Intellectual Property

Coexistence agreements bring peace in trademark disputes

A carefully crafted coexistence agreement can help prevent costly trademark infringement litigation while protecting the brand, says Toronto intellectual property lawyer John Simpson. Simpson, principal of IP and new media law boutique…

Important to keep an eye to the future in co-branding deals

Co-branding deals can help businesses expand their market but caution is required when entering into such agreements. It is especially important to consider what happens when the partnership ends, says Toronto intellectual…

Non-fungible tokens the next trademark challenge on the horizon

As digital products become more popular, consumer brand owners are increasingly looking to secure trademark rights in non-fungible tokens (NFTs), says Toronto intellectual property lawyer John Simpson. Simpson, principal of IP and new…

Adidas loses battle of the stripes in trademark infringement lawsuit

Adidas’ recent Dutch Supreme Court loss after a 25-year trademark infringement fight with international clothing company H&M illustrates how owning a famous logo can be a “double-edge sword,” says Toronto intellectual property…

Willy Wonka ad shows effectiveness of social media IP policing policies

The Willy Wonka attack ad against Justin Trudeau on Twitter is a good example of how intellectual property rights enforcement procedures on social media platforms can give rights owners much quicker results…

SCC refuses to say whether copyright guidelines are fair dealing

The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) handed York University a big win last month, holding that it is not bound to pay royalties to Access Copyright under a collective licensing regime. But…

The intellectual property protection Banksy wants comes at a cost

The latest attempt by famed street artist Banksy to remain in the shadows while protecting his iconic work from unauthorized reproduction is “an interesting study in the differences between copyright and trademark…

Copyright case examines the issue of history repeating itself

It has often been said that one cannot rewrite history but that is not necessarily the case when it comes to copyright law, says Toronto intellectual property lawyer John Simpson. Simpson, principal of IP and…

Trademarks Office unveils measures to ease ’embarrassing’ backlog

New measures designed to expedite trademark applications are certainly welcome but may not go far enough to ease a growing backlog in the Canadian Trademarks Office, says Toronto intellectual property lawyer John Simpson. The Canadian Intellectual Property…