Wednesday whimsies

The IPKat is proud to bring you news from this blog's very own tuna labelling correspondent, Jeffrey Belson. As reported previously on this weblog, in 2012 the World Trade Organization (WTO) Appellate Body decided in favour of Mexico in the long-standing Mexico v USA dolphin-safe labelling dispute. The US reaction to this defeat was to tighten rather than loosen the criteria for use by anyone of the US Department of Commerce label. Perhaps not unpredictably, the move has not attuned Mexico and the USA to peaceful coexistence where tuna fishing and marketing are concerned. The dispute drags on, with an angry Mexico finally getting its way in demanding that a WTO Compliance Panel be established. Here's the freshest, most mercury-free information we have.

Around the weblogs. First, happy birthday Synapse!  This Taylor Wessing item is just completing its first year and prides itself on offering second-to-none coverage of news and analysis on legal and commercial issues in the European life sciences sector.  If you're suffering from confusion or déjà-vu, you may recall that the IPKat recently wished a happy birthday to the Sinapse blog, all the way from India, which has now been online for five years.  Meanwhile, Prince has demonstrated his unerring talent for demonstrating the truth of the maxim "you only hurt the one you love", by suing his fans again: here's Patrick Goold's take on the 1709 Blog.  There's also some notable news from France, where Frédéric Glaize posts on Class 46 a handy piece on how purely internal use of a trade mark within a company can be use in the course of trade.

Racing for registration?

Additional good news for international patent folk.  In an earlier post ("A touch of the Waldorfs: the International Patent Forum 2014", here), this Kat reported that there was a generous £300 discount for readers of this weblog who planned to register that event.  He failed, however, to mention that there was a bigger discount for an even more favoured class of persons: in-house patent and IP attorneys, who are entitled to attend for absolutely nothing if they register using this form.  Well, if that isn't an incentive to be an in-houser ..., says this mouser.

Overbooked ...

Overbooked IP event plus waiting list = ?  Yesterday morning, at precisely 10.28 am, the IPKat and Merpel launched an exciting event scheduled for the afternoon of 1 April, "Online copyright + enforcement = happiness?" in the lovely edifice that is the Blackfriars HQ of law firm Bristows LLP.   Remarkably, less than three hours later, all 120 spaces had been booked up by quick-off-the-mark registrants.  We have now opened a waiting list which you can join via Eventbrite here. We're also discussing possible options with our hosts, including but not limited to a spot of live streaming, depending on the level of interest and demand.  Meanwhile, we're all looking forward to a fascinating and challenging programme the fruits of which will be written up on this weblog.

Is this the sort of partnership
they have in mind ...?

INTA 1: the perfect pairing?  From Milesh S. Gordhandas (Coordinator, Europe Representative Office) comes news that the International Trademark Association (INTA) is organising a conference on "Maintaining the Perfect Partnership" in New York on 4 to 5 March. This, says Milesh, offers a great opportunity for European counsel to learn (rectius: learn more) about the US market, enabling them to meet with various US-based counsel (historical note: this follows up an event that INTA organised in London in 2009 called “Creating the Perfect Partnership”. According to the best available information, this event is less focused on legal education than on practical aspects involved in in-house and outside counsel relationships, such as communication, fees and budgeting, ethics and understanding of the client’s business. Details are available here. Merpel likes the idea of perfect partnerships when it comes to brands: even though, being a Kat, she can't really tell the difference, she does think "Bacardi and Coke" slips off the tongue more smoothly than "Rum and carbonated cola beverage flavoured with vegetable extract".

INTA 2: trifle at the Eiffel!  On Monday the Kats mentioned that the same organisation was holding a pre-Annual Meeting reception in London on Monday 24 February. But that's not all. We now learn from Annual Meeting co-chair David Stone that, together with INTA CEO Etienne Sanz de Acedo, he will also be hosting a pre-Meeting reception in Simmons & Simmons's Paris office on Wednesday 12 February 2014.  To register just click here.