Our partners and attorneys are highly qualified and highly experienced to advise you in all areas of Intellectual Property law. We advise start-ups, SMEs, and multinational corporations and ensure that your inventions, brands and designs are expertly protected.
All of the Partners & People of AA Thornton are joining forces with Venner Shipley
The UK government has recently positioned clean technology at the core of its new initiative, the “National Vision for Engineering Biology,” launched in December 2023. With a substantial £2 billion investment, this policy highlights the government’s dedication to driving sustainable innovation. The funding aims to advance research and development in areas such as renewable biofuels,… Read more »
In Intellectual Property law, particularly for patents, precision in language and punctuation is crucial. If not used correctly, something as simple as a comma can lead to the loss of a patent. A pertinent illustration of this is the EPO’s Board of Appeal decision T 1473/19 in which a missing comma in a claim led… Read more »
In an appeal decision handed down on 26 January 2024 in Iconix Luxembourg Holdings Sarl v (1) Dream Pairs Europe Inc and (2) Top Glory Trading Group Inc [2024] EWCA Civ 29, the Court of Appeal has ruled that when considering post-sale confusion consideration should be given as to how trade marks or potentially infringing… Read more »
Originally designed and built to provide the US army with ‘High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicles’ (HMMWVs), it is believed that Arnold Schwarzenegger was instrumental in getting Hummers to the civilian market after they caught his attention when he was filming a movie. He was so taken with them that he approached the manufacturers and played… Read more »
As a firm, we have recently seen an increase in the number of entrepreneurs whose product listings on e-commerce platforms like Amazon or eBay have been removed due to takedown requests alleging intellectual property infringements. As specialists in intellectual property law, we are used to dealing with situations where the question of infringement is not… Read more »
A recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) confirms that unrelated defendants domiciled in different member states can be sued in a single court if they are connected by an exclusive distribution agreement. The Case: Beverage City Polska v Advance Magazine Publishers (Case C-832/21) The Claimant Advance Magazine Publishers… Read more »
The UK High Court has overturned an earlier UKIPO refusal of a patent application for a trained Artificial Neural Network (ANN).This is encouraging for applicants who are investing in AI patenting in the UK. The UKIPO quickly confirmed that it is changing its examination practice to reflect the court’s judgement. The UKIPO’s earlier decision… Read more »
As Trade Mark Attorneys, one of the questions we are asked almost daily basis is whether new marks are registrable. As UK IPO practice is forever evolving, it can be helpful to conduct regular reviews of the kinds of marks being refused by the UK IPO. In the latest instalment of our seasonal round-up, we… Read more »
The Background Sports events are a lucrative business, with the associated intellectual property rights highly guarded by the organisations authorised to broadcast them. However, the allure of easy money has tempted some to exploit sports broadcasts unlawfully. This resulted in the sentencing of five men in May 2023 who had been illegally streaming Premier League… Read more »
In an exciting development for brand owners, the EU has this week approved a new regulation that will allow the producers of distinctive craft and industrial products to protect their goods with a Geographical Indication. What is a Geographical Indication? Geographical indication protection rights (“GIs”) have been available for certain types of product in various… Read more »
