MoFo Tech

September 08, 2021 - Artificial Intelligence + Robotics, Intellectual Property
AI as a Patent Inventor – an Update from South Africa and Australia
By: Alistair Maughan, Georgia Wright and Anna Yuan
Although the European, U.S., and UK Patent Offices have denied patent applications on the grounds that an AI system cannot be listed as an inventor, not every country seems to be following that approach and some may be set to buck the trend. Last
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July 13, 2021 - Intellectual Property, European Union
Green Light for UPC
By: Wolfgang Schönig
UPC – And it got up again Having been sent down for the count by constitutional complaints in Germany, the road finally seems paved for the Unified Patent Court. On July 9, 2021, the German Federal Constitutional Court (GFCC) announced that it had dismissed
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June 22, 2021 - Intellectual Property, European Union
Recent Developments Regarding Patent Injunctions in Germany
By: Wolfgang Schönig and Robert Grohmann
The German patent system has repeatedly proven to provide reliable and effective means to enforce patent rights against infringers. There are three key reasons why the German patent system is so attractive for patentees when seeking to enforce their rights in Europe: Injunction gap:
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December 15, 2020 - Intellectual Property, European Union
Huawei v. ZTE revisited – German automotive patent wars to reshape SEP litigation in Europe
By: Wolfgang Schönig and Robert Grohmann
I. Introduction On November 26, the Dusseldorf Regional Court handed down a long awaited decision in the so-called automotive patent wars (case ID 4c O 17/19). The court referred heatedly debated questions in connection with the enforcement of standard essential patents (“SEPs”) to the
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May 21, 2020 - Intellectual Property, European Union
Germany Adopts Administrative Trademark Cancellation Actions
By: Robert Grohmann
On May 1, 2020 the last part of the German Trademark Law Modernization Act ( Markenrechtsmodernisierungsgesetz – “MaMoG”), which contains practical relevant amendments to the procedural rules of the German trademark system, took effect. In particular, an administrative procedure for the revocation and the
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May 01, 2020 - Intellectual Property
Landmark Trademark Protection Case Before Supreme Court
By: Muzamil Huq
This Monday, May 4, 2020, the United States Supreme Court will hear its first-ever telephonic oral arguments in a trademark case regarding the nature of the boundary between “descriptive” and “generic” terms. While the question presented is narrow—whether the addition of a generic top-level
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February 18, 2020 - Regulatory, Litigation, Intellectual Property
New USPTO Rule Likely to Increase Spam
By: Muzamil Huq
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) just issued new rules that directly affect trademark owners. Going forward, trademark applicants, registrants, and parties to a proceeding before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board will need to provide their email address in USPTO filings.
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January 21, 2020 - Intellectual Property, Financings
SEC Staff Issues Guidance on Technology, Data and Intellectual Property Risks in International Operations
By: David M. Lynn
On December 19, 2019, the Staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Corporation Finance issued guidance outlining the Staff’s views about disclosure obligations that companies should consider with respect to technology, data and intellectual property risks that could arise when operations
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December 18, 2019 - Litigation, Intellectual Property
Striking the Balance in Trade Secret and Corporate Espionage Disputes
By: Matthew A. Chivvis
In 2017, the Commission on the Theft of American Intellectual Property issued a report to Congress estimating that the theft of trade secrets could cost the United States economy as much as $600 billion annually. In the years following, news reports indicate that alleged
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December 12, 2019 - Asia, Intellectual Property
Crossing Borders
By: Janet Xiao
Partner Janet Xiao, who leads the firm’s China Life Sciences Group, co-authored an article with associate Can Cui for Intellectual Property Magazine , titled “ Crossing Borders ,” which explores technology transfer opportunities emerging from import rules in China. The authors note that Chinese
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