We hear from the BBC of the opening of a former Woolworths store in Dorchester, England. The new name of the store? Wellworths! Surely there must be some TM infringement here? Will the new owners of the Woolworths brand, the Barclay bothers, have something to say about this?

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We have today received the UKIPO consultation document which sets out proposed changes to the system of applying for and registering trademarks in the UK. The main thrust of the consultation is that official fees will drop by varying amounts depending how the trademark is applied for. This seems to be in direct response to [...]

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The High Court has overturned the UK IPO’s previous decision to refuse to allow the names of shopping centres to be registered as trade marks in class 35. The Court relied upon the ECJ’s decision in Praktiker Bau- und Heimwerkermärkte AG [2005] ECR I-5873, which related to retail services, finding that there was no reason [...]

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