Protecting Wearable Technology (Video)

Since the Unified Patent Court opened on 1 June 2023, one of the more interesting legal questions which has been considered is the matter of jurisdictional competence. Following on from our comparison of the EPO and UPC’s approaches to inventive step (available here) and as the dust begins to settle on some of the early decisions, it is a good time to reflect on the early decisions of the UPC in relation to jurisdiction and to compare the UPC with the EPO in this regard.

The High Court has awarded the Swatch Group US$11.6 million in negotiation damages against Samsung for trade mark infringements involving watch face apps on the Galaxy App store. Rejecting both parties' extreme valuations of US$170 million and US$301, the court established important principles for assessing damages when brand owners don't license their marks and no comparable market royalties exist.

Fendi, Loewe, Dior, Celine and LVMH have successfully pursued an online reseller and its influencer founder over sales of high-quality counterfeit goods, securing £213,000 in damages. The Intellectual Property Enterprise Court confirmed that a low price alone does not excuse a counterfeiter from damages liability, establishing that brands can be compensated for lost sales even when customers knowingly choose cheaper fakes over genuine products.

The High Court examined whether an events company's use of prestigious brand names like VANITY FAIR and GQ on its website constituted trade mark infringement and passing off. The case centered on whether promotional references to exclusive invitation-only events crossed the line from legitimate identification to misleading consumers about a commercial connection with the trade mark owner.

For companies developing advanced materials, battery technologies, and green technologies, the journey from laboratory proof-of-concept to commercial manufacturing often reveals the most valuable patentable inventions. Scale-up challenges involving heat transfer, particle morphology, coating uniformity, and manufacturing economics can create intellectual property that proves more commercially significant than the original laboratory discovery.

Sustainability is no longer a niche concern within the cosmetics and skincare sector. Increasingly, brands are being challenged by consumers, retailers and regulators to reduce waste and demonstrate meaningful environmental credentials.

The European Patent Office Board of Appeal has issued a surprising judgment demonstrating how adding a manufacturing step to a computer-aided design method can paradoxically extend patent scope post-grant. This case explores the intricate relationship between process claims and product protection under Article 64(2) EPC...

A UK court has ruled on the validity of Novartis's supplementary protection certificate for Entresto, examining whether the SPC product should be defined as the specific co-complex formulation or the broader...

James May has partnered with Dorset brewer Hall & Woodhouse to launch The Spanner, a traditional cask ale that raises intriguing questions about trade mark strategy in the food and drink sector. From choosing a distinctive name to navigating ownership in celebrity collaborations, this new beer demonstrates why proper trade mark protection matters before a brand goes to market.

For venture-backed biotech companies, intellectual property strategy must be designed from the outset with the end goal in mind. This article explores how aligning IP decisions with future acquirer expectations, understanding exit scenarios, and building defensible patent portfolios can dramatically increase both the probability and value of successful exits in the life sciences sector.

For venture-backed biotech companies, intellectual property strategy must be designed from the outset with the end goal in mind. This article explores how aligning IP decisions with future acquirer expectations, understanding exit scenarios, and building defensible patent portfolios can dramatically increase both the probability and value of successful exits in the life sciences sector.

As nuclear fusion technology moves closer to commercial viability, a critical question emerges: should patent protection be extended when mandatory regulatory processes consume years of the standard 20-year patent term? This analysis examines whether the patent system adequately incentivizes investment in fusion energy, where foundational inventions may expire just as they become commercially deployable.

The UK Patents Court has upheld Novartis' patent and SPC protecting Entresto, its blockbuster heart failure treatment combining valsartan and sacubitril, rejecting all validity challenges from generic manufacturer Accord Healthcare. The judgment provides crucial guidance on plausibility requirements where experimental data have been generated but not fully disclosed in the patent specification, clarifying when qualitative disclosure of positive results suffices without detailed numerical data.

Modern engineering increasingly prioritizes making products smaller, lighter, and more portable, but does miniaturization alone constitute a patentable invention? Patent law requires more than impressive size reduction—it demands non-obvious technical solutions to specific problems created by scaling down, such as thermal management, signal integrity, or mechanical stress challenges.

Intellectual property diligence too often starts with the wrong question: how many patents does the company have? For venture investors, that is rarely the most revealing answer. The real issue is whether the founders understand IP as a strategic asset — something that protects ownership, supports freedom to operate, strengthens the commercial moat and increases the company’s value before the next funding round.

A recent EPO Board of Appeal decision establishes critical guidance for protecting AI-assisted engineering design innovations, ruling that patent claims covering only digital model generation cannot be expanded post-grant to include physical manufacturing steps. The decision clarifies that when AI generates product designs—from data center layouts to 3D-printed components—the patent strategy must explicitly bridge the gap between computational output and manufactured reality from the outset.

The UK High Court has delivered a landmark ruling on online marketplace liability, dismissing Shein's copyright infringement claims against Temu and clarifying when platforms can be held responsible for third-party content. The judgment examines the boundaries of copyright ownership in complex supply chains and establishes important precedents for how marketplace operators should respond to infringement allegations.

The Court of Appeal of the Unified Patent Court recently issued a decision examining whether omitting an elastomeric sealing member from a patent claim constitutes added matter, applying the EPO's "gold standard" test while emphasizing the importance of functional and structural relationships between features. The ruling provides crucial insight into how the UPC approaches intermediate generalizations and whether its methodology differs from the notoriously strict EPO practice on added subject-matter.

Geopolitical conflicts and climate change are threatening global food security by disrupting fertiliser supply chains and driving up costs. European companies are developing innovative solutions ranging from green ammonia production and nitrogen fixation technologies to circular fertilisers derived from waste streams and biological alternatives that enhance nutrient efficiency.

Jersey has completely overhauled its trade mark system, establishing its own Intellectual Property Office and abolishing the previous UK re-registration requirement. The new framework aligns closely with UK trade mark law while enabling Jersey to participate directly in the Madrid System for international registrations. These changes, effective August 1, 2026, include automatic cloning of existing UK designations into Jersey rights and signal further IP modernization ahead.