Stratocumulus Legal is a Perth-based legal consultancy focusing on Australian intellectual property law and related legal areas.
Available for download - our reference guide for common IP considerations that arise when identifying, assessing and dealing with business assets
An issue that affects all businesses. Do you actually own the IP created by your employees and contractors?
Post 7 in our Top 10 of 2020. It seems almost certain that more general protection of geographic indications will be required in Australia if there is to be a concluded Australia-European Union Free Trade Agreement. If so, only products that actually hail from relevant regions or places will be able to use those names. This is sure to stir local debate about what counts as Feta cheese, similar to past debates about use of the name “Champagne”.
Post 6 in our Top 10 of 2020. Australia may be taking its first steps on a long pathway toward broad protection of Indigenous cultural expression and traditional knowledge, which would be a huge step. More immediately, we’ve seen attempts to pass legislation aimed at preventing the sale of “fake art”, and controversy over copyright ownership in the Aboriginal flag.
Post 5 in our Top 10 of 2020. A big case about humble peanut butter packaging reminded us that unregistered trade marks (in this case well-known get up or trade dress) cannot be assigned in the absence of also assigning the goodwill of the business.
Post 4 in our Top 10 of 2020. Creators will have more freedom to quote and use others’ copyright works. Announced reforms to the Copyright Act will see a new scheme for using “orphan works”, and fair dealing defences for the non-commercial quotation of other works, and others in the education sector. Draft legislation likely in 2021.
Post 3 in our Top 10 of 2020. The “exhaustion of rights” doctrine means that patent owners will no longer be able to use their patent to control the use of a patented product post-purchase. Will these see right of repair advocates happier, or will patentees instead hire out patented products to retain control of them?
Post 2 in our Top 10 of 2020. Amendments to the Designs Act will introduce more flexibility in the early life cycle of designs, including a 12 month grace period to apply for registration after publishing or using a design.
Post 1 in our Top 10 of 2020. Australia is set for new laws requiring digital platforms to remunerate news businesses for “making news available” on their platforms – which will include mere hyperlinking. This has been making headlines throughout 2020, and is legally novel by taking a non-copyright approach to the monetisation of content. Will the Digital Platforms Code of Conduct be legally enforceable?
David is an experienced intellectual property lawyer, but also with significant general legal experience accumulated over 20 years’ experience at international law firms. Based in Perth, Western Australia, he founded Stratocumulus Legal in May 2020.
