Owners of trade marks face a difficult choice when they learn that their products have been counterfeited and are being sold in Malaysia. The recommended course of action is to conduct an investigation by an authorized private investigator to find out who is producing or selling the counterfeit product and obtain a trap purchase. Through […]
Malaysia - Trade Description Order for trade mark infringement
In Malaysia a trade mark owner can enforce his rights in a number of ways. A effective means of enforcement against an infringer of a trade mark or a person liable for passing off, would be to obtain a Trade Description Order (TDO). This is provided by virtue of section 16 of the Trade Description […]
The Singapore Court Revokes Patent For Lack of Novelty And Inventive Step
In a recent patent infringement case in Singapore, the courts dealt with the issue of validity of the patent in suit. The case was between Muhlbauer AG (the plaintiff) and Manufacturing Integration Technology Ltd (the defendant). The plaintiff is a company incorporated in Germany. It is the registered proprietor of Singapore patent number 117982 entitled […]
Malaysia - Court Nullifies Trade Description Order
In Malaysia a trade mark owner as the possibility of enforcing his rights by way of trade description order wherein an order of court is obtained to declare an infringing brand as false trade description, which allows infringing products to be seized by the authorities and the infringers prosecuted. However the importance of obtaining an […]
Singapore - Copyright Infringement Confirmed As Copyright Infringement Suit of a Virtual Map Runs Its Course
A long running legal saga has now come to an end with the Singapore Court of Appeal's decision that Virtual Map (VM) had no further right to appeal against the High Court's decision finding them guilty of infringing the Singapore Land Authority's (SLA) copyright in it's street directory vector data and it's address point vector […]
Appeal Procedures in Vietnam for Industrial Design Rights In Place
On 19-20 December 2007, the National Intellectual Property Office (NOIP) of Vietnam in co-operation with the EC-ASEAN Intellectual Property Rights Co-operation Programme, ECAP II organised a two-day seminar in Hanoi. This comprehensive training with highlights on Opposition and Appeal Procedures on Trade Marks and Industrial Designs managed to gather about 100 participants of the Inspectorate […]
India - Trade Mark Holder Scores Absolut Victory
V&S Vin & Spirit Aktiebolag (V&S), the owner of the Absolut trade mark, one of the most well-known and reputed brands in the world for spirits and luxury goods, filed a civil suit in India against Bangalore based pharmaceutical company Pharmed and one of its subsidiaries (Pharmed) for infringing, passing off and diluting its well-known […]
Thai Design Patent Revoked For Lack Of Novelty
The Supreme Court of Thailand has dealt with the issue of novelty of a design patent in the case of Little Bell Co., Ltd v Pongsawad Tiananon (Case No. 2824/2007). In this case, the Plaintiff, a corporation known as Little Bell Co. Ltd took legal action and contested the validity of the Second Defendant's product […]
Malaysia - Functional or utilitarian characteristics of an article of manufacture are not protectable under passing off law
Alfa Laval ( M) Sdn Bhd v Ng Ah Hai & Ors [2008] 5 MLJ 344 The Plaintiff, Alfa Laval (M) Sdn Bhd, a manufacturer and supplier of plate heat exchangers and plate under the brand 'Alfa Laval' applied for an injunction to inter alia restrain the Defendants from passing off imitation plate heat exchangers […]
Malaysian Patent - Interim Injunction Granted in Malaysia Based on American Cyanamid principles
In the case of Aventis Farma SA (m) Sdn Bhd v Rohibul Sabri bin Abbas @ Megat & Anor [2008] 3 MLJ 451, This case is based on the selling generic version of docetaxel trihydrate (hereinafter referred to as "DT") According to the Plaintiffs, the Defendants had infringed their Malaysian Granted Patent MY-118481-A (herein after […]