Armelle FOUDA MVONDO EPSE TALA’s Post

Trade secret management In order to comprehensively protect innovation in a company, many companies not only rely on patents, trade marks and design rights, but also use trade secrets for matters that cannot be protected in any other way. However, the protection of trade secrets is handled very differently in different jurisdictions. India, for example, is just in the process of introducing its first law on trade secret protection. #tradesecret #protection

The lifeblood of innovation flows through the arteries of secrets. Every great discovery, every revolutionary idea, begins cloaked in the veil of the unknown - a fragile seedling that must be nurtured and protected until it blossoms into its full potential. Trade secrets are the guardians of this sacred process, the unseen fortresses that shield the spark of genius from those who would extinguish it before it can ignite the world. In an era where knowledge is currency and ideas are the new gold, the preservation of trade secrets is a strategic imperative that transcends mere commercial interests. It is a battle for the very soul of progress, a tug-of-war between those who seek to advance the frontiers of human achievement and those who would pillage its treasures for personal gain. As jurisdictions grapple with the intricate dance of protecting intellectual property while fostering innovation, the challenge lies in striking a delicate balance – a harmonious chord that resonates with the universal yearning for knowledge while respecting the sanctity of intellectual sovereignty. For in the end, trade secrets are not mere legal constructs or economic bargaining chips; they are the embodiment of human ingenuity, the manifestation of our relentless pursuit of understanding, and the bridge that spans the chasm between what is and what can be. To safeguard them is to honor the eternal quest of the human spirit, to preserve the spark that propels us ever forward into the endless frontier of possibility.

Trade secrets are often not given the importance that they deserve as a category of intellectual property rights. While steps are being taken to have a Sui generic trade secrets law in India, the importance of respecting and protecting trade secrets in day to day business is often overlooked or under appreciated. #tradesecrets #intellectualpropertyrights

Effective the 1st of July 2024, the People’s Republic of China’s Company Law will be amended. While regulators have not provided detailed explanations or implementation guidelines on what these amendments will be, we can expect these updates to affect limited liability companies in China in the upcoming years. Find out more here: https://bit.ly/3IJHB6s #China #RegulatoryUpdate #CompanyLaw

The protection of trade secrets has long been understood to be a legitimate business interest, and, traditionally, companies have used non-competition clauses to protect their trade secrets. Now, with non-competition agreements in doubt and facing greater scrutiny, companies will need to rely on other protection mechanisms. From The Intellectual Property Strategist

22nd Law Commission recommends draft of Protection of Trade Secrets Act, 2024 The Twenty-second (22nd) Law Commission of India in its recent Report No. 289 captioned ‘Trade Secrets and Economic Espionage’ proposed a new law on protection of trade secrets captioned “The Protection of Trade Secrets Act, 2024”. Please find attached a brief snapshot of the salient features of the proposed law for information purposes. We hope you find it informative and interesting! #TradeSecretsAct #LawCommissionofIndia Safeena Mendiratta

USTR recently issued a federal register notice announcing a docket for public comments on proposed tariff increases following the four-year 301 review. The docket opened on September 23, 2024 and will close on October 22, 2024. Importers impacted by these increases should make their voice heard by filing comments! Diaz Trade Law can help with your submission and/or with understanding how these increases may impact your business. #trade #tradelaw #tradelawyer #lawyer #diazlaw #yourcustomsexpert

The Trade Mark class headings in Schedule 1 of the Trade Marks Regulations have been amended by the Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Regulator Performance) Regulations 2024 to conform with the 12th edition of the Nice Classification, an international classification system now used by most countries. Read more below to find out how this may impact your goods or services. 

The European dimension of trade mark law is one of the reasons it is so interesting. In doing some research, I noticed that Italy in 2019 made use of the extended protection under article 10(6) of the Trade Mark Directive, allowing that marks with a reputation can also object to 'other use' e.g. use that is not done for the purpose of distinguishing goods and services. I would be very interested to learn from my Italian colleagues if the Italian courts already gave a ruling on what qualifies as 'other use' (artistic, political, comical?). Please leave a reply or send me a DM.

Trade Mark Revocation and Invalidation in Macau: Legal Insights The grounds for revocation include: • Failure to pay renewal fees. • No serious use for three consecutive years. • Changes that harm the trade mark's identity. • Becoming a generic trade term. • Becoming misleading to consumers. Grounds for invalidity include: • Object of the mark cannot be protected. • Infringement of public order and morals. • Infringement of essential procedures and formalities for mark grant, unless distinctiveness is acquired through use. • Infringement of legal provisions determining ownership. • Infringement of rights of third parties based on priority or others. • Registration granted without required proof documents or authorizations, or if the mark infringes Industrial Property Act provisions on relative grounds of opposition. For more details on this Trade Mark Revocation and Invalidation in Macau: Legal Insights, please see here: https://ow.ly/4uUr50QqeqJ This article does not represent legal advice and cannot be construed as such. Please contact an attorney to obtain guidance on these matters.