Views on an evolving automotive industry – standards and essential patents

13 January, 2021
In the latest edition of the HSF Automotive sector's series of articles looking at the evolution of the industry Andrew Moir, Ina vom Feld, Frédéric Chevallier, David Webb and Laura Adde of our London, Düsseldorf and Paris IP teams consider some of the key issues surrounding standard essential patents or SEPs for those in the sector. These include, in particular, how standards work, their role in the Automotive sector, how fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) licensing operates, and the risks of litigation and the varying approaches across Europe (in the UK, Germany and France in particular). Read more

The Trade and Cooperation Agreement and its impact on IP, Pharma and Medical Devices

11 January, 2021
The final Brexit agreement, the Trade and Cooperation Agreement was agreed between the UK and the EU on 24 December 2020. Within this agreement are provisions that set out the standards expected to be recognised (mutually) between the EU and the UK in relation to intellectual property (including SPCs and trade secrets). There are some provisions concerning pharmaceutical regulation and product standards, but overall there is a lack of mutual recognition, with the consequence that, for both pharmaceuticals and medical devices, there are now effectively two separate regimes for the EU and the UK. Read more

Human Says No: AI Can’t Be Patent Inventor, Rules High Court Judge

24 September, 2020
In the latest instalment of the DABUS saga, the UK High Court has dismissed an appeal against the decision of the UK Intellectual Property Office (‘UKIPO’) rejecting the naming of an AI system as inventor on two patent applications. Monday’s judgment was made on the basis that DABUS “is not, and cannot be, an inventor … Read more