In Australian law, unregistered trade marks and their associated goodwill are treated as one in the same. Goodwill can have many shapes and sources, but it is understood generally to refer to the commercial aspects of a business other than tangible assets that have attracted custom to it. Under section [...]
The long-running dispute between Australian fashion designer Katie Perry and international pop star Katy Perry has now been resolved with the High Court of Australia handing down a landmark trademark decision. The case concerned whether the Australian designer’s registered trade mark “Katie Perry” for clothing should be removed from the [...]
The Federal Court recently considered a passing-off dispute involving two competing art supplies businesses operating under the name “Jackson”. The Australian retailer and applicant, Jacksons Drawing Supplies (JDS), whom did not register the trade mark “Jackson”, brought proceedings against Jackson’s Art Supplies (JAS) the UK competitor and its Australian affiliate, Jackson's Art [...]
In Australia, the Spam Act 2003 (‘Spam Act’) contains requirements in relation to the sending of commercial electronic messages (‘CEMs’) which include, but are not limited to, SMS and email messages. Section 16 of the Spam Act expressly prohibits the sending of unsolicited CEMs that have an Australian link[1] and [...]
In today’s world, it is not unusual for businesses to make claims about the environmental benefits of their services or products to consumers- it is however important to ensure that those claims are accurate. “Greenwashing” is a term, which generally speaking, refers to the making of false or misleading environmental [...]
In the wake of increasing data breaches,[1] on 29 November 2024, the Government passed its new tranche of legislative measures under its 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy seeking to address legislative gaps, and bring Australia in line with international standards.[2] The Cyber Security Act 2024 (“Act”) introduces several key measures [...]
From 18 January 2025, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) will adjust its fees, with its rationale being that these increases are necessary to provide themselves with the necessary resources to administer the US trademark system. As such, new surcharges/fees to the trademark application system have been introduced, [...]
As we reported in our previous article (https://pointonpartners.com.au/privacy-act-reform-is-on-the-way/), the Federal Government released a Privacy Act Review Report (“Review”) last year foreshadowing changes to privacy legislation in Australia. A response to the recommendations outlined in the Review was then released by the Federal Government following feedback and consultations. In his speech [...]
In October 2023, Jeffrey Piccolo faced a devastating loss when his wife, Dr. Kanokporn Tangsuan, passed away due to a fatal allergic reaction at Raglan Road Irish Pub in Disney Springs, part of the Walt Disney World resort property. Despite assurances that Dr. Tangsuan's meal would be free of allergens to [...]
In this digital age, it is interesting to note that legislation known as the “Artificial Intelligence Act” (“Act”) was recently approved by the European Parliament on March 13, 2024.[1] The Act aims “to promote the uptake of human centric and trustworthy artificial intelligence (AI) while ensuring a high level of [...]
