NIPC News

Jane Lambert

The IPO has published details of the China IP Roadshow 2017 when our IP attaché, Tom Duke, will tour Scotland and the North of England between 18 and 20 Sept. My chambers are assisting with the Yorkshire leg of his tour and I can tell you that there have been a lot of enquiries and we are already into double figures with the bookings. If you want to attend the Leeds event call my clerk Steve on 020 7404 5252 or send him an email without delay.

Most British businesses do very well in China but things can go wrong sometimes. When they do, they can have repercussions here. That is where I come in.  Here are some of the problems that occasionally arise:
The British trade mark of a company that applies to register that mark in China is opposed, invalidated or revoked;A company that imports goods from China for distribution in the UK finds that its supplier has no or insufficient legal protection for those goods here;A British distributor that imports goods made to its order in C…

Jane Lambert
Some homework for those who are coming to hear our IP attaché, Tom Duke, speak about Succeeding in China - How to mitigate IP risk in Barnsley, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London or Manchester this September.

The Intellectual Property Office has produced a very helpful guide entitled Intellectual property rights in China.  A quick read of this guide before he speaks will enable you to make the most of Mr Duke's talk, especially if you are new to the subject.

Although our law differs from China's in detail the basic concepts are the same because China is a member of many of the same international agreements to which we belong. Thus patents protect new inventions. trade marks brands, copyrights literary and artistic works and so on. But there are some rights in Chima that do not exist in our law such as utility models and vice versa. Also, they can enforce IP rights through administrative measures as well as by civil litigation.

For many years technology t…

Doing Business After Brexit A Practical Guide to the Legal ChangesBy:Helen Tse

Jane Lambert

Yesterday the Rt Hon David Davis MP introduced the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill into the House of Commons and his Department announced a flurry of position papers and guidance on the Bill. On the same day, The Commission's Taskforce on Art 50 Negotiations published an even bigger pile of position papers ranging from atomic energy to parallel imports. There could not be a better time for the publication of Doing Business After Brexit, a practical but comprehensive guide to the legal changes edited by Helen Tse.

The book consists of 13 chapters covering every area of law covering everything from Commercial Contracts to Tax. I have contributed the chapter on Intellectual Property and Data Protection.  I have written it in the way that I write this blog, with the business owner or manager very much in mind. On 29 March 2019, a massive corpus of legislation and case law will cease to be part …

Jane Lambert


In my June UPC Ratification Update 5 June 2017 I wrote:

"There is every chance that the Court will open its doors before the end of this year."

Famous last words! Two days later the UPC Preparatory Committee wrote that "the previously announced target date for the entry into operation of the UPC, envisaged for December 2017, cannot be maintained" (seeUPC – Timetable Update – June 20177 June 2017 UPC website).

For once it is not out fault. Even though we are negotiating terms for exiting the European Union (see Brexit Briefing June 201730 June 2017 NIPC News) we remain on course to ratify the UPC Agreement well before we go. The last legislative hurdle is the ratification of the Protocol on Privileges and Immunities of the Unified Patent Court and that will be done by The Unified Patent Court (Immunities and Privileges) Order 2017 a draft of which has been laid before Parliament together with an explanatory memorandum.

The holdup seems to have been caus…

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Jane Lambert


A lot has happened since my last Brexit briefing in January 2017:

HMG has published its white papers on exiting from, and new partnership with, the European Union and its "great repeal bill";The Prime Minister sought unsuccessfully to take advantage of a massive lead in the opinion polls to increase her parliamentary majority in order to strengthen her hand in the Brexit negotiations;Negotiations have commenced between the British government and the EU and terms of reference have been agreed;The Commission's Art 50 Task Force has created a very useful microsite on the Brexit negotiations with some very useful publications including position papers on ongoing judicial and administrative procedures and  Judicial Cooperation in Civil and Commercial Matters;The Queen's speech has survived an amendment requiring the UK to remain in the customs union and single market but not without a substantial rebellion on the Labour benches and the …