If you were too busy dodging ghosts and sorting through sweet treats to keep up with the latest legal developments, this Kat has you covered.
Book Reviews |
| Brewing up this week's sweetest IP treats. |
Jocelyn Bosse reviewed the book "Geographical Indications in International Trade: Towards Sustainable Development in the Caribbean" (Hart, 2026) by Dr Yentyl Williams, an open-access volume evaluating whether the EU's sui generis GI model can advance sustainable development in the Global South.
Copyrights and Designs
Georgia Jenkins explored the high-stakes copyright infringement lawsuit brought against Anthropic by rightsholders of musical compositions recorded by Elvis Presley, claiming up to $41.1 million in statutory damages. The complaint alleges that Anthropic scraped protected lyrics and web archives to train Claude, stripped copyright management information, and deployed models capable of reproducing protected song texts even through modified prompts.
Katfriends Andrea F. Rush and Robert Mitchell examined the impact of AI-integrated computer-aided design (CAD) software on IP protection under Canadian law. Comparing generative design tools to the historical evolution of traditional CAD, they highlight that while copyright strictly requires human authorship, industrial design law centres on the "applicant," potentially offering a more predictable enforcement path for machine-assisted renderings.
Patents
Katfriends Niels Hölder and Andreas Hänsele examined how the Unified Patent Court is shaping the proportionality defence against permanent injunctions under Article 63 UPCA in life sciences litigation. Reviewing Meril v Edwards and Hologic v Siemens, they explain that while injunctive relief remains the baseline remedy for infringement of a valid patent, the court will recognise limited carve-outs where an infringing embodiment is the sole available treatment or notably enhances patient care.
Eleonora Rosati announced updated speakers and program details for Kisaco Research’s Patent Litigation Europe 2027, taking place at Amsterdam's Beurs van Berlage in January 2027. Featuring three dedicated tracks spanning the UPC, Pharma & Biotech, and Tech & Innovation, the conference convenes prominent judges and senior in-house counsel to debate parallel litigation strategies, quantum computing, SEP/FRAND, and evolving life sciences plausibility standards.
Plant Varieties
Jocelyn Bosse reported on Adema Srl v CPVO (Case T-770/25), where the EU General Court upheld the refusal of Community plant variety protection for the 'Roat' apple variety for lack of distinctness from the reference variety 'Jeromine'. The Court clarified that merely noting an unlisted trait—such as the early development of fruit overcolour—in an application questionnaire does not compel the CPVO to assess it.
Trademarks
Marcel Pemsel analysed the EU General Court's decision in Vacu Activ Marcin Leśniak v EUIPO (Case T-650/25), which affirmed the cancellation of an EU trade mark for "VACUACTIVUS" due to bad faith. The Court found that applying for a sign without any commercial intention to use it, but purely to block an estranged former distributor from expanding their brand into the EU, lacks legitimate commercial logic.
IP News and Events
Verónica Rodríguez Arguijo delivered a roundup of upcoming intellectual property events and career notices, spotlighting a Bucerius Law School conference on algorithmic discretion, an LES Italy seminar on design copyright, and the 2027 WIPO IP Moot Court Competition. The post also highlighted the call for papers for BILETA 2027 at the University of Strathclyde, alongside institutional milestones including the CPVO’s relocation to its new headquarters in Angers and the expansion of WIPO’s CLIP platform to visual artists.
Image credit: Gemini
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