Interesting facts about Grenada: 1) There is a lake in Grenada, Grand Etang, which is said to be a bottomless lake because nobody has been able to find its bottom with sonar. The lake was formed over a dormant volcano. 2) It is …
Commercial reality: the other mark is famous! No one is going to think I am them…
It used to be the case (Registrar of Trade Marks v Woolworths Ltd, CA Henschke & Co v Rosemount Estates Pty Ltd and Australian Meat Group Pty Ltd v JBS Australia Pty Ltd) that notoriety of a mark or component of a …
Where the line between legitimate applicant and squatter is blurred
IP Australia are seeking feedback on whether to change the current prosecution system for trade marks, from a 15-month acceptance deadline with unlimited responses in that time, to shorter 2-month response deadlines, capped at 3 iterations. Since I have used …
Are thousands of removal actions actually invalid?
It has been an absolute pleasure this week to deep dive into the intersection between ss 92 (4) (b) and 93 (2) of the Trade Marks Act this week, with some of the best and brightest at IP Australia’s trade …
Fire walls, acquisitions and risk
I’ve learned that you cannot rent out upstairs and downstairs separately, except with 1 hour fire wall between. This can be added, for a price. But, if the roof height is just enough without the fire wall, it may be …
Trade marks and the new AML laws
Anti-money laundering laws are on everyone’s mind at the moment. Here are some of the questions the law changes raise in the trade mark space: 1) If the AML changes are aimed at enhancing ownership transparency, will IP Australia require …
Trade mark application or underworld communication?
I came across a new firm today, which I will not name. This one is the address for service for 3,282 marks on the Australian trade marks database. A search for the firm name on the TTIPAB list of registered …
Intellectual Property: Appreciating and Depreciating Assets
I recently just missed out on purchasing a property, which was hugely disappointing. But, just a reminder that I need to keep plugging away. Hopefully, next time, I will be ready and able to snap up the property I want. …
Trade Marks: what is indexing and why does it matter?
What is indexing? Trade mark indexing is the process by which IP Australia allocates words to describe the defining features of the mark. When searching the trade marks database, you enter a word, and will retrieve marks that have that …
Counterfeit Labubu dolls at the Gold Coast Show
As the mother of an 8 year old, I am acutely aware of what a Labubu is. I have stood in line from 7am in the morning, for 3 hours until the 10am distribution of Labubu dolls at Pop Mart …