- McDaniels IP Solicitors | Intellectual Property Lawyers Newcastle

Guess, you left Banksy no choice

Political street artist Banksy went viral on social media on Friday over a post accusing Guess of using his artwork without consent to front their Guess store on Regent Street, London. In the Instagram post, which attracted over 1.7 million likes, Banksy wrote “Attention all shoplifters please go to GUESS on Regent Street. They’ve helped […]

Banksy's Monkeys Back to Business

Back in May 2021, we reported on the European Union Intellectual Property Office’s (“EUIPO”) decision to declare Banksy’s well-known “monkey sign” trade mark “invalid in its entirety” following opposition to the mark by the company “Full Colour Black”. That decision was made on the basis of bad faith and lack of distinctiveness. However, after a […]

All I Want is to be the Queen of Christmas

Mariah Carey has found herself on Santa’s naughty list this year after the US Trade Mark Trial and Appeal Board ruled against Carey’s attempt to trade mark the name “Queen of Christmas”. Mariah Carey’s company, Lotion LLC attempted to register the mark at the United States Patent and Trade Mark Office in March 2021 for […]

Bumper Case for Camper Vans

Big brands are, of course, big business and those big brands tend to be incredibly proactive and often aggressive in protecting their rights. A perfect example of this has always been Volkswagen and the manner in which they protect their iconic campervan designs. Companies pay substantial sums of money to license the camper van design […]

A Paramount Problem: Continued

Back in June we reported on “a Paramount Problem” unfolding over the release of Top Gun: Maverick. The family of the late Ehud Yonay sued Paramount Pictures (“Paramount”) for copyright infringement over the release of the film. Since then, Paramount filed a motion to dismiss, which has been rejected by the court. The motion was […]

Too Savage for Vogue

Rappers Drake and 21 Savage – whose real name is Shéyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph – (“the Rappers”), have been sued by global mass media company and publisher of Vogue magazine, Condé Nast, for the unauthorised use of both its brand name and trade marks. The Rappers photoshopped themselves on a fake “VOGUE” magazine cover and plastered […]

Putin Trade Mark Laws to the Test

Amidst the western sanctions placed on Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, the head of the state, Vladimir Putin has authorised parallel imports for various popular alcoholic drink brands. Parallel imports (also known as “Grey Market” goods) are defined by the International Trade Mark Association as: “…Branded goods that are imported into a market and […]

Maya In A Jama Over Trade Mark Application

Maya Jama is a well-known TV and radio presenter and DJ. Like many other celebrities she has sought to capitalise on her fame by branching out and launching ranges of fashion, cosmetics, and jewellery bearing her name. Part of this strategy has been to seek to launch the ranges in the USA and as part […]

Online Copyright Registration now available in China

The China Copyright Protection Centre has recently implemented a process to facilitate the online registration of copyright works, meaning that applicants no longer need to submit paper applications in the post. There is no requirement to register copyright works in the United Kingdom but that position is not shared in all jurisdictions. The USA and […]

"This is Awkward"

Disney is facing further allegations of intellectual property infringement, this time over the song “Some Things Never Change” (“the Song”) in the film Frozen 2. A musician, Daniel Grigson, has issued proceedings against both Disney and songwriter Robert Lopez, alleging the Song is basically identical to his song “That Girl”. Grigson claims to have first […]

Mariah Care-free

Back in June, we reported on Andy Stone, who had issued proceedings against Mariah Carey on grounds of copyright infringement over the title of the hit Christmas song “All I Want For Christmas Is You”. Stone, who took 28 years to bring his claim against Mariah Carey, has since pulled the plug on the proceedings. […]

Battle of the Supermarkets

Tesco has made steps to revive part of its claim against German-owned supermarket Lidl. Back in 2021, Lidl sued Tesco, alleging trade mark infringement over Tesco’s Clubcard logo (“the Logo”). Lidl claims the Logo is too similar to its own. Lidl further claimed Tesco was trying to “ride on its coat-tails” by using a yellow […]

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