Don’t try to hide the truth in a case of ‘bad faith’

The Federal Court has allowed an appeal in Enagic v Horizons on grounds including s 62A of the Trade Marks Act that the application subject to the opposition was filed in ‘bad faith’. The determination of this ground heavily turned not only on the evidence that was submitted, but also evidence that was not submitted …
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Can a high-level concept in a proposal give rise to entitlement to an invention?

The Full Court decision in Vehicle Monitoring Systems v SARB Management Group has given detailed consideration to the notion of “inventive concept” in the context of determining entitlement to an invention. The case relates to Australian Patent Application no. 2013213708 entitled “Vehicle Detection” in the name of SARB. which describes systems and methods for detecting …
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Claim disclaimers in Australian patent practice

Patent applicants and patentees may amend the claims of their patent specification to distinguish the invention from relevant prior art. The use of a disclaimer – if permissible under s 102 of the Patents Act – can be an effective strategy to limit the claim scope to the minimum extent necessary.  Read more on page …
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‘For use’ not always suitable for use: injunction denied due to wrongly granted PTE

In the recent interlocutory decision in Biogen v Pharmacor, the Federal Court has denied patentee Biogen a preliminary injunction to restrain generic manufacturer Pharmacor from selling a generic version of its successful multiple sclerosis drug, Tecfidera®. Key to Pharmacor’s success was its case that the term of Biogen’s patent was invalidly extended based on a claimed invention …
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Federal Budget delivers Patent Box Scheme expansion

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The 2022-23 Federal Budget, delivered by Treasurer Josh Frydenberg last night, has provided further incentives to Australian innovators. Pleasingly, the Government has expanded the Patent Box Scheme to agricultural and low emissions technology sectors. The expansion is notable in that, despite significant industry advocacy to extend the Patent Box Scheme to these industries, the bill …
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Intellectual property in a time of war

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You may have heard or seen recent media coverage regarding a decision by the Russian government that Russian companies are no longer obliged to compensate owners of patent and design rights where the owners are from ‘unfriendly countries’. Similarly, with the withdrawal of McDonalds from Russia, a fast food chain called ‘Uncle Vanya’ is poised …
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Designs Amendment Act 2021 enters play

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The Designs Amendment (Advisory Council on Intellectual Property Response) Act 2021 (Act) has now come into force. In broad terms, the Act is intended to provide greater flexibility for designers during the early stages of seeking design protection. It also seeks to clarify and simplify aspects of the designs system. Some noted key features of the Act …
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