The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has published updated guidance on unfair consumer contract terms and notices under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (CRA) [Unfair contract terms – GOV.UK]. The revised guidance comes when consumer protection is receiving renewed and high-profile regulatory attention following the introduction, in April 2025, of the CMA’s new direct … Continue Reading
AI is increasingly being embedded across almost every part of an organisation. From software development and customer service to marketing and product innovation, organisations are investing heavily in, and becoming heavily reliant on, AI tools and systems. But as AI adoption grows, so does a familiar pattern: the most valuable assets are often not the … Continue Reading
On July 22, 2026, the Federal Circuit handed down a nonprecedential yet strategically important decision in Shenzhen Jisu Technology Co., Ltd. v. The Entities and Individuals Identified in Annex A, affirming a district court’s reversal of a preliminary injunction in a design patent “Schedule A” case involving foldable fans sold on Amazon and Temu. The … Continue Reading
As America celebrates its 250th year, the pulse of innovation that animated the Founders beats louder than ever. From the first patent debates to today’s courtroom clashes over artificial intelligence, George Washington’s legacy as a mill owner, pragmatic leader, and founding architect of the U.S. patent system remains strikingly relevant. Drawing on Washington’s own letters … Continue Reading
Executive Summary The European Commission has adopted a revised Technology Transfer Block Exemption Regulation (TTBER)[1] and Guidelines on the application of Article 101 TFEU to technology transfer agreements (Guidelines)[2], replacing the 2014 framework which expires on 30 April 2026. The revised rules apply from 1 May 2026 and reflect a four‑year evaluation and impact‑assessment process … Continue Reading
With the European Green Deal, the EU’s comprehensive strategy to make Europe the first climate-neutral continent by 2050, sustainability considerations need to become an integral part of a company’s IP strategy. We have focused on the most important provisions of the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) IP owners need to be aware of … Continue Reading
The authors wish to thank Jonathan Mason for his contributions to this post. In early March, the darts phenomenon and reigning World Champion, Luke Littler, applied to the UK Intellectual Property Office (“IPO”) to register his face as a trade mark in the UK across a variety of different categories from the obvious (class 9 … Continue Reading
An “indefinite” term may not actually mean forever after all. A recent Court of Appeal decision now confirms that even where one party believed a contract was intended to run forever, a court may imply a right to terminate on reasonable notice if no express termination clause exists, if one party later seeks to exit. … Continue Reading
As with all industries, agentic AI is already starting to have a dramatic impact on the automotive industry, particularly with regard to:… Continue Reading
In the mid‑90s, Elastica captured a restless cultural moment with Connection—a song pulsing with the irresistible pull toward something new. Thirty years later, automotive and transportation companies are chasing the same energy through the rise of connected vehicles and new AI enabled features. Connected vehicles are becoming software-defined, sensor‑rich, and permanently online. This evolution expands … Continue Reading
In a precedential opinion analyzing eligibility of software and web-based patents, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed the district court’s dismissal of a patent infringement complaint in US Patent No. 7,679,637 LLC v. Google LLC. The Court examined key issues in patent eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101, particularly for web … Continue Reading
The authors wish to thank Joshua Saunders for his contributions to this post. In February 2025 we reported on the UK government consultation on potential changes to UK copyright legislation in light of AI, Clock is Ticking for Responses to UK Government Consultation on Copyright and Artificial Intelligence | Global IP & Technology Law Blog. … Continue Reading
January: the season of fresh starts—when we swear we’ll finally hit the gym, drink more water, and unearth last year’s journal from beneath a mountain of good intentions. Maybe, just maybe, we’ll put down our phones long enough to soak up some actual daylight. In the business world, January offers the perfect opportunity for a … Continue Reading
Meta’s eye-catching end-of-year acquisition of Manus, a Singapore-based developer of AI agents, for a purported value of more than $2 billion[1], reflects a wider sector shift towards the development and deployment of semi-autonomous, outcome-focused, software agents, which are capable of performing complex tasks without direct and constant human input. The Meta deal notably follows Salesforce’s … Continue Reading
On 1 December 2025, the EU’s new legal framework for the protection of geographical indications for craft and industrial products (CIGIs) has become operational with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) opening the application process. Whilst EU-wide GI protection was previously available only for certain wine, spirit drinks, agricultural and food products, producers of … Continue Reading
Readers will recall that the Deputy Commissioner for Patents issued a memorandum on evaluating patent claims for subject matter eligibility in August, which we blogged about previously. The August 2025 Memorandum noted that a patent application “does not need to explicitly set forth the improvement [to the functioning of a computer or to another technology … Continue Reading
It’s the most wonderful time of the year—unless you’re Santa and your trade secrets just got swiped by a disgruntled elf with no holiday cheer, wielding powerful magical artificial intelligence (AI) tools like “ElfGPT.” As snow falls over the North Pole and elves frantically race to meet their Christmas Eve deadline, a new kind of … Continue Reading
On 4 November 2025 the UK High Court handed down its judgment in the case of Getty Images (US) Inc (and others) v Stability AI Limited [2025] EWHC 2863 (Ch) [High Court Judgment Template]. The case concerned the training, development and deployment of Stability AI’s “Stable Diffusion” generative AI model and, as one of the … Continue Reading
Setting the Stage: It’s a sunlit Sunday afternoon in New York City. The house hums with laughter and the joyful chaos of family—children darting through hallways, voices mingling. In the heart of it all, two cherished sisters, Nonnas, Rosa and Maria, are in the kitchen, stirring pots and sharing family secrets as they prepare their … Continue Reading
There have been hundreds of summary discretionary denial decisions from the Acting Director regarding inter partes review and post-grant review. We blogged on these decisions here, here, here, here, and here. On October 17, 2025, newly appointed Director Squires issued an open letter and memorandum to the public and to the Patent Trial and Appeal … Continue Reading
You couldn’t sleep. You recently worked through the night on your bench experiments, even when the security guard told you to go home, painstakingly perfecting the process to align with your company’s plans for a chemical manufacturer to scale your product. As the morning light peeked across your lab bench, your overcaffeinated fingers clicked the … Continue Reading
Finally, it’s holiday time and I’m in the south of France on the beach! I am sunbathing in my pretty vintage bikini with a pina colada in my hand. I am hungry. I put on my cargo trousers and go buy a piadina at the snack bar right behind. I use the hotspot to send … Continue Reading
Since the iRhythm IPRs on which we blogged recently, there have been two more (actually, many more) decisions that are leaving petitioners scratching their heads. In Dabico, the Acting USPTO Director discretionarily denied an IPR petition because of “settled expectations,” the same rationale as in iRhythm. The Acting Director went further and criticized the petitioner … Continue Reading
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA) [Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024] has both increased consumer protection rights in the UK and the enforcement powers of the main consumer regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) which for the first time has been granted wide-ranging powers to investigate suspected breaches of … Continue Reading
