The process of the UK leaving the EU.
It’s been a busy couple of weeks for the UK government, and what can now only be described as the Brexit nightmare rumbles on. Despite the deadline for the UK’s departure from the EU being just over a week away, we are still no clearer on how or when exactly this will take place, with…
After a Christmas full of German chocolate, French wine and Italian coffee, the UK has now turned its attention once more to its membership within the EU, and the impending lack thereof. With yesterday’s vote, Parliament voted against the deal proposed by the Prime Minister, to govern the British exit of the European Union. The…
The position which the UK may face if it leaves the EU with no deal in place, is discussed in a separate post accessible here. This post will discuss the Draft Withdrawal Agreement and its implications for brand owners, in the event that it is adopted in March 2019. The updated draft Withdrawal…
As set out in our previous post, the UK Government recently published a series of White Papers, detailing their envisioned protocol for the treatment of IP rights, following a no deal Brexit. Shortly after this development, the United Kingdom Government published the Withdrawal Agreement, as has now been agreed by the Cabinet. This document will…
Whilst it is highly debatable whether the EU Withdrawal Agreement will get through the UK Parliament, the chances are that if any revised deal is struck later, the IP provisions will remain unchanged. (The Johnson brothers, and even Jacob Rees-Mogg are unlikely to be terribly exercised about matters such as the continued application post- 31…
With the likelihood of a no deal scenario increasing as March 2019 draws closer, the UK Government has now published a series of papers detailing the likely ramifications of a such a Brexit. Of particular note, the Government has published papers discussing the likely treatment of trade marks and designs, copyright, patents, and exhaustion. With…
After many months of uncertainty, we have now received a degree of assurance as to the manner in which EUTM and RCD rights will persist in the UK following Brexit. This assurance has come from Robin Walker, the Under-Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, in a recent Parliamentary debate: UK-owned trademarks and…
In a recent Notice to Stakeholders, the European Commission has highlighted a possible outcome for customs and enforcement, following the British exit from the EU. Whilst this is subject to transitional provisions and the withdrawal agreement at large, it serves to reiterate the cliff edge which may conceivably be presented to UK based brand owners…
In a recent statement, the European Commission has confirmed that institutions and individuals based in the UK will no longer be able to register domains using the .eu TLD, as of the UK’s withdrawal date from the EU (which currently stands at 29th March 2019*). For those institutions or individuals who currently own such a…
In a recent open letter to the European Commission, representatives of CITMA, AIM, APRAM, BMM, ECTA, INTA and MARQUES set out a collaborative response to the draft withdrawal agreement. This document contains recommendations and considerations relating to the treatment of IP in the draft agreement, as well as a great many acronyms. The key points…
