United Kingdom: Patent

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Intellectual property law and copyright law thought leadership, articles, podcasts, videos and webinars from expert sources across the legal world. Explore insights covering topics such as licensing and syndication, patent law, trade secrets and trademark law.
Article
Substance Or Device? Decoding Medical Use Claims Under The European Patent Convention
The European Patent Convention allows medical use claims for substances and compositions, but not devices. Recent case law has shifted the approach to determining what qualifies as a "substance or composition," moving away from mode-of-action analysis toward examining the claimed material itself. This evolution raises critical questions about claim drafting and the scope of patent protection for medical technologies.
United Kingdom IP
MC
Marks & Clerk
Article
Technical Function In Designs – Decathlon V Delta-Sport And Chiaro V Mayborn
The General Court of the European Union upheld Decathlon's registered EU design for its EASYBREATH full-face snorkelling mask against a technical function challenge, while the UK High Court found Chiaro's Elvie breast pump design had narrow infringement scope after excluding technical features. These contrasting outcomes reveal how the exclusion for designs dictated solely by technical function can dramatically affect protection scope, even for products designed to fit the human body.
United Kingdom IP
B
Boult Wade Tennant
Article
Protecting Your Clothing Designs In The EU Just Got Easier – Here’s Why
The European Union has introduced groundbreaking changes to its design registration system, expanding beyond traditional static images to include animated and dynamic representations. These innovations offer fashion designers unprecedented flexibility in protecting clothing designs with intricate details, complex structures, and transformable features that were previously difficult to capture through conventional methods.
United Kingdom IP
MC
Marks & Clerk
Article
"We Spend A Lot Of Time Designing The Bridge, But Not Enough Time Thinking About The People Who Are Crossing It.” - Dr Prabhjot Singh
How can intellectual property rights protect innovations designed specifically for women and underrepresented groups in product safety? This article explores the intersection of inclusive design and IP strategy, examining patents, design rights, and trade marks as tools for safeguarding innovations that address long-overlooked safety gaps in consumer products.
United Kingdom IP
CR
Carpmaels & Ransford LLP
Article
Caught In The U.K. Filing Trap: How Defense Software Companies Can Lose Their U.S. Patent Strategy Overnight
U.K.-based defense software companies face a critical legal obstacle when seeking U.S. patent protection: mandatory U.K. filing requirements that trigger government security screening, potentially blocking the very international applications they need. How can companies navigate the intersection of software patentability standards, national security restrictions, and criminal liability risks?
United Kingdom IP
WT
Winston Taylor
Article
The Patent You Can Never Publish: How The Government's Secret Powers Can Trap Your Invention.
The U.K. government possesses extraordinary powers to impose secrecy orders on privately developed defense technology through patent applications, restricting publication, commercialization, and even foreign filings. With over 1,150 active secrecy directions currently in force and declassification rates collapsing since 2016, defense technology companies face growing risks when seeking patent protection for innovations they have independently funded and developed.
United Kingdom IP
WT
Winston Taylor
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