Over the past two decades, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has been working on a Design Law Treaty focused on aligning examination and procedural guidelines associated with what have historically been...more
The US Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) published its final rule, creating a separate design patent bar where admitted design patent practitioners will practice in design patent proceedings only. (88 Fed. Reg. 78644 (Nov. 16,...more
Investing in the creation of industrial designs is critical in modern business practice, as it allows a company’s product to stand out in an increasingly competitive market dynamic. Just as important as creating distinctive...more
CIPO has recently announced that most of its official fees will increase by at least 25% in 2024. These adjustments will affect all pending applications for patents, trademarks, industrial designs and copyrights, as well as...more
The recent proliferation of useful Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) tools for tasks like text, image, music, and software code generation is all the rage. In the intellectual property sphere, one of the hottest topics...more
Graphical User Interface (GUI) refers to icons, windows, and/or menus to offer a mechanism to interact with electronic devices visually. There has been quite a bit of debate around the registrability of GUIs under industrial...more
This article provides helpful advice for companies wanting to protect their IP rights and increase their profits. Smart & Biggar IP experts detail the importance of investing in industrial design or design patents to ensure...more
Earlier this fall the Federal Court of Canada issued a rare decision concerning industrial design infringement and reaffirmed several points of law favouring holders of industrial design registrations in Canada seeking to...more
Through Resolution No. 61157 of 2020, which has been in force since Jan. 1, 2021, the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (SIC) in Colombia increased its official fees for the procedures regarding industrial property,...more
For months, global patent practitioners have been expecting China to announce sweeping, significant changes to the nation’s system of intellectual property laws—and they were not disappointed. On Oct. 17, the Standing...more
In view of the ongoing COVID-19 disruption, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has further extended patent, trademark, and industrial design deadlines fixed under the relevant legislation....more
This article was last updated on July 10, 2020. In view of COVID-19, we have compiled a list of important updates as it relates to the pandemic and its impact on Life Sciences. We will continue to update this page as new...more
The UKIPO will temporarily reduce the fees applicable to: extensions of time periods for the filing of documents; surcharges for the late payment of certain other fees.....more
On 30 June the House of Representatives voted and approved 3 decrees whereby A new Federal Law for the Protection of Industrial Property is enacted, Federal Copyright Law is amended; and, Federal Criminal Code is also...more
In view of the ongoing COVID-19 disruption, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has further extended patent, trademark, and industrial design deadlines fixed under the relevant legislation. Deadlines through...more
On 27 May 2020 WIPO launched new online business service, WIPO PROOF, that provides tamper-proof evidence of the existence at a point in time of any digital file, including data sets, in any format. The WIPO PROOF service...more
In view of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has further extended patent, trademark, and industrial design deadlines fixed under the relevant legislation. Deadlines through Friday...more
This article was last updated on June 26, 2020. In view of COVID-19, we have compiled a list of important updates as it relates to the pandemic and its impact on Life Sciences. We will continue to update this page as new...more
In view of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has further extended patent, trademark, and industrial design deadlines fixed under the relevant legislation....more
The Hague System, the international registration system for industrial designs, will reach a new high point when Mexico officially joins later this year. The Hague Agreement will enter into force in Mexico on June 6, 2020....more
In view of COVID-19, as of March 31, 2020: Patent, trademark and industrial design deadlines that fall due between March 16 - April 30 are extended until May 1 (see here and FAQs regarding the initial extension)....more
Last week, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom declared that the COVID-19 outbreak "can be characterized as a pandemic," cautioning that the WHO has "rung the alarm bell loud and clear." At the time of...more
In view of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has announced that patent, trademark, and industrial design deadlines that fall due between March 16, 2020 and March 31, 2020 will be extended...more
On July 30, 2019, Canada acceded to the Patent Law Treaty. This accession marks the near completion of a long and ambitious journey by Canada to modernize its patent, trademark and industrial design laws and to harmonize...more