be awarded an interim injunction pending trial.

Under current regulations, UK individuals and businesses are entitled to register and use websites using the .eu domain. This right may disappear post-Brexit.

This case reaffirms the difficulty in defending a sub-brand (or unconventional) trade mark and provides guidance to brand owners on how to evidence acquired distinctiveness.

L’Oréal wins skincare device case using shorter trials procedure pilot scheme.